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ESA News Release: [02/08/2008]
Contact Name: Loren Smith or Dolline Hatchett
Phone Number: 202-693-4676
Release Number: 08-0198-NAT

U.S. Department of Labor proposal will clarify FMLA rules for workers, employers and military families

Department seeks to update regulations, implement new FMLA leave law for military caregivers

WASHINGTON — The U.S. Department of Labor will publish a proposal on Feb. 11 to update its regulations under the 15-year-old Family and Medical Leave Act (FMLA) — a measure that will help workers and their employers better understand their rights and responsibilities, and speed the implementation of a new law that expands FMLA coverage for certain military family members.

"This proposal preserves workers' family and medical leave rights while improving the administration of FMLA by fostering better communication in the workplace," said Victoria A. Lipnic, assistant secretary for the Employment Standards Administration. "It also implements a law President Bush recently signed to extend family and medical leave to families of America's soldiers who are suffering serious illness or injury."

Proposed changes include increased notice obligations for employers so that employees will better understand their FMLA rights, while revising the employee notice rules to minimize workplace disruptions due to unscheduled FMLA absences. The proposal also contains technical changes to reflect decisions by the Supreme Court and lower courts. A new section addresses recently enacted legislation to expand the FMLA entitlement to 26 workweeks for certain military family members caring for a service member with a serious illness or injury.

"It's time to update these regulations — to reflect court decisions, clear up ambiguities and address issues that weren't contemplated when the regulations were first issued in 1995," said Lipnic. "This proposal is the result of a thoughtful, careful process that included a Request for Information with 15,000 public comments in 2006, many conversations with stakeholders, and the department's experience in administering and enforcing the law."

The department invites comment on the Notice of Proposed Rulemaking that will be published in the Federal Register on Feb. 11.

For further information about the FMLA and the proposed regulations, visit the Wage and Hour Division's Web site at www.wagehour.dol.gov.