Handling intermittent family and medical leave is identified as a challenge by the majority of employers, according to an International Foundation survey.
More than a decade after FMLA took effect, it still presents administrative issues. Seventy-five percent of respondents cited handling intermittent leave as a challenging aspect of FMLA. Others include:
The survey compiled statistics on paid and unpaid leave offered by organizations subject to FMLA and those that are not.
The 241 respondents included U.S. corporate benefit managers, public employers and professional service providers. Along with the survey data, the Foundation collected 70 sample family and medical leave policies, forms and checklists.
Ninety-one percent of respondents indicated that they are subject to FMLA. Of those respondents, 84% offer some type of paid family and medical leave. Seventy-six percent of those who offer this paid leave make it available for an employee’s own serious illness. Forty-eight percent provide paid family leave for the care of a newborn, newly adopted child or newly placed foster child. Some employers that offer paid leave grant it for situations beyond those specified in FMLA.
Of the respondents subject to FMLA, 26% do not require employees who take unpaid FMLA leave to offset it with sick time, vacation time or any other available paid leave.
It is not unusual for FMLA-eligible respondents to offer unpaid leave in excess of that required by FMLA. Seventy-nine percent of them offer some type of leave beyond the 12 required weeks.
Six weeks was reported by the largest percentage of respondents as the norm for length of leave. [order the full survey]