The short answer to this blog title’s question is…probably, and it’s most likely due to no fault of your own. While every organization has different leave management policies and processes, in order to effectively, compliantly, and efficiently manage leaves it often requires a multitude of manual tasks that even on a one-off basis is a strain on your bandwidth.
At scale, this process can quickly sink any plans you had at a productive day, week, month or quarter. Leave requests continue to rise as organizations look to implement more robust leave policies in an effort to promote work-life balance and attract top-end talent. It shouldn’t come as much of a surprise then that more employees than ever are leveraging their organization’s policies leading to a steady rise in requests you’re required to process.
Factor in the prevalence of remote workforces (even if we’re shifting into the “hybrid” era) and now you and your People Ops team are being asked to make sure you’re adhering to local rules and regulations for parts of the country you’ve previously never stepped foot in.
Where Your Current Process May Suffer at Scale
Successfully guiding your employees through a leave journey starts with your leave management process, and if your process involves manual tasks there’s a good chance your bandwidth decreases as your leave requests increase.
Having an efficient and consistent process helps ensure you’re administering your leave process fairly, which promotes a positive work environment and can help you avoid lawsuits or accusations of bias.
Let’s take a high-level look at what’s involved in managing a single leave of absence so you can identify where your manual processes might be bogging you and your team down.
Educate employees: There are a wide variety of leave scenarios, and there’s a good chance your employee population doesn’t know what they don’t know. Provide educational materials as necessary.
Know the law: In order to keep your organization compliant, you’ll need to understand which local, state and federal leave laws may apply, and what employers can and can’t do under those laws.
Be your policy expert: Whether you’re an organization of 50, 500, or 5,000 having a thorough understanding of your organization’s leave policies–and applying them consistently–is a must.
Gather Information: When an employee requests a leave of absence, whether it be for parental leave or disability, you’re going to need to gather some information. From demographic data such as length of employment and hours worked information to determine eligibility for FMLA and state leaves, to collecting any necessary medical certifications that may be required to support a leave request.
Communicate openly: Clear and consistent communication in the leave process allows you to gather relevant details and documents, address concerns, and provide guidance where necessary, facilitating a smoother leave decision process.
Send legally required notices: The FMLA and many state leave laws require employers to send eligibility notices, rights and responsibilities documents and designation notices with specific content, within a specified timeframe.
Document everything: Well, everything as it pertains to the leave process that is. Accurate records of documentation, such as medical certificates or relevant paperwork, ensure that leave determinations are fair, consistent, and compliant with your company policies and legal requirements as you assess the legitimacy of leave requests.
If you’re currently managing your leaves of absence in-house, there’s a good chance you’re having to manually do most of this work. As your company grows and/or your leave requests rise, your leave management process can quickly become a thorn in the side of your other business objectives. Eating up precious hours of your day in order to stay compliant and deliver a positive, empathetic experience to employees needing a leave of absence.
What a Scalable Management Process Looks like
Efficiency without sacrificing effectiveness and consistency is the key to a scalable leave management process. While that is achievable with your current team’s bandwidth through establishing standardized checklists and tracking progress on a spreadsheet, there’s a good chance you clicked on this blog because you know your process isn’t scalable.
If establishing an efficient protocol for handling the leave management process seems like a pipe dream, you might want to explore the option of a dedicated leave management software (shameless plug) that automates, tracks, and documents the entire leave process for you.
The right dedicated leave management system can save you countless hours administering every leave of absence, and instantly remove any administrative burdens you’d otherwise face as your headcount and leave requests continue to rise.
About Tilt
Tilt is leading the charge in all things leave of absence management through easy-to-use tech and human touch. Since 2017, our proprietary platform and Empathy Warriors have been helping customers make leave not suck by eliminating administrative burdens, keeping companies compliant, and providing a truly positive and supportive leave of absence experience for their people.
