Managing Leaves of Absence: Preparing for FMLA Changes and Responding to ADA Changes and Challenges

Managing employee leaves of absences thrust employers into a complicated legal web that involves the intersection of The Family Medical Leave Act ("FMLA"), the Americans With Disabilities Act ("ADA"), workers compensation laws and group disability benefits. Navigating through this legal entanglement is made even more challenging for companies like yours by the evolving requirements of the FMLA and the ADA. This is an area of the law where the only constant is change. Join the shareholders from Littler's Boston office and Elizabeth Grossman, the Regional Attorney for the EEOC, in a lively and informative update on the FMLA and the reasonable accommodation requirements of the ADA.

The FMLA process with which your company is familiar is about to become outdated. The FMLA was recently amended by Congress to provide employees with two new leave entitlements to care for certain family members in the military and the Department of Labor is proposing numerous other changes to the already complex set of FMLA regulations. Proposed revisions to the regulations that are likely to be adopted by the Department of Labor involve, among other topics, the overlap between the FMLA and "light duty" work, the notice obligations of both the employer and the employee, adjustments to the definition of a "serious health condition," the treatment of attendance awards and the stream-lining of the medical certification process.

Your company's duty to provide reasonable accommodations to qualified employees with disabilities is subject to equally complex rules promulgated by the EEOC and ever evolving requirements imposed by the courts. Managing the interplay between the FMLA and the ADA is a daunting task that not only involves significant legal risk but can be disruptive and consume a tremendous amount of time. It is critical, therefore, that your company stay up-to-date with developments involving the FMLA and the ADA in order to effectively manage the legal risks associated with employee leaves of absence.

Please join us on Wednesday, June 4, 2008 when we discuss:

• The new family military leave requirements
• Highlights of the proposed amendments to the FMLA regulations
• Developments in the law of reasonable accommodations
• The increasingly complex interplay between the FMLA and the ADA

Speakers:

Adam Forman, a shareholder in Littler Mendelson’s Boston office advises and represents employers in a broad range of employment law matters, including managing leaves of absence; discrimination, harassment and wrongful discharge litigation; non-competition and trade secret litigation; the drafting of employment related documents such as employment agreements and personnel policies; and litigation avoidance training.

Elizabeth Grossman is Regional Attorney in the New York District Office of the United States Equal Employment Opportunity Commission, where she has worked, also as a Trial Attorney and Supervisory Trial Attorney, since 1993. As Regional Attorney, Ms. Grossman is responsible for the Commission’s litigation in the New York District which includes New York, Northern New Jersey, Connecticut, Massachusetts, Rhode Island, Vermont, New Hampshire, and Maine. The litigation docket of the New York District Office is one of the largest in the country and includes some of the Commission’s largest class cases.

Gregory C. Keating, a shareholder in Littler Mendelson's Boston office, has broad experience litigating employment disputes in federal and state courts nationally. He frequently counsels and trains management regarding employment law issues, and has lectured on a wide variety of employment related topics. Keating speaks regularly at the National Employment Law Institute (NELI) and is a member of NELI's Advisory Board.

Registration/Breakfast: 7:30 am - 8:00 am
Program: 8:00 am - 10:00 am

For questions, please contact Lisa Bachner* at 212.583.2665 or lbachner@littler.com. Please respond by June 2, 2008.
*Please also direct all requests for special accommodations to Lisa Bachner.

There is no charge for this program.