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Ethics is a branch of philosophy that aims to answer the basic question, “What should I do?”. It’s a process of reflection in which people’s decisions are shaped by their values, principles, and purpose rather than unthinking habits, social conventions or self-interest (The Ethics Centre, 2016). One’s values, principles, and purpose are what gives us a sense of what is good, right, and important in our lives and serve as a reference point for all the choices we may perhaps choose.

Family Medical Leave Act (FMLA) requires employers with 50 or more employees who work within 75 miles, work more than 25 hours per week, and who have been employed more than 1 year to provide up to 12 workweeks of unpaid leave and up to 26 work weeks for military caregivers leave to an employee during any 12-month period, so the employee may provide care for a family member or obtain care for himself or herself. This benefit can also include post-childbirth or adoption. The employer must provide health care benefits. The employer is also supposed to provide the same job or a comparable position upon the return of the employee (U.S. Department of Labor, n.d.).

The average employee may be out of sync with what the law permits them regarding FMLA. This act is designed to protect both the employer and the employee. From an employer perspective, it helps them work toward the goal of true, equal opportunity employment for both women and men and from an employee view, they can take needed medical leave without fear of losing their job. Employees must provide notice of their need for FMLA leave unless unforeseeable circumstances prevent the employee from doing so. Generally, an employee must give at least 30 days’ notice of the need to take FMLA to leave when she or he knows about the need for the leave in advance, and it is possible and practical to do so (U.S. Department of Labor, n.d.). When the need is unexpected, the employee must provide notice as soon as possible within the time requires by the employer’s usual and customary notice requirements. Leave may be taken in a period of whole weeks, single days, hours, and in some cases even less than an hour.

FMLA was formulated to give job security to new mothers and workers who need to care for sick relatives. The misuse of FMLA could pose as an ethical issue. For example, using leave to go fishing or travel to exotic locations. Routine absences put an extra burden on the organization, the supervisor and employee’s co-workers. It can negatively influence productivity and quality. When a critical person is missing, work has to be reorganized, which affects co-worker’s overall productivity. With fewer co-workers to do the job duties, something is going to suffer in the process, because not as much work is accomplished when someone is missing.

While it’s true that the employer cannot deny an employee FMLA leave, potential solutions to misuse of FMLA can deter employees from taking unnecessary leave. For example, keeping the lines of communication open.  It’s important to maintain contact with employees on FMLA leave. An effective strategy could be something as simple as having supervisors call staffers that are out on FMLA to leave once a week (Schappel, 2011). Also, require employees to certify their absence and pursue recertification when circumstances change. Once an employer informs an employee of the need to obtain certification, the employer must give the employee 15 days to get the certification and return to the employer – unless it’s not practicable under the circumstances, and the employee is making a good faith effort to return it to you (Schappel, 2011).