What is the Family and Medical Leave Act, and Do all businesses have to adhere to it?
The federal Family Medical Leave Act (FMLA) requires employers to grant up to 12 weeks a year of unpaid leave to employees to deal with their own serious health conditions, to care for serious health conditions of certain immediate family members, or to care for a newborn or newly adopted son or daughter. The FMLA was amended in 2008 to extend those same unpaid leave benefits to the immediate family members of employees called to active duty in the armed forces to deal with the call-up. Additionally, the statute grants up to 26 weeks of unpaid leave in a single year for employees to care for active-duty family members with serious injuries or illnesses suffered while on active duty. The FMLA only applies to employers with 50 or more full-time or equivalent employees within a 75-mile radius. Also, only employees who have been employed for at least 12 months and who worked at least 1,250 hours in the previous 12-month period are eligible for FMLA leave. What did the U.S. Department of La
