Family Medical Leave Act

FAMILY AND MEDICAL LEAVE ACT

Assignment Two

Strayer University

Law, Ethics, and Corporate Governance (LEG 500)

01 February 2012

Abstract

During the late 20th century, economics necessitated the American family to evolve from a single breadwinner household to one where both parents became part of the workforce. When a family member became ill or the decision was made to have children, one parent was forced to quit or lose their job regardless of how brief their absence. To give American workers the time needed to take care of family matters while providing job security, Congress passed the Family and Medical Leave Act of 1993 (FMLA). This Act established minimum federal standards and rights to unpaid leave for employees with health problems, sick family members, or for employees who are giving birth to or adopting children. This paper will discuss who is eligible under the act, the responsibilities of both employer and employee, and prominent case law depicting the courts interpretation of the law.

Explain if it matters that a parent literally had nothing to do with a biological child in order for the child to take advantage of the Family and Medical Leave Act (FMLA) to care for that parent.

The Family and Medical Leave Act (FMLA) was created to allow employees the time away from work to give birth and care for a new child, to take care of a seriously ill immediate family member, or to allow the employee to remedy his or her own serious medical condition without fear of losing one’s employment (Boushey, 2011). In accordance with the FMLA, the term “parent” is defined as the biological parent of an employee or an individual who stood in loco parentis to an employee (FMLA, 1993). The FMLA does not specify as to the level of involvement between parent and child so even a worker who has not seen a parent for several years qualifies to take the leave according to the law.

As stated in the Act, one’s parent does not have to be biological. The term...