$6 Million Verizon FMLA Settlement - Violating FMLA can be costly mistake
Recently, Verizon Communications Inc. agreed to settle a class-action employment lawsuit involving the Family Medical Leave Act that could cost them over $6 million in FMLA damages. The employment lawsuit revolved around Verizon's violations of various leave acts, especially the federal Family Medical Leave Act and and the California Family Rights Act, or CFRA. According to the lawsuit, Verizon engaged in many violations of leave acts between 2007 and 2010. The settlement is still subject to court approval; once it goes through, it will be the largest Family Medical Leave Act settlement in the history of the Department of Fair Employment and Housing.
How Verizon Violated the Family Medical Leave Act
The FMLA allows up to 12 weeks of unpaid protected leave for employees to care for newborn or newly adopted children, to recover from serious medical conditions or to care for loved ones with serious medical conditions. These laws change frequently, though; employers who don't stay on top of them, as Verizon apparently did not, could subject themselves to their own hefty class-action lawsuits.
According to the suit, Verizon failed to approve requests for leave - or flat-out denied those requests - several times over the three-year period. Furthermore, class members allege in the suit that Verizon fired some of them for violating the company's attendance policy - even when their absences fell under the scope of the FMLA.
It is important to mention that Verizon cooperated fully with the two-year investigation. In addition to the $6 million settlement, Verizon has agreed to do things like revise and review its leave policies; train all of its California managers, officers, HR personnel and others in current Family Medical Leave Act laws; provide an internal review process that employees can use to appeal denials of leave and to provide regular updates to the Department of Fair Employment and Housing.
What This Means for Employers
The steps that Verizon has promised to undertake as a part of its FMLA settlement are ones that employers everywhere should engage in at all times. The specifics of the federal act change all the time. Waiting until the first lawsuit is filed is a risky proposition. These matters are usually handled as class-action lawsuits that could bankrupt smaller, less powerful companies. It is always in an employer's best interests to stay on top of current laws to avoid these issues.
Brian F. LaBovick, Esq.
Esther Uria LaBovick, Esq.
Mark R. Hanson, Esq.
Joseph R. Fields Jr., Esq.
Marcie Dodson, J.D.