Remote employees may still be FMLA eligible

Q         We have 140 employees working remotely across many states, and as a result, they meet three of the four Family and Medical Leave Act (FMLA) requirements but not the requirement to work at a location with 50 or more employees within 75 miles. How should we determine their FMLA eligibility?

Under the FMLA’s regulations, a remote employee's personal residence isn’t a worksite. Rather, their worksite is the office to which they report and from which assignments are made. If that office satisfies the "50 or more employees within 75-miles" threshold, and all other requirements for FMLA eligibility are satisfied, then the remote employee would be eligible for FMLA leave.

Martin Regimbal, a shareholder of The Kullman Firm in Columbus, Mississippi, may be reached at mjr@kullmanlaw.com.