Many companies struggle with aligning absence management, employee efficiency, and legal compliance. This often leads to a “rubber stamp” mentality when dealing with FMLA and state leave issues. What employers frequently fail to understand is that such policies this policy is a direct result of absence abuse and loss of company productivity.
FMLA Litigation Costs
Litigation in FMLA cases costs an average of $78,000. This leads businesses to believe that they need to avoid a potential lawsuit at all costs. Rubber stamping FMLA leave requests seems like a less expensive solution to the problem.
Unique Leave Requirements
Another factor in creating a rubber stamp policy is the fact that approximately 95% of employees work in a state that has unique leave requirements. This makes managing and tracking leave entitlements difficult, especially if the company has offices in more than one state. When management becomes too complicated, granting an employee’s leave request seems like the easiest solution.
An Alternative to Rubber Stamp Policies
The money that a rubber stamp policy costs in productivity loss and employee efficiency can cost some organizations far more than the possible litigation of an FMLA case.
The first step in creating an effective absence management strategy is an absence audit to determine if revisions are necessary. One of the first signs of a potential rubber stamp issue is an existence of absence abuse. If HR doesn’t investigate an employee’s state or FMLA absence request, this can encourage an increase in false claims.
If the audit shows that your company needs to revise its current legal compliance policy, then you need to design a system that can manage and track all leave entitlements. This will help to reduce false claims and help to show your company is in compliance with all requirements.
A comprehensive absence tracking and management system can help you replace your rubber stamp policy with a strategy that will manage unique leave requirements and employee productivity. Contact the experts at Actec to learn more.
