Given the current state of the economy, there has been a recent rise in FMLA abuse among covered employees. Fearing they will soon be laid off at their current job or trying to supplement reductions in pay, many unscrupulous employees are turning to the FMLA provisions to allow them to keep their current job while working another job as well. In the fall, employers also often see a rise in FMLA claims when the fall and winter hunting seasons arrive. This all translates to millions of dollars in overtime costs and lost productivity unless something is done to stem the tide. Surveillance is the perfect tool to help reduce FMLA abuse.
The Family and Medical Leave Act was passed by Congress in 1993. The law is designed to care for themselves or a member of their immediate family when they have medical needs like pregnancy, chemotherapy, alzheimer’s, and more. FMLA allows the qualified employees to take off up to 12 weeks of work in a 12-month period and not lose their job. The employer is not required to pay the employee for the entire 12 week period, however they must keep the employee’s job. Only companies with 50 or more employees are required to comply with the FMLA provisions.
The law itself has few provisions to hep curb FMLA abuse. It does allow the employer to require the employee to provide medical certification to validate their need for medical leave, however many of the covered illnesses are chronic medical conditions that wouldn’t necessarily prevent the employee from continuing to work. In these cases, employers need to use surveillance services to document the employee’s activity while they are on FMLA leave.
Surveillance can be a very effective tool at reducing FMLA abuse in the workplace, but you must exercise caution. It is important to use a reputable investigations firm that has significant experience performing workers compensation and FMLA surveillance. You also need to consider the employee’s medical condition and limitations to determine what activity may be observed during surveillance.
When surveillance captures evidence of an employee abusing the FMLA provisions, companies can be aggressive to terminate the employee. Word will spread quickly among the other employees that the company has a firm stance on FMLA abuse. This will give the company the added benefit of deterrence.
Surveillance can be a great tool to prevent employee abuse of FMLA. Check out this video to see some examples of employees abusing workers compensation and FMLA.
