We're here for our employees, clients and customers.
Ep. 1: Top FMLA mistakes #1: Misunderstanding eligibility
February 25, 2020
)
Episode details
Ellen McCann, a national expert on leave management, gives an overview to the Family Medical Leave Act (FMLA). She unpacks the most common eligibility errors that employers make while administering the FMLA – and why correctly determining eligibility is such a crucial first step.
Top takeaways
- Once an employer is covered for one year, they’re covered for two years. Check your math: Did you have at least 50 employees on your payroll for at least 20 weeks this year or last year? [04:03]
- The only employees you don’t count are expats and independent contractors. You do need to count temps. [05:20]
- Remember there are different standards for covered employers and covered employees. You may have no covered employees, but as an employer you may still have obligations. [06:34]
- You don’t have to count leaves of absence in your hours worked, apart from instances of military leave. However, be careful to count hours worked by temp workers. [10:05]
Listen to HR Trends on:
Have an idea for our next podcast?
Stay up to date and informed with the latest company information and helpful links on our COVID-19 resource center.
HR Trends newsletter
Join our newsletter to stay up to date with the latest HR topics
Featured speaker
)
Ellen McCann
Assistant Vice President, Legal Counsel, Unum's Employment Law Group
Ellen McCann is an acclaimed national speaker on leave management issues, including the Family and Medical Leave Act (FMLA) and Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA). She is also a certified trainer for the Society for Human Resources Management (SHRM) and continuing education (CE) credit. As Assistant Vice President, Legal Counsel for Unum’s Employment Law Group, Ellen advises Human Resources on all employment-related legal issues. She also provides legal support to Unum’s Absence Management Center, which provides leave administration services to its customers. Presently, Unum’s leave administration product includes administration of close to 200 state leave laws in addition to FMLA and covers close to 3 million lives. Ellen has been employed by Unum for 23 years and worked for a law firm in Boston for seven years prior to joining Unum.
About the host
)
Clare Morin
Unum Content Marketing Manager
Clare Morin is the Content Marketing Manager at Unum and a journalist who’s spent the last 20 years interviewing hundreds of thought leaders on topics ranging from wellness to culture, finance, human resources and technology. Born in the UK, raised in Hong Kong and based in the U.S. since 2009, she brings a global outlook to the HR Trends studio.
You may be interested in
)
Guide
FMLA Handbook
)
Article