Leave management: two words that can strike fear in the hearts of People professionals everywhere. This has always been a complicated issue with many considerations and requirements. For companies with a distributed workforce, monitoring and administering employee leaves can quickly become a full-time job.
Leave management doesn't need to be overwhelming though. With forethought and planning, your company can manage employee leave without it taking over your entire HR department. Here are some things to consider.
Developing Your Leave Program
Leave Policy Development
The first step to effective leave management is to create clear and equitable leave policies. Some questions to ask yourself include:
Where do our employees live? Are all your employees in a single country? In a single state? Employees in different places will have different laws that need to be followed. For example, some states like New York and California have paid family leave laws, which are being considered in and expanding to many other states.
Can a uniform leave policy work for us? Many companies create a uniform policy by applying the most stringent state and local regulation. This may mean that some employees will receive more leave than their state requires, but it will make your policy more equitable while reducing the amount of administration required. That said, it is also important to consider your budget and alternative solutions.
How will we handle unexpected or sensitive leave? Managers and other team members are often the first line in receiving information about employee leaves. Training should be provided to ensure that these staff members understand how to identify a potential leave request, the proper way to respond, and how to comply with company policies.
What sort of data can support our policy decisions? Although each company is different, there’s value in understanding how other companies are navigating leave management. Resources like Sparrow's Annual Benchmark Report or SHRM datasets can help point you in the right direction.
Although creating these policies is time-consuming, your company will recover that time (and more) when you have them in place.
Leave Requests
Due to varying regulations on federal, state, and local levels, it can be challenging to ensure that you are always in compliance when managing leaves. Since this is such a complicated issue, it is vital to train people who might receive employee leave requests on how to remain compliant.
Is there specific information that you need to offer employees? Many states have required posters and notices that need to be posted in a public workspace or shared upon hire. It can be difficult to keep track of this across states. Sparrow's Required Leave Posters & Notices allow you to access this information for federal regulations as well as those of individual states.
What training do managers and other team members need? There are no “magic words” for an employee to make a leave request. Sometimes they may merely hint at it. Make sure that managers and appropriate team members can identify these situations and refer the employee to the People team.
Who should employees talk to? Make it clear that employees should always speak to their HR team about leave. This helps eliminate confusion while also making it easier to establish consistent policies and provide training.
Leave Management
Provide guides to employees. As complicated as leave management is for HR departments, it's substantially more confusing for employees trying to navigate it. It can help to refer employees to relevant guides with information on when to file with the state and potential processing times.
Consider potential changes to insurance plans. Inform employees how to add a new dependent or enroll in special programs if their leave is likely to involve a qualifying life event.
Coordinate payroll management with state requirements. If you’re offering to supplement wages, it’s essential to confirm the employee’s approved leave benefits to prevent overpayment. Some states do not allow employers access to employee records, so employees may need guidance on how to report benefits that they are receiving.
Maintain clear documentation for every step of the process. In order to ensure a smooth process, it is important to create a checklist with dates of milestones and when to request information or submit documents. Be aware of what is required within the state where a leave is being filed (advance notice requirements, job protection designation timeline, etc.).
Return From Leave
Returning from leave is another area that's fraught with considerations. These include:
Fitness for duty requirements. What must employees do before they return to work? Employers may ask the employee’s healthcare provider to complete a Fitness for Duty certification to verify that they are fully released and able to return to work. It is important to ensure that this requirement is stated upfront when you send the FMLA notice. Also, ensure that you send a reminder to employees before they return to avoid confusion.
ADA and PWFA considerations. Generally, requiring a Fitness for Duty certification is a best practice as it may help ensure that you are aware of any workplace accommodations that may be needed for the employee’s return. Ensure that your company has a process in place to comply with ADA and PWFA requirements for those situations.
Using a Leave Management Vendor
All of this may feel overwhelming, especially if you are early in the process of figuring out leave management. And the stakes are high–improper leave management could lead to potential litigation, enforcement actions, and audits. On top of that, streamlining the leave management process helps to create an amazing employee experience where team members are supported during the most important moments of their lives.
How can you improve your leave management process? Exploring a full-service leave management vendor like Sparrow can help with navigating complex considerations around employee leave and provide resources to better support your teams and employees.
How Can a Leave Management Vendor Help?
They can:
Provide up-to-date information. Reclaim the hours you would have spent looking up applicable regulations for each state.
Help with filing claims. You don't have to worry about the endless back-and-forth of ensuring that each claim is filed properly.
Handle compliance issues. Third-party providers can help ensure that compliance notices are shared within the required turnaround time and track job protection usage.
Partnering with a leave management vendor can dramatically reduce the amount of paperwork and follow-up that is required to handle leaves in-house.
Considerations for Choosing a Leave Management Vendor
Do they handle leave compliance at all levels? Ensure that the vendor you choose considers all federal, state, and local compliance laws. Do they only work with certain states? Does that meet your needs now, and will it meet your needs in the future?
Adjudication. If you have a voluntary state plan, do you need a vendor to adjudicate the approval of a leave for on your company’s leave policy? Does the vendor have an efficient and effective system in place to deal with appeals and disputes?
Claim management. Will you work with a dedicated claims manager or a team? How can you ensure that the vendor understands the specific needs of your company?
Employee filing. Will your employees receive support on their state and/or disability claim filing? Would you still have to work closely with your employees to walk them through the details and steps involved in the claim process?
Payroll during leave. How can the vendor help with payroll while employees are on leave? Are the payroll calculations customized to you and your payroll system?
Payroll reconciliation. If the employee’s approved benefits differ from the estimate, will the vendor help with your payroll reconciliation? Are they proactive in providing you the reconciliations?
About Sparrow
Sparrow is the first end-to-end leave management solution for modern employers to care for their people during major life events. Sparrow’s high-tech, high-touch approach automates the most painful parts of employee leave management, while our world-class leave specialist team ensures a premium experience for all types of leaves across the United States and Canada.
By partnering with Sparrow, caring companies reduce compliance risks, enhance the employee experience, and contain costs.
