On May 5, 2014, Governor Martin O'Malley signed the Maryland
Parental Leave Act (MPLA) into law, expanding compliance
requirements for Maryland small business owners beyond the current
requirements of the federal Family and Medical Leave Act (FMLA).
This new law requires small business owners employing between 15
and 49 employees in the state of Maryland to provide employees six
workweeks of unpaid leave during any 12-month period for the birth
of an employee's child or the placement of a child with an
employee for adoption or foster care. The new law exposes small
business owners to new burdens and potential litigation as
employers and employees adjust to the newly expanded parental leave
rights.
Prior to this new law, Maryland small business owners were exempt
from similar requirements under the FMLA, which excludes employers
with fewer than 50 employees. Although the MPLA is similar to the
FMLA in that employees must: (1) have worked for a qualifying
employer for a 12-month period; (2) worked 1,250 hours during the
12 months prior to the requested leave; and (3) be employed at a
work site where at least 15 employees work within a 75-mile radius
to be eligible to take leave under this new policy, the MPLA
imposes the obligation to provide leave on employers employing less
than 50 workers and down to as few as 15 workers. The new law
permits employers to require eligible employees to give at least 30
days written notice before commencing leave unless the leave is due
to premature birth or unexpected adoption or foster placement. An
employer may deny leave to an eligible employee only where denial
of leave is necessary to prevent "substantial and grievous
economic injury to the operations of the employer." In a
provision likely to generate disputes and litigation, the MPLA
provides that an employer can only terminate an employee who is out
on parental leave for cause.
Additionally, the MPLA, like the FMLA, requires Maryland small
business owners to maintain group health care coverage for the
duration of parental leave in the same manner the employer would
have provided coverage had the employee not taken leave. If an
employee fails to return to work after the period of parental leave
has expired, the MPLA permits the employer to recover the premium
paid for maintaining health coverage during the period of parental
leave, unless the employee's failure to return to work is
because of circumstances beyond the employee's control. It is
unclear at this point what circumstances might fall within this
category, and small business owners will likely face difficulties
recouping premiums advanced to employees who subsequently do not
return as well as the possibility of litigation as the courts and
the Maryland Department of Labor, Licensing, and Regulation (DLLR)
attempt to define circumstances that are beyond an employee's
control.
Like the obligations imposed on employers under the FMLA, unless
doing so will result in substantial and grievous injury and the
employee was so advised, an employer is required to either: (1)
restore a returning employee to the same position held by the
employee before parental leave began; or (2) place the employee in
an equivalent position with equivalent benefits, pay, and other
terms and conditions of employment. However, small employers may
find the equivalent position alternative somewhat illusory,
particularly as the size of the employer approaches 15.
Finally, the MPLA imposes FMLA-like costs on employers who fail to
comply with its provisions and mandates that a court is
required to award reasonable attorney's fees and other
costs to the employee if an employer is found to have violated the
Act. The key provisions of this new law become effective October 1,
2014.
The content of this article is intended to provide a general guide to the subject matter. Specialist advice should be sought about your specific circumstances.