Handling Employees Leaves of Absences

Gone are the days when employers can expect their employees to report to work every day.  Gone are the days when employers can have “no fault” attendance policies.  Now employers have to navigate through a complex set of laws that allow employees to take time off for qualifying events or require employers to provide accommodations such as leaves of absences.  These laws have similar goals but very different requirements.  This webinar will walk you through this Bermuda triangle (but it is not really a triangle anymore – more like an octagon). 

Navigating through these various legal requirements can be daunting.  It is even more difficult when you realize that the courts and the agencies charged with enforcing these laws do not always agree about what the laws require.  Learn where the friction is between the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission and the courts when it comes to leaves of absences. Can you ever terminate someone for excessive absenteeism if their absences are due to medical conditions? 

This program will provide answers to these important questions:

• What employers are covered by the Family and Medical Leave Act
• What employees are eligible for FMLA leave
• What are qualifying events under the FMLA
• What happens when an employee exhausts their FMLA
• When a leave of absence is an accommodation under the ADA
• What is a request for an “indefinite leave”?
• Legal requirements under the Pregnancy Discrimination Act
• The interaction between the FMLA, ADA, and workers’ compensation laws
• When you can terminate for excessive absenteeism
• Getting the information you need without violating HIPAA  

Who will Benefit:

• Human Resource Professionals
• Benefit Professionals 
• Managers 
• Supervisors 
• Training
• In-house counsel 
• Financial Officers
• CEOs

Susan Fahey Desmond

Susan Fahey Desmond is a partner with Jackson Lewis, LLP, which has offices in over 54 cities across the United States. She has been representing management in all aspects of labor in employment law since 1985. She is listed in Best Lawyers in America and has been named by Chamber USA as one of America’s Leading Business Lawyers for labor and employment law. She is also listed in Mid-South Super Lawyers and Louisiana Super Lawyers.