The intersection between an employer's obligations under the Family & Medical Leave Act (FMLA) and its enforcement of performance standards sometimes feels fraught with fear. However, nothing in the FMLA prohibits an employer from taking action against an employee for legitimate reasons, even when that employee is on or returns from a protected leave. Those were the issues before the Seventh Circuit Court of Appeals in Anderson v. Nations Lending Corporation decided on March 9, 2022.
The plaintiff joined Nations Lending in 2017 as a loan auditor. Despite her experience in the field, her first year of work with Nations Lending was marred by work errors. She was verbally counseled about the errors and provided re-training. She also had some health problems that took her out of the office. The employer granted her significant time off, even though she was not yet eligible for FMLA. Upon her return, her supervisor had discovered more work deficiencies and addressed them with her. Again, she was advised to obtain more training before resuming her auditing duties. Her errors were alarming enough for the supervisor to track them on a spreadsheet.
The employee had more medical issues in early 2018 and received FMLA. While her supervisor had made some comments about the plaintiff being sick a lot and noting that she needed a full team to run the department, the plaintiff received her full leave. During that time, the employer's audit system flagged additional work errors, and...
MUNCIE, IN — A Muncie man has been charged in U.S. District Court in Indianapolis with filing false COVID-19 claims. Gregory Vernon Dupree II, 38, in a federal indictment has been charged with eigh...