4 Easy Steps for Managing Leaves of Absence

Authored by Steve Holden. Published in the Sacramento Business Journal March 2015.

By following four easy steps in managing employee leaves of absence, employers can greatly reduce the risk of making mistakes and the resulting liability.

Step One: Understand that managing employee leaves is not easy. Numerous complex and conflicting laws apply. Moreover, the management of leaves can be time-consuming, and time is often in short supply because employee leaves can leave an employer short-handed.

Step Two: Obtain a good overview of the leave laws and develop “red flag” awareness. More than 25 different types of leave are protected by law. Additionally, many anti-discrimination laws effectively protect employees taking leaves of absence.

Step Three: Analyze each leave on a case-by-case, fact-specific basis. Making assumptions and applying standardized formulas is very dangerous when it comes to employee leaves. The structures of most leave laws demand that a detailed factual analysis be performed in order to correctly apply the law. Because of this and because of parallel privacy laws, employers should take great care in obtaining the necessary facts. Employees charged with gathering facts should be properly trained on the process and should seek professional guidance in cases of doubt.

Step Four: Diligently track, manage and document the leave, leave changes and the leave conclusion.

Once the facts are analyzed and the application of law is known, it is essential to follow several additional steps.

First, the employer must communicate clearly with the employee about whether or not the leave is granted, terms of the leave and expectations placed upon the employee. To the extent possible, this communication should be both oral and written. For certain types of leave this communication must be in writing. And, not just any writing will do. The information must comply with the particular statute and must be complete, clear and readily understandable. Failure to document a leave at the outset is very common and is very often a major problem in defending leave claims.

Second, the employer must carefully calculate and calendar the relevant dates associated with the leave so that it can be tracked.

Third, the employer must monitor the leave of absence. This involves monitoring the calendared dates and taking action on such dates as appropriate. It also involves monitoring changes within the leave. Unfortunately, many leaves are dynamic and the facts supporting the leave change during the leave. The most common change is an extension of a return-to-work date on a medical leave. These changes require the employer to go back to Step Three and conduct another careful analysis.

Fourth, the employer must be responsible for concluding the leave. Properly concluding the leave includes carefully analyzing and processing any return-to-work issues such as medical certifications. It also includes clear employee communications and documentation.

Leave claims most frequently arise out of employer ignorance and innocent mistakes. When they arise, the defense of the claims is frequently hampered by the absence of good communication with the employee and documentation of the communication. Following the four easy steps will significantly reduce exposure to claims and increase employee morale.