As a business owner in Florida, one of your chief responsibilities involves providing FMLA benefits to your employees. Even though the federal government enacted FMLA legislation 30 years ago, some business owners continue to struggle with following those laws. If you own a business in Florida, be sure not to make these three mistakes with FMLA.
Failure to write a FMLA policy
While the federal government created the legislation that requires business owners to offer FMLA, business owners get to make some decisions about specific FMLA benefits. One of the most crucial components of employment and labor law for business owners involves creating a written FMLA policy.
For example, employers can define the 12-month FMLA leave look back period for their business. Federal guidelines afford employees 12 weeks of FMLA leave per 12 months, but employers get to decide if that’s a rolling 12 months, or if they run from January to December.
Failure to notify employees
Many business owners and managers incorrectly assume that employees automatically know about their FMLA rights when that’s not the case. Federal guidelines require that employers post official FMLA writes in a place where employees can read them. Additionally, employers must tell new employees about their FMLA rights upon hiring them.
Failure to keep precise records
Proper recordkeeping is at the heart of every business, and FMLA leave is no exception. Failure to keep proper records leads to violating employment and labor law by employers as they may not grant employees the time off they’re entitled to. Additionally, employers without precise records may grant too much time off to an employee, costing themselves more money.
Following FMLA laws is not only the ethical thing to do, but it’s also the legal responsibility of every business owner. Avoiding these three FMLA mistakes ensures that you’re operating both legally and ethically within your business.
