FMLA for Part Time EE

FunHRBanker

An employee is regularly scheduled to work Monday, Tuesday, Thursday. If she switches with someone else to work Wednesday, Tuesday, Thursday, and uses Monday as an FMLA day, do I deduct from her bank for that day even though she essentially "made up" the time by working Wednesday?

Thanks!

SMace

Lots of questions. Is Monday still a scheduled day? I'm not sure how an ee would consistently use one scheduled day as "an FMLA day". Intermittent FMLA is the result of a medical condition. Is her condition going to flare up every Monday? If she has a dr appt every Monday, I would have her reschedule it for Friday. You are going to have to give more info before I can give any advice.

FunHRBanker

She has to take her mother for chemo treatments every Monday for 4 weeks. If she is normally scheduled to work on Monday, but switches with another employee (the schedule is not changed, the employees have simply switched days), is Monday considered FMLA?

Hopefully that answered your questions!

Lisa In Iowa

My first question is did this part time employee work 1,250 hours during the past 12 months, and has she been employed for at least one year. Just thought I'd make sure that she actually qualifies for FMLA.

If I am understanding you correctly, because she is not able to work on Mondays (because she is taking her mom to chemo), she has switched her Monday shift with another person who typically doesn't work Mondays, and has worked a different day that she typically does not work. So, at the end of the week, her hours for the week as the same as what they were before she had to take her mom to treatments. If so, I would say that as long as you allow employees to switch shifts, then you would not count any of it as FMLA.

It is definitely to everyone's advantage to switch with someone because she doesn't lose out on any pay, and you as the employer are not without any employees.

That is my two cents....

FunHRBanker

In WI the qualifier is 1000 hours in the 52 weeks preceding the date of the request.

When I called our advisors, they told me that if an employee takes off a day they are regularly scheduled to work, it is counted as a day of FMLA regardless if they make up the hours or not.

Lisa In Iowa

Wow! Thanks for the clarification! I had not heard of that before, and was not aware of that! FMLA is one of those those areas that no matter how many situations you work through, I always seem to learn something new. Thanks for replying!

FunHRBanker

That's EXACTLY what I'm finding too! Never have enough info to cover every instance

M. Lee Smith put on a webinar last month on Control FMLA Abuse: Documentation Tactics to Deter Employees who "Work the System". I didn't get any specific tips to reduce abuse, but there were excellent suggestions for policies, forms, and approval/denial notices.

joannie

Maybe this is too simplistic, but if she has been changing days with another ee, why couldn't you officially make the shift change and not have to worry about FMLA?

FunHRBanker

Essentially that's what we've done going forward, but for any extra days, we want to be covered.