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ESA News Release: [06/27/2007]
Contact Name: Dolline Hatchett or David James
Phone Number: (202) 693-4676
Release Number: 07-0909-NAT

Report on FMLA Request for Information issued by U.S. Department of Labor

WASHINGTON — The U.S. Department of Labor today released Family and Medical Leave Act Regulations: A Report on the Department of Labor’s Request for Information, a comprehensive review of the thousands of public comments received in response to the department’s December 1, 2006, Request for Information about the Family and Medical Leave Act regulations and their impact in the workplace.

"The 15,000 comments from workers, employers and others attest to the importance of family and medical leave for America’s caregiving workforce," said Victoria A. Lipnic, assistant secretary of labor for the department’s Employment Standards Administration. "While family and medical leave is widely supported, we also heard from many workers and employers that there are challenges with the way certain aspects are being administered. This report provides information for a fuller discussion about how some of the key FMLA provisions and their interpretations have played out in the workplace."

The comments highlight the prevalence with which unscheduled intermittent leave is being taken in certain workplaces. As the record indicated, this is the single most serious area of friction between employers and workers. Another major area of concern, on the part of workers, employers and health care providers, is the medical certification process.

The report is comprised of 11 chapters: 10 chapters on key regulatory issues, plus the first chapter, which describes the value of the FMLA to employees.

The report’s executive summary is available on the Internet at: http://www.dol.gov/esa/whd/FMLA2007Report/ExecutiveSummary.pdf. The full report is available at: http://www.dol.gov/esa/whd/fmla2007report.htm. Information is also available by calling the Department of Labor’s toll-free help line at (866) 4US-WAGE (487-9243).

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