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With new laws and regulations around sick leave, it’s hard to fully understand who these rules apply to and as an employer how to implement. While regulations are currently evolving, and vary by state, the panel assembled by the Employee Relations Interest Group focused much of the discussion on federal and Illinois guidelines. Attendees left this session with a better understanding of what a covered employer is as well as who is a covered employee.

HR professionals know that they are required to post a notice and inform employees of any required call-in procedures. Times have changed and employers must consider a method of notification that isn’t overly burdensome to employees, such as allowing a phone call, text message, or email.

Our panelist also provided insight on the new regulations including:

  • Employers can only ask for certification after 3 days
  • Employers can set increments in which the time can be used
  • Employers can have a waiting period to use the sick leave no longer than 180 days

The panel also discussed how much of an administrative burden it is to manage FMLA. If your company does outsource that aspect then there needs to be communication to employees so they know not to ignore request coming from the outsourced company.

Overall there is a lot of change coming for employers. Be sure to review the regulations to ensure your company is following the rules.