Workplace Responsibilities: Zoom in on FMLA and ADA

It can be difficult for HR professionals to navigate the complexities of the Family and Medical Leave Act (FMLA) and the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA). Both federal laws provide critical protections for employees but are also full of potential pitfalls for employers, according to speakers during the March 26 SHRM webinar “Workplace Rights at a Tipping Point: FMLA and ADA in Focus.” It is therefore essential that HR professionals understand the basics of each law, the challenges each presents, and ways to stay compliant. 

What Is the FMLA?

The FMLA enables individuals to balance workplace demands with family needs by providing job-protected, unpaid leave to eligible employees. Under the FMLA, employees may take up to 12 weeks of leave within a 12-month period for the birth of and bonding with a child, the adoption or foster care placement of a child, care for a family member, their own health condition, or for exigency leave (when a family member is an active-duty service member). There is also up to 26 weeks of leave within a 12-month period available for an employee who would care for a covered service member with a serious illness or injury.

Employees are eligible for FMLA when they have worked for their employer for at least 12 months, have worked a minimum of 1,250 hours during the last year, and work at a site where the employer employs at least 50 employees within 75 miles of that location. Remote staff should refer to the office where they report and get assignments.

A covered employer is one that has employed at least 50 employees during 20 or more calendar weeks during the current or preceding year. “For example, if a small employer had over 50 employees in 2024, they’re still going to be considered a covered employer until the end of 2025 even if they’ve dropped down the beginning of this year to below 50 employees and stay there,” said speaker Liz Petersen, SHRM-SCP, quality manager for the HR Knowledge Center at SHRM. Public agencies are always covered, as are public and private elementary and secondary schools, no matter the number of employees. 

Complying with the FMLA

The flow of FMLA documentation begins with the employee requesting time off. In response, the employer will provide the FMLA Eligibility, Rights & Responsibilities Notice and at the same time ask for documentation or certification backing up the reason for leave. The employee will then return the completed paperwork for the employer’s review. Finally, the employer will provide the employee with a designation notice of approval or denial within five days. 

To ensure compliance and ward off potential liability issues, employers should be careful to have an established FMLA policy. This policy should designate the 12-month period, indicate whether paid leave must be used during FMLA, the status of benefit premiums during leave, and if a fitness-for-duty assessment at the end of leave is required. The policy should note exceptions to job protection, including layoffs, shift eliminations, fraudulent leave, and the inability to perform essential job functions. 

What Is the ADA?

The ADA ensures that individuals with disabilities enjoy the same rights and opportunities as all other U.S. residents. It prohibits discrimination against people with disabilities in employment, public services, and other areas. The act also mandates accessibility in public services and public accommodations, ensuring that facilities are usable by individuals with disabilities. 

According to the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission’s (EEOC’s) guidance, an individual with a disability is a person who meets one or more of the following: 

• Has a physical or mental impairment that substantially limits one or more major life activities.
• Has a record of such an impairment.
• Is regarded as having such an impairment. 

The ADA covers employers with 15 or more employees, including state and local governments, employment agencies, and labor organizations. 

Notably, Title I of the ADA protects the rights of both employees and job seekers. This means covered employers must provide reasonable accommodation for both employees and qualified job applicants with disabilities. A qualified employee or applicant with a disability is defined as an individual who, with or without reasonable accommodation, can perform the essential functions of the job in question. 

“The best way to determine if someone has a disability as covered under the ADA is to utilize some type of ADA accommodation medical certification,” Petersen said. This would mean “asking for a health care professional to assess whether somebody meets all these requirements for you.” There is no exhaustive list of ADA-qualifying disabilities. Where there is doubt, a doctor’s medical opinion becomes the determining factor. 

Under the ADA, employers engage employees with disabilities in an “interactive process” to determine appropriate accommodation when requested. Reasonable accommodations include adjustments or modifications to schedules, workstations, devices, or other aspects of work that enable people with disabilities to perform the essential functions of their job. Essential functions are those job duties that an employee must be able to perform with or without reasonable accommodation. As to the appropriate accommodation, “it’s really up to the doctor or the health care professional to determine what combination of needs are there,” Petersen said. 

Complying with the ADA

Should an employee with a disability need an accommodation, they would begin the process by submitting their request to their employer. The employer would proceed to collect information about the disability before exploring accommodation options. After choosing the appropriate accommodation, they would then implement it. Employers should remember to periodically check in on the accommodation to ensure that it is working as intended. 

However, just because an employee requests an accommodation does not mean it must receive automatic approval. An employer does not have to provide an accommodation if it is unreasonable and imposes an undue hardship on the operation of the business. This hardship could be based on the nature and cost of the requested accommodation, the size of the business, or the impact of the accommodation on the facility’s operation. 

“Cost and financial resources are a difficult standard to meet for large employers,” said Petersen, “so large employers really want to be focused on the impact on the operations of the organization, or changes in the way business is done.”

Employers should be aware that they may not ask an employee whether they have a disability or about the nature and severity of the disability. Only when such examination or inquiry is shown to be job-related and necessary for the business is this questioning permissible. In essence, an employer can only ask for the information needed to evaluate a request for accommodation.

Employers should also be aware of the potential coordination between the FMLA and the ADA. For example, there are situations where extended FMLA leave may qualify as a reasonable accommodation under the ADA. This means that after FMLA leave expires, an eligible employee may request a definite period of further leave. 

Consequences of Noncompliance  

Because both the FMLA and the ADA function as essential employee rights, noncompliance with either could land a business in hot water. Denying legitimate leave or refusing a reasonable accommodation would undoubtedly cause employee morale to plummet. Such an error would also result in EEOC and state agency claims or investigations, not to mention the possibility of government-initiated penalties and increased regulatory oversight. 

There is also the risk of lawsuits including class actions, which could seriously damage brand reputation. When in doubt about an FMLA or ADA request, employers should not hesitate to consult their employment counsel. 

Rachel Zheliabovskii is a specialist, B2C content, at SHRM.