Paid Time Off and FMLA in West Virginia
Posted by Tamara
The U. S. Department of Labor states that employers are within their rights to establish their own policies regarding use of paid leave before charging time off to FMLA leave.
The Department of Labor also reports that West Virginia employers, in certain situations, are allowed to deduct paid leave from a worker’s FMLA leave.
FMLA (Family and Medical Leave Act) FMLA provides up to 12 weeks of leave for employees with a serious medical condition, or for baby bonding. This leave is unpaid and job-protected, which means the company must give the returning worker the same job, or a position with comparable pay, benefits and working conditions.
Employers are within legal rights to set policy to require workers to use paid time (sick leave, vacation, personal days, and short-term disability) before using FMLA leave. Companies are also within their rights to deduct the paid time from the available 12 weeks of FMLA leave.
For example, John takes off 6 weeks after surgery to repair his broken leg. His employer can rightfully require John to take all of his sick and vacation time before charging leave to FMLA. The company can also deduct the paid time from John’s FMLA 12 weeks. If he takes 3 weeks of paid time and 3 weeks of unpaid FMLA time, the company is permitted to deduct all 6 weeks from FMLA leave.
The company may also deduct the 6 weeks from FMLA leave without requiring John to use his paid leave. So, when he returns to week, he has 6 weeks of FMLA left, but he also has all his paid sick, vacation, and personal leave available.
In Rhode Island, California, New Jersey, Hawaii and New York, the rules are a little different. These five states have state-mandated short-term disability laws. California, for example, allows employees up to a year of disability with a physician’s statement confirming the need for the time off. The other four states have similar and different laws, so employees should consult their Human Resources professionals for plan details.
Last 10 posts by Tamara
- Louisiana Holiday Pay Law - November 6th, 2009
- Virginia Vacation Law - November 5th, 2009
- Texas Lunch Law - November 4th, 2009
- Indiana Comp Time - November 3rd, 2009
- Georgia Child Labor - November 2nd, 2009
- Michigan Hostile Work Environment - October 31st, 2009
- Salaried Exempt in Mississippi - October 29th, 2009
- Federal 401k - October 28th, 2009
- New Hampshire 401k - October 27th, 2009
- West Virginia Confidential Files - October 26th, 2009