Workers Compensation and FMLA

debs6882

We have an employee with a workers compensation realted back injury. We are running intermittent FMLA concurrently with his w/c. He has a note from his Dr. stating that he may have intermittent "flares of pain" and intermittently need to take time off. (He works at another location from the corporate office where payroll and HR are processed.) He has a written policy that states that he will work four 8 hour days per week. Until recently, if he would come in a couple of hours late, say at 10 am, he would write "back" or "doctor" on his time card. Now, he just clocks in at 10 and does not write anything. May I deduct these 2 hours from his FMLA or do I need documentation? Employee has been getting a bit touchy about the whole situation and I don't want him to claim we are harassing or discriminating against him. Does anyone else have experience with a similar situation?

LindaS

As far as his failing to properly document WHY he is tardy, he would be subject to whatever your attendance policy states regarding the failure to report for work on time. It is obvious he knows what is expected of him but does't feel he has to follow the policy and it is up to you to ensure that he is NOT treated any differently than any other employee. So follow your attendance policy and, once he gets to a discipline level he should then come around.

Don D

I've always known it to be a policy that nobody except a supervisor writes anything at all on a timecard. He's had a free pass with that setup. Now, he's decided to take his comfort to a new level and not even comment about his tardiness. I agree that your policy must be invoked and followed. Tell him in no uncertain terms that he must call in and speak with the supervisor and describe his reason for being tardy (in advance). Each hour of intermittent absolutely must be documented somewhere near the HR process. The supervisor must communicate each hour to you or the official recordkeeper, it must be tracked and produced upon request from any investigator. Intermittend back pain..........hmmmm. Intermittent pain or intermittently taking time off, to me, does not equate to being tardy or coming in when he wants to. He should have that explained to him. Keep us posted. x:-)