FMLA, Leave & Accommodation

Anytime an employee needs something “special” – leave or changes to schedule/job duties, email leave@arboracres.org – Leave and Accommodation are legally complex areas, so always contact HR, but the basics are important to know.

Leave versus “Time Off”

• We all need time off. This could be for a routine doctor’s appointment, vacation or a simply a day away from work.
• Our attendance policy and your departmental attendance policies should be clearly shared with staff, including:
  • Notice requirements and who/how to notify.
  • When time off will NOT be considered approved and may count against staff for discipline. (Examples: It wasn’t requested in advance according to policy, or the supervisor says NO to the request but the employee still takes the day off. A supervisor may say no for reasons such as: someone not having any more PTO, or other people needing time off at the same time.)
  • FMLA/approved leave time is always approved as long as Artists follow time off request rules. (Emergency call-ins should be as prompt as possible.)
• Sometimes people need leave due to bereavement or jury duty – Notify payroll – here’s the link to Artist Central’s FAQ.
• If time off is for personal medical reasons for an Artist or their family members, and is in excess of  3 days (continuous or not, for the same issue), or  military reasons (self/others) or for birth or care of a child (or fostering or adopting), TELL HR ASAP using leave@arboracres.org

What you need to know about Leave & FMLA:

You don’t need to be an expert in FMLA, ADA leave, PWFA leave or USERRA. In fact you just need to know a few important things.

1. Please never tell an Artist they are eligible for leave (or not). HR must determine.
2. Please never tell an Artist if they’ll be paid for the leave, or whether or not their benefits will continue. (Short Term Disability  (1 yr wait) or Workers Comp might apply after a waiting period, but often PTO must be used. FMLA always allows for benefits continuation, as does USERRA, but other types of leave may not.)
3. Always contact HR when an Artist needs leave for: personal medical reasons for them or their family members, in excess of  3 days time off (continuous or not, for the same issue), or if they need time off for military reasons or for birth or care of a child (or fostering or adopting).
4. Even if no other leave applies, Artists may be eligible for a 4-week leave (provided no more than once per year) offered by the company.
5. We all have issues in our life. Be kind & confidential. Remind yourself (if you get frustrated) and your team that we care about each other and if we have a hard time, we will appreciate the leave the company can offer.
6. Those on intermittent leave still should be held accountable to work expectations and to attendance rules like not to say they’ll be out. HOWEVER, we do want to make sure we don’t take out our frustrations with being short-staffed by suddenly holding them accountable for issues that started long ago. This will not feel good to the Artist or their teammates who may feel you are retaliating.

ADA Accommodations and “Light Duty”

 
IMPORTANT: If an Artist ever needs an adjustment to their job or schedule for any reason, that might be considered an accommodation that we might be expected to offer everyone who asks for it, and it may not be reasonable for the organization (an undue hardship). We require all accommodations to be discussed with HR. Email leave@arboracres.org every time an adjustment is needed.

Be aware that there is a difference between reasonable accommodation and light duty.

• Reasonable Accommodation occurs through an interactive discussion between HR, the Artist, their doctor and possibly the manager whereby an Artist continues to perform the full essential functions of their job (but they need some kind of support to do so.) An example might be that an Artist still gets all their work done at an adequate level, but has to take some extra breaks to do so. Maybe an artist needs to sit versus stand for a job, or they need a bigger computer screen. All of these accommodations get them back to their essential job functions.
• Light Duty is when an Artist cannot accomplish their job with reasonable accommodation. Therefore, we take away essential duties or change the job to allow them to continue to work.

Artists who have an injury at work covered by Workers’ Compensation are always afforded light duty if possible. Managers should go to the Employee Injury section for details on how to create a light duty position for them when they are able to return.

Artists who do not have a workplace injury will not be offered light duty (unless it is a benefit to the organization and would help the employee return at a reasonable point to their essential job functions.) Even if we can’t offer light duty to someone who needs it, we may still be able to offer them leave.

HR always follows an interactive process as described under the section related to reasonable accommodation for individuals who have disabling physical or mental conditions, who are pregnant or who have pregnancy related conditions. This is a legal requirement. We may not approve every accommodation, but we will work to support these individuals through accommodation or leave whenever it is possible, not an undue hardship on the organization, and is with the goal of returning to essential job functions within a reasonable amount of time.