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Family Medical Leave Act Case Study

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The Family and Medical Leave Act grants eligible employees the opportunity to take an unpaid, job protected leave for specific family and medical reasons. This Act was passed and signed by President Bill Clinton, as one of his first achievements as President. The Family and Medical Leave Act was first introduced by Women’s Legal Defense Fund in 1984. It was brought to Congress’s attention every year for 9 years. Although it passed Congress twice, President George H.W. Bush vetoed it each time. It took time for the Act to get the recognition it deserved, but once it did, it gave millions of citizens an opportunity they couldn’t afford to take otherwise. The Federal Agency charged with oversight of this law is The Department of Labor’s Wage …show more content…

If a company fails to follow the Family and Medical Leave Act, it can result in fines ,a bad reputations, and loss of employees. The case of Hofferica V. St. Mary Medical Center shows how an organization fails to follow the FMLA. Kathleen Hofferica was an employee who began working as a nurse for St. Mary Medical Center on June 5, 2006. Around March 2008, Hofferica discover that she was diagnosed with Meniere’s disease and had to have a few surgeries. After Hofferica was diagnosed, she quickly applied for FMLA leave for her job; in which she was approved on April 22, 2008. When her leave was approved she left. However, before she left she was question by her emergency room director at St. Mary (Charles Kunkle) on her ability to do her job because of her disability. Hofferica reassured him that she will be “able to perform all job duties required by her position of …show more content…

It is important to follow the Family and Medical Leave Act and it is also important for every company to have a follow up with their employees who have to take a leave of absence. When an employee takes of leave of absence, the organization has to secure the employee’s position and make sure that they are constantly checking on the employee. Keeping up with Hofferica could have prevented the Hofferica case, and can also make the employee feel like they are appreciated and their leave is not a hindrance on the Manager. In Hofferica’s case, she also mentioned to the court that the reason why her phone calls were not return was because they had some kind of retaliation /antagonistic feelings towards her. Even though the court did not find the evidence to support her argument, the fact that she thought that the hospital had hatred towards her spoke

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