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Archived News Release--Caution:
information may be out of date.
For more information call: (202) 219-8743.
The final regulations for the Family and Medical Leave Act
(FMLA) of 1993 take effect today.
These final regulations, largely unchanged from the
previously published interim final regulations, include revised definitions of
terms such as "serious health condition" and "health care provider;"
clarification of employers' responsibilities on designation of FMLA leave;
information responding to employers' questions about medical certification;
clarifying the FMLA's relationship with federal and state anti-discrimination
laws, particularly the Americans with Disabilities Act, and workers
compensation laws.
The final rules incorporate suggestions from more than 900
comments received by the Labor Department during the six-month public comment
period on the interim rules. The FMLA, which became effective on August 5,
1993, covers private employers with 50 or more employees, employees of public
agencies and employees of local public or private schools.
Efforts continue to educate employers and employees about
their rights and responsibilities under the law. The final regulations were
published in the Federal Register of January 6, 1995.
The FMLA allows eligible employees to take up to 12 weeks
of unpaid, job-protected leave during a 12-month period for the birth of a
child and to care for a newborn; placement of a child for adoption or foster
care; care of a spouse, child or parent with a serious health condition; or an
employee's own serious health condition.
Assistant Secretary of Labor for Employment Standards
Bernard E. Anderson said, "The Family and Medical Leave Act ensures that
workers no longer have to make agonizing choices between caring for their
families and keeping their jobs, and employers can retain valuable employees in
whom they have invested time and training. This law benefits the nation as a
whole, and we are proud of our role in administering it."
FMLA affects about 45 million U.S. workers (40 percent of
the U.S. labor force), and 300,000 U.S. businesses, or about 5 percent of the
total.
Archived News Release--Caution:
information may be out of date.
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