WASHINGTON, D.C., December 1, 2006 – Responding to today’s request by the Department of Labor (DOL) for information on the administration of the Family and Medical Leave Act (FMLA), the National Association of Manufacturers advocated regulatory reform efforts to better define employee benefits.
“Employees are the greatest asset for any manufacturer,” said Jeri Gillespie, NAM vice president of human resources policy. “In order to protect the rights of covered employees, as well as the employers who provide benefits, DOL should revise the FMLA to function as lawmakers intended.”
The NAM and its members stand behind the benefit that FMLA provides to employees who are having a child or need to care for a family member. However, with regard to medical leave, ambiguous regulatory definitions have led to unintended abuses, putting jobs and companies in jeopardy. Manufacturers have testified to these problems in a series of Congressional hearings since the law’s enactment. The NAM has long advocated for DOL regulatory efforts to revise the FMLA implementing regulations, particularly with respect to notice requirements, defining serious health conditions and the use of intermittent leave.
Gillespie called the DOL’s move a “welcome sign” that the agency is willing to take a look at these problems, but the NAM remains concerned that a proposed solution has not yet surfaced. “Manufacturers routinely emphasize that in the human resource area no regulation is more misunderstood and costly than the regulations related to the FMLA,” she said.
“Vague, confusing and contradictory regulations and guidance do not allow employers to administer the FMLA’s requirements with confidence and certainty,” Gillespie continued. “For its part, the NAM will use this opportunity to discuss the challenges and successes of the FMLA and we remain hopeful for a full rulemaking soon.”
The National Association of Manufacturers is the nation’s largest industrial trade association, representing small and large manufacturers in every industrial sector and in all 50 states. Headquartered in Washington, D.C., the NAM has 10 additional offices across the country. Visit the NAM’s award-winning web site at www.nam.org for more information about manufacturing and the economy.
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