Depending on their size, employers must comply with two important federal laws when they are dealing with employee absenteeism. The Americans with Disabilities Act as Amended covers businesses with at least 15 employees. Under the ADA, a leave of absence may be a reasonable accommodation depending upon the circumstances. Employers with at least 50 employees must also comply with the Family and Medical Leave Act, which provides 12 weeks of unpaid leave per year for eligible employees. This webinar will cover an employer’s obligations under these laws, how the laws overlap and diverge in their application, and the different avenues available under each law by which to substantiate the need for leave. We will also cover how these laws sometimes work together to provide more leave than an employer would otherwise expect.
Employers must be familiar with the requirements and restrictions imposed by each law so that they avoid costly mistakes. If an employer violates either law when administering employee leaves, it could result in costly litigation and attorney fees.
Rebecca Jacobs is a Training Consultant and Employment Law Attorney with Rebecca Jacobs LLC. Collaborating with her clients, Rebecca develops and presents customized employee training on topics such as harassment prevention, bystander intervention, and discrimination avoidance. She also trains managers on numerous matters, including family and medical leave and disability accommodation requests.
Since 2006, she has been an adjunct lecturer for the Department of Management and Human Resources at the Ohio State University's Max M. Fisher College of Business. She teaches the "Contemporary Employment Practices and the Law" class and has recently expanded her teaching to include “Contemporary Employment Practices and the Law II.”
She has been an employment law attorney for over 20 years and tried several cases in federal and state courts, including oral argument before the Sixth Circuit Court of Appeals. She has counseled clients on numerous employment law matters and has prepared employee policies and handbooks. In January 2019, Columbus CEO magazine quoted her in “Employment Law: Making it Official with Love Contracts”. She holds a Juris Doctorate from Vanderbilt University School of Law and a Bachelor of Arts degree from the University of California, Santa Cruz. She is admitted to practice law in Ohio and licensed (inactive) in California.