Compliance Update

Reminder on FMLA Requirements for Pregnant and Nursing Mothers



August 2011 Edition 
 
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The Pregnancy Discrimination Act   

 

The Pregnancy Discrimination Act (ADA) applies regardless of how long an employee has worked for you. However, the federal Family and Medical Leave Act (FMLA), has the 12-month, 1,250 hours eligibility requirements.

FMLA requires that your company does the following:

  • Provide FMLA benefits during pregnancy (an employee on bed rest before giving birth would count toward the 12 weeks of total leave.)
  • Provide up to 12 weeks of unpaid leave per year to a father or mother to care for a newborn baby, adopted child, or foster child.
  • Reinstate a parent returning from leave to the same or an equivalent position.
  • Maintain the employee's existing level of coverage (including family or dependent coverage) under a group health plan during FMLA leave, provided the employee pays her share of the premiums.

If you employ both the mother and father of a new baby, they are entitled to a combined total of 12 weeks of maternity/paternity leave, but only for time off to care for a newborn or an adopted child.

Time off for prenatal care, pregnancy complications, or to care for a sick child is not subject to the 12-week combined limit for maternity/paternity leave. Time off for those purposes would be attributed to each individual employee and count toward his or her individual 12-week allotment.

 
Breaks for Nursing Employees

The Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act has amended the Fair Labor Standards Act (FLSA) requiring "reasonable" break time for nursing mothers.

 

FLSA and the new break requirement applies to almost all employers. Employers exempt from the break requirement are those with fewer than 50 employees that would experience undue hardship from "significant difficulty or expense" by complying with the requirement.

 

The Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act allows a nursing mother to be eligible for a "reasonable" break for up to one year after her child's birth. Employers must provide a private place, other than a bathroom, for the employee to use for nursing purposes.

 

For more information on FMLA and to answer questions on COBRA please click here. 

  

 

For more information on the above update and to read previous newsletter topics, please visit our website at:
 
http://www.tbrassociates.com/news

or call us at (508) 376-4570 with any questions or concerns.
This update is a publication of TBR Associates, designed to highlight employee benefit matters of interest to our readers.  The information contained in this publication is meant for general educational purposes only.