labor lawAdivision of labor law center

On January 1, 2009, New Jersey becomes the third state in the nation to implement a family leave insurance program. The New Jersey Paid Family Leave Act will permit employees to take paid time off to care for a sick family member. The act also provides benefits to workers who take time off to bond with newborn or newly-adopted children.

The New Jersey Family Leave Insurance program is funded by employee tax deductions. The program provides benefits to employees to partially replace income lost when they must take time from work. The law does not entitle employees to additional leave, over and above existing family leave laws such as FMLA, the federal Family and Medical Leave Act and the New Jersey Family Leave Act or NJFLA.

The New Jersey Paid Family Leave program does not guarantee that an employee will be returned to his or her job after leave; it simply provides cash benefits during the leave.

Under the new law, a New Jersey employer can require any employee to use up to two weeks of paid vacation or sick leave, or other paid leave, before going on leave. During these two weeks, (more…)

The U.S. Department of Labor recently issued regulations concerning the use of military leave and expanded FMLA leave for military caregivers.

Speaking on the release, Labor Secretary Elaine L. Chao said, “This final rule, for the first time, gives America’s military families special job-protected leave rights to care for brave service men and women who are wounded or injured, and also helps families of members of the National Guard and Reserves manage their affairs when their service member is called up for active duty.” The Secretary added, “At the same time, the final rule provides needed clarity about general FMLA rights and obligations for both workers and employers.”

The new regulations expand the qualifying family members, for military leave purposes. Traditionally, the FMLA or Family and Medical Leave Act has defined an “immediate family member” as a son or daughter, parent or spouse. Sons and daughters were covered only if they were under the age of 18, or unable to care for themselves. Under the military family leave provision of (more…)

A number of the changes to the FMLA regulations that go into effect in January, 2009, favor the employer. These changes and clarifications were made after the U.S. Department of Labor received comments from employers and input from groups such as the Society of Human Resource Management or SHRM.

Under the new FMLA or Family and Medical Leave Act regulations, employees are entitled to use any paid leave, including sick leave, vacation and personal leave while on FMLA. However, in order to use the leave, the employee must follow the employers usual policy for requesting the paid time off – even if those requirements are more stringent than the FMLA notice requirements.

A major change under the new regulations establishes that employers can deny bonuses, awards or other payments to workers who have not met a specific goal due to FMLA leave.

The new regulations also address a few specialized situations encounted by the U.S. Department of Labor. For example, they permit employers to (more…)

The Maryland Flexible Leave Act requires employers to allow employees to use “leave with pay” for an illness in the employee’s immediate family.

Under this law, “leave with pay” includes vacation, PTO, sick leave, and personal leave. It also includes compensatory time, or “comp time” for those agencies or employers that provide it. Employees can only use paid leave that has been earned. Employers are not required to grant leave that has been accrued but not earned, under this law.

The act defines immediate family as a child, spouse or parent.     .

The new Maryland law does not require that employers offer paid leave of any sort. However, when a Maryland employer does offer such leave, he  or she must permit  employees to use it when a family member is sick.

Under new FMLA or Family and Medical Leave Act regulations that go into effect on January 17, 2009 employers must permit workers to use (more…)

The U.S. Department of Labor issued new regulations for all employers this week regarding military family leave. The updated regulations go into effect on January 17, 2009 although employers would be wise to implement them sooner. This is the most significant expansion of the federal Family and Medical Leave Act, or FMLA, in 15 years.

Under the new regulations, every employer must display a Military Leave Poster prominently in the workplace. This is just the first step that employers must take to inform workers of their rights under this new law.

Under the new federal regulations, employers must provide up to 26 weeks of unpaid, job-protected Military Caregiver Leave in a 12-month period to family members who are caring for a covered service member injured on active duty. The law also applies to family members who are caring for a soldier who has an illness incurred in the line of duty, on active duty.

The new guidelines permit the soldier’s (more…)