Leave Laws | Employment Law Blog in WA, OR, and CA | Vigilant

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Mar 11 2024
Leave LawsOregon

OREGON: Major leave changes will eliminate OFLA and PLO overlap

The Oregon legislature has passed SB 1515, which makes major changes to the Oregon Family Leave Act (OFLA), and minor changes to Paid Leave Oregon (PLO), in an effort to eliminate the overlap between the two leave laws. The governor is expected to sign the bill. Most leaves that are currently covered by both OFLA…

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Jan 15 2024
Leave LawsWashington

WASHINGTON: L&I updates paid sick leave rules

  The Washington Department of Labor & Industries (L&I) updated the state’s paid sick leave rules, effective January 1, 2024. Most changes to the rules relate to a new Washington law requiring payout of accrued leave for short-term construction workers. However, some of the rules on usage, paid time off (PTO) programs, and frontloading were…

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Dec 07 2023
DisabilityDrug and AlcoholLeave Laws

Q&A: Know how to handle disclosure of need for alcohol treatment

Question: An employee in a safety-sensitive job came forward to say she’s going into a 28-day treatment program for alcohol use disorder. When she comes back, can we test for alcohol (return-to-duty and unannounced follow-up tests)? Answer: Maybe… so please ask your Vigilant Law Group employment attorney or other legal counsel to review your specific facts before…

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Nov 16 2023
Leave LawsQ&A

Q&A: Use caution when denying holiday pay after sick time

Question: An employee called out sick the day before Thanksgiving, but our policy says employees must work the last scheduled day before and first scheduled day after a holiday in order to receive holiday pay. Can we deny him the Thanksgiving holiday pay? Answer: It depends on whether the employee is using protected paid sick…

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Sep 21 2023
Leave LawsWage and Hour

Q&A: May need to adjust workload during FMLA leave

Q&A: May need to adjust workload during FMLA leave Question: We granted intermittent leave to a full-time employee under the federal Family and Medical Leave Act (FMLA). They normally work five days a week and expect to miss work about one day a week for the next six months. The employee says they can’t meet…

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Aug 24 2023
Leave LawsOregon

OREGON: Paid Leave Oregon bill addresses use of accrued leave

On July 13, 2023, Governor Tina Kotek signed into law a bill that makes numerous amendments to the Paid Leave Oregon statute, including clarification on the use of company-provided accrued paid leave. Effective on September 24, 2023, SB 913 removes language that indicated the use of any accrued paid leave to supplement Paid Leave Oregon…

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Aug 17 2023
Leave LawsOregonWebinar

8/3 WEBINAR RECORDING: Paid Leave Oregon

Starting on September 3, 2023, Oregon employees will be able to apply for benefits under Oregon’s Paid Leave Oregon program. Are you ready? If not, you’re not alone. The law created a lot of questions. In particular: What are my obligations as an employer? How does this work with existing legally required protected leaves such…

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Jun 01 2023
Leave LawsWorkers’ Comp

DOL clarifies FMLA intermittent leave calculation during holidays

On May 30, 2023, the U.S. Department of Labor (DOL)’s Wage and Hour Division published an opinion letter clarifying how holidays affect the calculation of intermittent leave under the federal Family and Medical Leave Act (FMLA) (Opinion Letter FMLA2023-2-A). The FMLA regulations at 29 CFR 825.200(h) already explain that: (1) if a holiday occurs during…

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May 18 2023
DisabilityEmployee BenefitsLeave Laws

WASHINGTON: Governor signs 2023 legislation

The 2023 legislative regular session ended on April 23, 2023, with Washington Governor Jay Inslee signing multiple employment-related bills into law. Please see our separate articles in today’s newsletter on two of those bills, “WASHINGTON: New bill limits most pre-employment cannabis tests” (regarding ESSB 5123) and “WASHINGTON: Employers must notify warehouse employees of quotas” (regarding…

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Apr 20 2023
Leave LawsOregon

OREGON: Changes likely to OFLA and Paid Leave Oregon

Employers should brace for likely changes to the Oregon Family Leave Act (OFLA) and Paid Leave Oregon (also called paid family and medical leave insurance, or PFMLI), which the 2023 legislature is considering in order to partially align the two laws. Normally we don’t report on proposed legislation because so much can change in the…

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Apr 20 2023
COVID-19Leave LawsSafety and Health

WASHINGTON: End of COVID-19 National Emergency ends HELSA duties

On April 10, 2023, most COVID-19 (coronavirus) obligations for Washington employers were extinguished when President Biden signed legislation (H.J. Res. 7) that immediately terminated the national emergency related to the COVID-19 pandemic. Washington’s Health Emergency Labor Standards Act (HELSA) required employers to (1) report outbreaks to Washington’s Division of Occupational Safety and Health (DOSH); (2)…

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Apr 06 2023
DisabilityLeave Laws

Q&A: Modified schedule may be ADA reasonable accommodation

Question: A full-time employee is scheduled to return to work after exhausting 12 weeks of medical leave under the federal Family and Medical Leave Act (FMLA). His doctor restricted him to a maximum of 25 hours per week for at least six months due to disability. Can I deny this disability accommodation request because he’s…

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