Prior to birth - doctor apptmts.

T

Doctor appointments in relation to child birth (before birth appointments and follow ups)do qualify as FMLA, right?

-t

marc

I say yes.

System

Yes.

James Sokolowski
HRhero.com

njjel

Yes, they can be counted (if you want to go to the trouble tracking the hours). Here we allow them to use any accrued time they may have and then place them on FMLA when they leave for the birth. You can always be more generous than the reg if you want to make that your polciy. However, remember that you must treat everyone the same way so keep that in mind for those who are not pregnant that need time off for doctor appointments.

jade4868

I am not aware of anything in the FMLA that requires an employer to let an employee off for time before the birth and call it FMLA Leave. Therefore, if an employee wants time off prior to birth, it has to be under some other leave time, such as PTO, vacation, or unpaid leave time, as I understand the FMLA.

SMace

[font size="1" color="#FF0000"]LAST EDITED ON 02-15-07 AT 11:50AM (CST)[/font][br][br]You're wrong. Go to this link [url]http://www.dol.gov/dol/allcfr/ESA/Title_29/Part_825/29CFR825.203.htm[/url]

This is what you're looking for: A pregnant employee may take
leave intermittently for prenatal examinations or for her own condition,
such as for periods of severe morning sickness.

T

Ok, I thought this was the case. Now, if the employee does have severe morning sickness, does this mean that she can come in late everyday and blame it on morning sickness, or does she go to the doctor and tell him she is very sick in the mornings? Will he give her a request for coming in late for the next 2 weeks so that now the supervisor can fill that position for the next 2 weeks morning. WHat I'm getting at is I don't want the employee to be able to come in late every day and say she's got morning sickness. I do have 5 employees pregnant, 3 are in one area, this will be a hardship on that department, and believe me they will take what they can get.

Thanks.
-t

marc

Be careful about how you limit FML leave rights. If you interfere with them, you can be open for severe penalty.

That might mean hiring a temp to handle the missing hours in that department. These leaves fall into the "intermittent" category because by their very nature they cannot be predicted or scheduled with much success. It is more common for the morning sickness to go away after a certain period of time, I think the first tri-mester. Once that period has passed, if the morning sickness continues, you can request an update from the service provider.

But do not try to limit the medical need in such a way to cause the EE to go to the DOL.

This is why we start the FML clock as soon as possible. It is one of the tools we have to limit the impact to the business. It is unlikely that an EE will utilize the 12 weeks prior to the actual birth, but it does happen. In that case, at least you have some choices.

njjel

You should give her the FMLA paperwork to take to her doctor to verify whether or not it is a serious health condition. Let the doctor do the diagnosis. :-)

SMace

You cannot require that they go to the doctor if the leave is "certified" on the FML form. That is alos covered in the link I posted.

HRinGA

OK, I have a pregnant employee who intends to use her 12 weeks of leave. However, she informed us today she wants to take the 2 weeks preceeding the birth off. Would this be counted? It doesn't seem fair to allow her two weeks vacation and then another 12 weeks when the baby is born.
At first she said she found it increasingly difficult to make it through the workday and wanted to work from home. I am not keen on that arrangement. I also told her if she did not feel well enough to work, then get a note from doctor putting her on 1/2 days. Now she got wise and just said she wants two weeks to tie up loose ends and rest before the birth.
I plan to cite the reg link above. Am I correct in doing so?

NaeNae55

If her doctor certifies it, then it is FMLA and counts towards her 12 weeks. If not, then you have the option of denying the leave.

Good luck!

Nae

HRinGA

Nae,

She doesn't want her doctor to certify it. She doesn't want it to count towards her 12 weeks. This is was I am referencing in the conversation with her.

"the employer is responsible for designating if an employee's use of paid leave counts as FMLA leave, based on information from the employee.."

"..a serious health condition is ...."

1) treatment two or more times...
or
2)pregnancy or prenatal care. A visit to the health care provider is not necessary for each absence;
or
3) chronice serious health condition...

etc, etc.

I'm OK with giving her the two weeks, but I want to count it towards her 12 week leave based on the above info. Can I do that?

LindaS

In short, no you cannot designate the two weeks prior to the birth as FMLA unless the doctor certifies the need for the leave. In this instance, since there isn't any medical need for the leave, it is either approved LOA of some type (non-FMLA), vacation or the leave is denied. In any event, in absence of medical documentation you have to grant the ENTIRE 12 weeks of leave AFTER the birth of the child, unless you have a state law that allows otherwise (we have one here in WI). Understand?

marc

We require supervisor approval for vacation leave. As I understand your scenario, this is what she is requesting instead of early FML.

I would not approve this vacation request. It puts the company in a position to have to arrange for someone else to take over the work 2 weeks earlier than you are currently planning. That is a valid reason in my world.

What will happen now? She will be 2 weeks early on delivery and none of this conversation will make any difference. Just a prediction.

njjel

It would depend on what your leave policy states. Here our policy states that an ee can not add accrued vacation leave time to the 12 weeks of unpaid FMLA leave. However, they may take accrued sick leave time. They do not have to take their accrued leave time unless they wish to do so.

NaeNae55

If the employee wants 12 weeks after the birth and 2 weeks of vacation beforehand then that is your call to allow or disallow. Either way, you cannot charge the 2 weeks before as FMLA without certification that it is medically necessary (and it sounds like it isn't). So it is 12 weeks FMLA after the birth, and an additional 2 weeks vacation before the birth if you allow it.

I would not agree to it here. It sets a bad precedent. How could you justify telling someone else no if they wanted vacation time in addition to a scheduled surgery for instance?

The one good thing about FMLA is that is limits the time off that an employer has to agree to. I would deny the vacation leave. Besides, what happens if she doesn't go into labor? Most doctors will induce, but not all do.

Good luck!

Nae