Situation A - Family and Medical Leave Act of 1993 In this situation Employee A has taken 11 of his guaranteed 12 weeks of leave provided by the Family and Medical Leave Act of 1993 (FMLA). This leave is unpaid, however ensures that the employee’s medical coverage is maintained during the entire absence from work. “The FMLA entitles eligible employees of covered employers to take unpaid, job-protected leave for specified family and medical reasons with continuation of group health insurance coverage” (United States Department of Labor, 2015).
To be eligible for family or medical leave, an employee must have worked for the employer for a minimum of 12 months, completed 1,250 hours of work in the last 12 months and work at a location with a minimum of 50 employees in a 75 mile radius (United States Department of Labor, 2015). Employee A has been with the company for the required time and the company has more than the required number of employees, it is never stated if he has achieved the minimum number of work hours requirement.
There are a variety of reasons that a person can request leave and they include birth of a child, care for a newly adopted or fostered child, or serious health condition of an employee or immediate family member. Employee A is taking leave in part because his wife is delivering prematurely. This is covered under the FMLA since he is experiencing a family medical situation and caring for his newborn child. Employee A has only used 11 of his 12 guaranteed weeks, within in the next 41 weeks Employee A is eligible for one more week of family leave.
During Employee A’s leave his job is protected so that he may return to work at the same rate of pay and in a similar position. “Upon return from FMLA leave, an employee must be restored to his or her original job or to an equivalent job with equivalent pay, benefits, and other terms and conditions of employment” (United States Department of Labor, 2012). His new manager has agreed to allow Employee A to return to his position with the same rate of pay as is required under the law. Employee A can elect to use vacation or sick time for any of the days he was away from work and it will not count as family leave. Based on the Family Medical Leave Acts guidelines, no violation has occurred. Employee A has been given his job back, the same pay and no negative actions were taken against him. All family leave time taken under the FMLA is unpaid, therefore Employee A has no recourse. It is up to the business if it wishes to grant pay for any leave, in this case no pay was given and under the FMLA it is entirely legal.
Age Discrimination in Employment Act of 1967 In this situation, Employee B is a 68 year old employee that was passed up for a promotion due to age. The situation would be reviewed using the laws written in the Age Discrimination in Employment Act of 1967 (ADEA), which was enacted “to prohibit age discrimination in employment” (Equal Employment Opportunity Commission, 2015). This act protects employees over 40 years old from being discriminated against during employment including hiring, termination, promotion, compensation or benefits. In the case of Employee B, it is specifically promotion that applies to the situation, “ to fail or refuse to hire or to discharge any individual or otherwise discriminate against any individual with respect to his compensation, terms, conditions, or privileges of employment, because of such individual’s age” (Equal Employment Opportunity Commission, 2008). For this act to cover Employee B, the company must meet certain conditions. “The ADEA applies to employers with 20 or more employees, including state and local governments” (Equal Employment Opportunity Commission, 2008). The size of the company is 75 people and Employee B has not signed a waiver that excludes him/her from ADEA rules, therefore he/she is protected under the law. The review scores are irrelevant, the employee was specifically denied a promotion due to age.
A violation has occurred in this situation, it is illegal to not promote on the basis of age under the ADEA. The employee is over 40, therefore is covered under ADEA rules. The law was enacted to protect older workers and “to promote employment of older persons based on their ability rather than age” (Equal Employment Opportunity Commission, 2008). This clear violation can lead to a civil lawsuit if Employee B does not receive compensation for being passed over for a promotion.
Americans with Disabilities Act of 1990 The last situation for evaluation is Applicant C, a wheelchair bound candidate, has applied for a job that requires travel through the building’s seven floors. The business would need to lower the buttons in two of the building’s four elevators for Applicant C to move between floors. The business denied employment based on the modification, citing an undue hardship. This situation will be evaluated using the Americans with Disabilities Act of 1990 (ADA) since the primary reason for denying employment was directly related to the applicant’s disability. The ADA requires that employers do not discriminate against qualified individuals with disabilities in regards to job application procedures, hiring, firing, advancement, compensation, job training, and other terms, conditions, and privileges of employment (Equal Employment Opportunity Commission, 2008). For a company to be covered under the ADA it must have more than 15 employees. Company X has 75 employees, therefore it must follow ADA rules. Applicant C expressed that even though they were wheelchair bound, it would not impair them from completing the job assignment. Applicant C therefore cannot be denied employment simply due to their disability.
The claim made by Company X is that it would be an undue hardship to modify the elevators. “Undue hardship is defined as an action requiring significant difficulty or expense when considered in light of factors such as an employer’s size, financial resources, and the nature and structure of its operation” (Equal Employment Opportunity Commission, 2008). Although Company X is head quartered in a seven story building, its employee size and cost of modification relative to its financial ability could mean that the modification is a true undue hardship. There are many relief programs available through State and Federal agencies that would help offset the cost including tax credits available from the Internal Revenue Service (Equal Employment Opportunity Commission, 2008).
This is a violation of the Americans with Disabilities Act of 1990 for two distinct reasons, both directly relate to the accommodation of the applicant. Company X should have worked with Applicant C to see if they could find a way to accommodate the disability in a less expensive way such as allowing a special call key for the ADA accessible elevators. “If a particular accommodation would be an undue hardship, the employer must try to identify another accommodation that will not pose such a hardship” (United States Department of Justice, 2005). Applicant C also was not given the option to help pay for part or all of the cost of the elevator modification which would offset the undue hardship. “If the cost of an accommodation would impose an undue hardship on the employer, the individual with a disability should be given the option of paying that portion of the cost which would constitute an undue hardship” (United States Department of Justice, 2005). The company’s portion of the costs if shared could still be eligible for a tax credit as well further making the case that there is no undue hardship for Company X. References
United States Department of Labor (2015). Family Medical and Leave Act. United States
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United States Department of Labor. Retrieved on Apr. 30, 2015 from http://www.dol.gov/whd/regs/compliance/whdfs28.pdf
Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (2015). The Age Discrimination in Employment
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United States Department of Justice (2005). Americans with Disabilities Act Questions and
Answers. United States Department of Justice. Retrieved on Apr. 30, 2015 from http://www.ada.gov/employmt.htm