ARE YOUR POLICIES CURRENT?

Employers should review their policies and forms on a regular basis to ensure compliance with the law.  For example, recent changes to the Family Medical Leave Act (“FMLA”) and Oregon Family Leave Act (“OFLA”) require fairly significant changes to these policies and forms.  If your company’s OFLA/FMLA policy and forms have not been updated since 2009, chances are great that they do not comply with the new regulations.  Another example is connected with recent regulations regarding the Genetic Information Nondiscrimination Act of 2008 (“GINA”).   Employers requesting medical information related to FMLA, OFLA, or the Americans with Disabilities Act (“ADA”) should modify their requests for information to fit within a newly-created safe harbor to avoid any inadvertent violations of GINA.  The third example is related to the types of leaves that are available to victims of crime or domestic violence; do your policies allow for eligible employees to take protected leave without concern that they will be adversely impacted?  These are just a few examples where recent changes in the law make it prudent for employers to regularly review their HR policies and practices to ensure they are in compliance.  If you have questions about current policies or would like to have your company’s policies and forms reviewed, contact Hershner Hunter's Employment Law attorneys.