Productivity Worries Crop Up in Survey on Family Leave

By Stephanie Armour

Employers raised questions in a report due to be released today about the impact on productivity of a federal law granting workers unpaid time off to care for family medical needs.

The report from the Department of Labor is a summary of more than 15,000 comments received from employers and workers since December on the effectiveness of the Family and Medical Leave Act (FMLA). The 1993 law provides job-protected leave for up to 12 weeks for the birth or adoption of a child, the care of a close family member with serious medical problems or time off for employee health conditions.

The report, obtained Tuesday by USA TODAY, shows several areas where the law is causing concerns:

*Intermittent leave. Currently, the law allows employees to take time off in short increments (such as an hour for a doctor’s appointment). Nearly a quarter of all employees who took FMLA leave took at least some in short time spurts.

Employer comments reflected strong concern about the productivity and cost issues related to incremental leave, especially in time-sensitive industries such as delivery, transportation, health care and manufacturing.

*Health conditions. Employers voiced strong concern that the regulatory definition of what qualifies as a serious health condition covered by the law is too vague. Employers also stated a desire to talk with an employee’s health care provider about medical conditions to verify their legitimacy.

Employees, however, stated they have concerns that such direct contact could violate medical privacy.

*Notice of time off. The FMLA requires a 30-day notice for leave that is foreseeable, but for time off that is unexpected, employees generally must inform employers two working days after the need for leave is known. Employers expressed frustration about potential for abuse and costs related to unscheduled absences.

Any changes to the law would have a profound impact on the workforce: An estimated 94 million employees work in establishments covered by FMLA, and up to 13 million workers took leave under the law in 2005. The Labor Department at this time is not issuing any proposed changes to the law.

“For the most part, the FMLA is working well,” says Victoria Lipnic, assistant secretary with the employment standards division of the Labor Department. “A central defining theme … is people with chronic conditions taking unscheduled intermittent leave.”

The report also comes at a time when advocacy groups and legislative initiatives are calling for an expansion of the act to cover more workers and to provide paid time off. Organizations such as the National Partnership for Women & Families have raised the alarm, concerned that the Labor Department may propose changes that could erode worker protections. (c) Copyright 2005 USA TODAY, a division of Gannett Co. Inc.