Layoffs and other times when job reinstatement according to FMLA regulations may not be necessary. Does your HR department know the limited situations under which an employer can refuse to reinstate an employee who has taken FMLA leave according to FMLA regulations? The Act's primary purpose is to ensure that employees are reinstated to the same or equivalent positions held at the commencement of the leave. Moreover, when there is a dispute, it is probably fair to say that the U.S. Department of Labor and most courts lean strongly in favor of the reinstatement of employees. Laws in this area do offer some limited circumstances in which an employer may deny job restoration to otherwise protected employees: Key employees-According to FMLA laws, an employer may deny reinstatement, but not leave, to "key employees." A key employee is a salaried employee who is compensated within the top 10 percent of the employees working within a 75-mile radius of the employee's worksite. 29 CFR ...

Benefits of Performance Appraisals include Compliance Protection A performance appraisal system, when properly managed, provides you with a means of measuring, maintaining, and improving your employee’s job performances. Through the job performance appraisal program, your company can: Validate hiring decisions Recognize employees' job performance strengths and weaknesses Identify employees who are ready for promotion or greater responsibilities Assess training needs From a compliance perspective, you should be able to rely on performance appraisals to justify the full range of personnel decisions, including discipline and termination actions. For example, if a performance appraisal reflects poor job performance by the employee and this employee is later terminated, the you can point to the performance appraisal to show the employee was not performing to standards. If, however, an employee with overall weak performance is given a good or even average appraisal, an ...