FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
Workplace Fairness Provides Information on Paid and Unpaid Leave Laws and Legislation
Organization has facts and resources on workplace leave laws and legislation for all employees, employers, employment lawyers and workplace equality advocates
SILVER SPRING, Md. (Oct. 8, 2015) Workers who need time off from work often find that the legal protections and pay are not nearly enough, which has spawned a number of recent efforts to expand paid leave. In order to keep the public informed about the latest developments in this rapidly changing area, Workplace Fairness provides comprehensive, recently updated information on the legal standards of work related leaves of absence, including sick leave, military and family/medical leaves of absence that workers may qualify to take without jeopardizing their job, under both federal and state law.
A bill titled the Family and Medical Insurance Leave Act or the FAMILY Act, proposed by Senator Kirsten Gillibrand (D-NY) and Representative Rosa DeLauro (D-CT) (House, Senate), would expand paid leave up to 12 weeks each year to qualifying workers for the birth or adoption of a new child, the serious illness of an immediate family member, or a worker's own medical condition. Until the federal law provides for paid leave, some states and local jurisdictions are also passing their own leave laws to offer more expansive paid sick leave and state family/medical leave than required by federal law.
Our military leave of absence page clears up the differences between military leave and the traditional workplace leave. The Uniformed Services Employment and Reemployment Rights Act of 1994 (USERRA) ensures those who serve our country are assisted with the benefits and the employment opportunities free from discrimination due to their military service. The page continues to list the benefits of the act and it answers many frequently asked questions such as:
- What job entitlements or protections does USERRA offer?
- What happens to my job while I am on military leave?
- How often can I take military leave? Is there a limit to the amount of leave time that I can take?
Our page on the state laws on military leave has an interactive map of the United States where you can click on a state of your choice and find out the information you will need.
In our family/medical leaves of absence page, we explain how the Family and Medical Leave Act (FMLA) was created to help employees balance the demands of the workplace with the needs of their families. The page provides answers to regularly asked questions and scenarios applicable to many different situations on the topic such as:
- How do I request FMLA leave? Do I have to give notice to my employer first?
- My doctor says that I need to be on leave, but my employer is asking for more proof of my illness. What do I do?
- I am a teacher with three months of leave in the summer. Can I take FMLA leave during the winter?
Where state laws differ from FMLA protections, the website has updated information on state and local paid sick leave and state family/medical leave legal standards, which may provide more protection.
Workers who want to learn more about the FAMILY Act can read about the proposed law at Today's Workplace, the Workplace Fairness blog, in a post written by legal intern Grace Baehren, called Demand Paid Sick Leave for All Employees to Ensure a Healthier and More Productive Workplace. The blog article details a number of recent campaigns to expand leave protections, and provides an action alert linkfor interested workers to write their members of Congress. While leave protections are rapidly changing and the number of jurisdictions requiring paid leave is rapidly increasing, Workplace Fairness is your definitive resource for legal information related to leaves.
For a more in-depth look at our services, take a look at our full website.
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About Workplace Fairness
Workplace Fairness is a nonprofit organization that provides information, education and assistance to individual workers and their advocates nationwide and promotes public policies that advance employee rights.
Our goals are that workers and their advocates are educated about workplace rights and options for resolving workplace problems and those policymakers, members of the business community and the public at large view the fair treatment of workers as both good business practice and sound public policy.
Workplace Fairness works toward these goals by:
- making comprehensive information about workers' rights free of legal jargon readily available to workers and to advocates and organizations that assist workers;
- providing resources to support the work of legal services organizations, community-based organizations, law schools and private attorneys that provide free legal information and services to low-income workers;
- presenting the employee perspective in publications, policy debates & public discussion.
The award-winning Workplace Fairness website, www.workplacefairness.org, has newly updated information throughout the site, as part of the Web's most comprehensive resource educating workers about their legal rights in the workplace.
Media Contact:
Paula Brantner
Executive Director
240-772-1205
paula@workplacefairness.org
www.workplacefairness.org