By Jeff Nowak – April 25, 2016
Earlier today, the Department of Labor announced that it soon will require employers across the country to post a new DOL general FMLA Notice in their workplaces. In issuing this new directive, the agency also unveiled a new guide to help employers navigate and administer the FMLA. Here’s the scoop:
New DOL Poster
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Under the FMLA, an FMLA-covered employer must post a copy of the General FMLA Notice in each location where it has any employees (even if there are no FMLA-eligible employees at that location). According to the FMLA rules, the notice must be posted “prominently where it can be readily seen by employees and applicants for employment.”
The DOL has announced that employers soon will be required to post a new General FMLA Notice in its workplaces. According to the DOL, the new poster won’t necessarily include a whole bunch of new information. Rather, the information in the notice will be reorganized so that it’s more reader friendly.
New Employer FMLA Guide
In 2012, the DOL issued a guide to employees to help them navigate their rights under the FMLA. Several years later, DOL now has issued a companion guide for employers. According to the DOL, the Employer’s Guide to the Family and Medical Leave Act (pdf) is designed to “provide essential information about the FMLA, including information about employers’ obligations under the law and the options available to employers in administering leave under the FMLA.”
The new guide was unveiled by the DOL’s Branch Chief for FMLA, Helen Applewhaite, at an annual FMLA/ADA Compliance conference sponsored by the Disability Management Employer Coalition (DMEC). Generally speaking, the new guide covers FMLA administration from beginning to end, and it follows a typical leave process — from leave request through medical certification and return to work.
