• The FMLA regulates how and when employers must respond to an employee’s request for leave.

Once an employee has put a company on notice of the need for leave, Family and Medical Leave Act (FMLA) obligations are initiated and the FMLA clocks generally begin ticking. Notices need to be provided to the employee, questions may need to be asked, answers sought. Failure to respond appropriately or timely could risk a claim.

Employers are to provide employees an eligibility/rights and responsibilities notice within five days of being put on notice of the need for leave. The employer is to complete the notice before giving it to the employee.

Once an employer has enough information — such as from a certification — that the employee’s reason for leave qualifies for FMLA protections, the employer has five days to give the employee a designation notice.