Compliance Stuff

A recent May 2025 opinion from the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Seventh Circuit warns employers that they may not be able to rely strictly on a health care provider’s certification under the Family and Medical Leave Act (FMLA) where they have additional information about an employee’s health condition. It also offers guidance to employers on the mechanics of requiring the use of paid leave concurrently with unpaid FMLA leave. Quick Hits A Seventh Circuit opinion warns employers against strictly relying on health care provider certifications for FMLA leave when they possess additional information about an employee’s health condition. Employees who fail to comply with paid leave substitution policies are still entitled to unpaid FMLA leave. Employers may want to review their paid leave substitution policies to ensure compliance with FMLA regulations and avoid potential legal issues. Background In  Davis v. Illinois Department of Human Services , a pregnant employee had missed a...

On July 1, 2025, Maine Governor Janet Mills signed into law  LD 55 , which increases the number of hours of legally required paid time off (PTO) an employee must be able to accumulate year-over-year. Given the changes will take effect on September 24, 2025 , some employers might need to respond quickly. Among the dozens of state and local laws in the United States that mandate employers provide paid sick and safe time or paid time off employees can use for any reason, the way in which Maine’s accrual cap and carryover currently work together is unusual (only Colorado and Allegheny County/Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania take a similar approach). Under the statute, employees are entitled to accrue “up to 40 hours in one year of employment. ” Although the statute does not expressly address the carryover of unused hours from one year to the next, the regulations dictate: “ Covered Employees with accrued and unused hours of earned paid leave from the previous year of employment will have tho...

It’s hard to keep up with all the recent changes to labor and employment law, especially since the law always seems to evolve at a rapid pace. To ensure you stay on top of the latest changes and have an action plan for compliance, here is a quick review of some recent critical developments we tracked and a checklist of the essential items you should consider addressing in July and beyond. _____ Complete your mid-year compliance check.  Sorry to start the checklist with another checklist – but did you know that a heap of new workplace laws take effect halfway through the year?  Here’s your employer cheat sheet to ensure you’re complying with various July 1 effective dates . _____ Assess the impact of new SCOTUS rulings.  As the Supreme Court’s 2024-2025 term ends, the Justices issued some key decisions in June that will affect the workplace.   They  scrapped the extra hurdle  in majority-group bias claims, significantly restricted  who can succeed on po...

  With Election Day (Nov. 5) fast approaching, California employers have a key compliance task to address beforehand: They must post a notice informing employees of their right to paid time off to vote by Oct. 26. Here’s a quick recap of what employers need to know and four steps they should take to ensure they are in compliance. Posting Requirement Under California Elections Code Section 14001, employers are required to post a notice to employees that explains their rights to take time off for voting. This notice must be posted at least 10 days before a statewide election—meaning employers must have the notice up by Saturday, Oct. 26. The notice can be displayed in the workplace or in a location visible to employees as they enter or exit the work premises.  Employers can download a sample notice from the California Secretary of State’s website, and they can also call the Elections Division at 916-657-2166 to order posters. Paid Time Off for Voting California employees are eli...

Compliance reported on how Oregon removed some of the redundancy that was within several paid leave laws already established in Oregon back in  March . Employees will still have the option to use available paid time off available through their employer, such as PTO or vacation to cover them Oregon Family Leave Act leave or Paid Leave Oregon “leaves”.  Employers will be able to cap the use of these benefits with an employee is on PLO leave, so the combined payment to the employee while on leave equals 100% wage replacement.  As it stands right now (before July 1, 2024, employees are able to exceed 100% wage replacement.   It is expected that Oregon Bureau of Labor and Industries will issue regulations to clarify the new law and employers should be cognizant of any additional guidance.   The Compliance Department will report any new changes as they become available.    Source(s):  GovDocs , received on April 18, 2024.