BENEFITS DURING FMLA

Magestry

I'm not really sure how to pose this question but I'll try to explain it in an example form.

We have an employee on FMLA, Maternity leave. Our company pays 100% of their health insurance premium, no their dependants. They do pay the dependants portion upon their return, we double deduct. Our policy manual reads:

If you require more than 4 weeks of recovery from an illness or injury (or care for a family member) "FMLA" you will be asked to pay the full cost of your health insurances beginning on the 5th week. The repayment of the employee portion for the first four weeks will be withheld from the first four paychecks when you return to work.

I have asked the different decision makers to explain this to me a little more, but I still do not understand this. Can anyone please try to interpret this policy for me?

Theresa Gegen TX

The FMLA requires the employer to continue benefits just like the employee was still at work. So if the employer normally pays 100% of the cost of health benefits, the employer must continue to pay that 100% for the 12 weeks of FMLA leave.

If your company's policy means that the employee must reimburse the employer for his or her medical coverage after 4 weeks, the policy violates the FMLA.

If your company's policy means that the employee must pay the normal portion that the employee would have paid if the employee had never taken leave, then there is no violation.

But, as the policy is ambigious, it might be better to rewrite it.

Good Luck!