• A company is generally under FMLA deadlines as soon as an employee alerts it of the need for leave.

The Family and Medical Leave Act (FMLA) process generally begins when an employee alerts the employer of the need for leave. Once this is done, the FMLA clock begins ticking, and the Wage and Hour Division (WHD) and courts are enforcing the deadlines. Employees are, however, required to provide appropriate notice information in a timely manner.

Employees are required to put the employer on notice of the need for leave, and this should include enough information to give the company an idea that the leave could be for an FMLA-qualifying reason.

Employees do not, however, need to assert their FMLA rights, or even mention the FMLA when putting an employer on notice of the need for leave. An employee’s unusual behavior has been seen as providing adequate notice.

Two employee notice scenarios generally exist — when the employee’s leave is foreseeable and when it is unforeseeable.