With flu season in full swing and all the media hype over H1N1 (also known as swine flu), most employers expect to have days when some of their employees will call in sick.  Of course, no one wants to get the flu and when an employee does need to miss work it is in the best interest of your other employees to encourage that person to stay home until they are feeling better so as not to spread the germs to their co-workers.  Unfortunately, there may be employees who have so many absences that it becomes an issue of concern.  You can enforce your attendance policy and discipline employees for excessive absenteeism, even if an employee misses work for medical reasons. Just make sure you consider potential obligations under the FMLA and ADA first.    

 

As a general rule, if an employee's absences are in excess of your stated policy (for example, the employee has taken more paid days off than provided by your policy), you most likely can take whatever disciplinary action you feel is appropriate. But, before taking any action, you should consider whether you have any obligations under the Family and Medical Leave Act (FMLA) or the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA).  As a reminder, FMLA applies to employers with 50 or more employees within 75 miles and ADA applies to any employer who has 15 or more employees.

Evaluate your current practices, absences that are taken according to your absence and leave policies are not considered excessive.  So, if the employee's absences are covered by your paid time off policies, you should allow them.  However, if there is a pattern of abuse that has been recorded - such as an employee who repeatedly takes sick leave on Fridays or Mondays - you can take disciplinary action towards that employee and put them on a sick leave performance plan.  The key is to be consistent with the application of discplinary action.  If needed, an employer can mandate that an employee who has run out of sick leave must use vacation time to cover the days they are absent.  Employers still have the discretion to deny vacation and require that an employee provide justification for sick leave, such as a doctor's note.  Keep in mind that even though an employee has a doctor's note to justify an absence, you may still consider the absence excessive if the employee has used all of the days allowed by your policies and the absence is not protected by the FMLA or ADA.

However, you may have to disregard absences required for reasons covered by the FMLA and the ADA when determining whether an absence is excessive and discipline is required. Both the FMLA and the ADA limit your right to discipline or discharge employees for absenteeism caused by a protected medical condition.

 

Management Series 

 

VICE PRESIDENT/CHIEF MARKETING OFFICER (Moundridge, KS) - MKC, a growing leader in the retail agricultural sales and services industry in Central Kansas, is seeking a Vice President/Chief Marketing Officer to guide our dynamic growth. Candidate must possess proven leadership skills with the ability to provide the proper influence to a sales team to inspire action and results; excellent written and verbal communication skills; the ability to analyze numerical results and evaluate performance; excellent critical thinking skills with proven ability to develop marketing programs and business opportunities; and the ability to execute marketing strategies. Sales management experience required (experience with a regional cooperative or a multi-national corporation is a strong plus). Successful candidate will oversee fertilizer, seed, and crop protection chemical purchases; direct all sales and marketing activities for seed and agronomy services; provide marketing counseling to the grain sales manager and the petroleum manager; lead three assistant sales managers and the purchasing manager; manage the increase in product sales and acreage served, design and coordinate training opportunities for development of the sales force; coordinate communication and cooperation between agronomy sales force, operations, petroleum sales force, and the grain sales force; and provide leadership in the company's strategic planning process. Submit resume and cover letter to Mid Kansas Cooperative Association, Attn: Human Resources, PO Box D, Moundridge, KS 67107 or to jfrizell@mkcoop.com.  You canalso apply online at www.provaluellc.com.

CROP PRODUCTION MANAGER (Columbus, KS) - The Farmers Cooperative Association, a farmers' cooperative and agri-business in South East Kansas, is looking for a dynamic individual to fill the position of Crop Production Manager. This position will be responsible for providing crop recommendations and product solutions; leading, managing and delegating tasks to employees as well as working with customers in a retail setting. The ideal candidate will have a farm background, a BS degree in agronomy or related field, excellent communications skills to build solid business relationships and the ability to solve problems with a strong desire to grow the business. The company provides competitive pay with sales incentives and excellent benefits. Please email your resume to the General Manager at machelleshouse@hotmail.com no later than September 15, 2009 or mail to PO Box 80, Columbus, KS 66725.

 

 

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