HR Tips

Update - independent contractor rule status DOL and NLRB

DOL - The March 11 effective date of the Department of Labor's independent contractor rule is quickly approaching. This means barring a court order blocking the rule, employers need to come into compliance.

NLRB - A federal judge has put the National Labor Relations Board's joint employer rule, originally set to go into effect Feb. 26, on hold until at least March 11.

2024 forecast for leave and accommodation requests

In its 2024 Leave of Absence and Workplace Accommodation Forecast, AbsenceSoft, a leading cloud-based platform built to manage and track FMLA, STD, and LTD leaves as well as ADA accommodations, surveyed HR professionals at large employers to determine how leave and accommodations requests have changed over the past year, and the top reasons employees are requesting both.

For the second year in a row, HR managers are seeing an increase in leave requests, with almost 75 percent seeing an increase of 20 percent or more. The most frequent reason cited for leave was "to manage mental health-related issues" (55 percent), followed by "to recover from illness or injury" (51 percent).

The report notes, "Given this dramatic rise in requests for mental health leave, it is important for employers to understand the details of eligibility and employer requirements around these types of requests. Additionally, mental health challenges can also be a covered disability under the ADA, and employers could be required to provide reasonable accommodations to workers struggling with mental health challenges."

The survey highlights proactive measures employers are taking to address the evolving needs of their workforce. Notably, 51 percent of respondents have either added or considered adding paid mental health days for 2024. Increases in other leave benefits such as paid parental leave (54 percent) and flexible PTO time (52 percent) are also popular.