Are you required to offer your employees unpaid leave? What type of reasonable accommodations do you need to make for disabled workers? 

As a small business owner, it’s important to learn the difference between ADA and FMLA rules. The Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) and the Family Medical Leave Act (FMLA) apply to many small and large employers, so it is important to find out if you must follow these laws. By learning about ADA vs FMLA, you can update your HR policies and make sure your workplace offers the appropriate programs.  

What Is the Difference Between ADA and FMLA? 

While these acts are two different laws, there are a number of similarities between the ADA vs FMLA. However, the ADA kicks in with fewer employees, so more small businesses are bound by the ADA. To learn more about the difference between ADA and FMLA, read on. 

FMLA: The Family Medical Leave Act 

The FMLA applies to all employers who have more than 50 employees in a 75-mile geographic radius for at least 20 weeks of the year. This employment figure includes part-time and full-time workers. If your workforce changes throughout the year, you can basically look at your payroll to see how many weeks you employed at least 50 workers. 

Eligible employees can take up to 12 weeks of FMLA per year. This is calculated on a rolling basis, so they can get an additional 12 weeks after a year has passed since their last FMLA leave period. FMLA can be taken for the following reasons: 

• To care for a child after they are born within the first year after their birth. 
• To recover from a serious health issue that makes the employee unable to do their work. 
• To handle issues that develop because a spouse, child, or parent is an active duty member.
• To care for a parent, spouse, or child who is seriously ill. 
• To bond with a foster child or an adopted child within one year of the foster placement or adoption. 

ADA: The Americans With Disabilities Act 

Under the ADA, it is illegal to discriminate against someone who has a disability if a workplace has 15 workers or more. You are not allowed to treat people with disabilities differently when it comes to their pay, promotions, job leave, training, benefits, hiring, or firing. Likewise, employers must make reasonable accommodations to help workers perform their jobs. Someone is considered disabled if a mental or physical ailment substantially impairs the individual’s ability to carry out day-to-day activities.      

The Main Difference Between the ADA and FMLA

The biggest difference between ADA and FMLA regulations is their focus. While the ADA is focused on protecting disabled workers from discrimination, the FMLA was created to give all employees access to unpaid leave for illnesses or the birth of a child. These two leave programs intersect once you have 50 employees or more. While the ADA kicks in with just 15 employees, the FMLA requires a workplace to have 50 employees before it becomes a requirement. 

How Does the ADA Intersect With the FMLA? 

The ADA was created to protect workers with disabilities. As a part of this mission, it allows workers to get an unpaid leave of absence to deal with disability issues. This absence doesn’t have to be paid, and there are no specific limitations to how long it can last. Instead, the only rule is that the absence must be considered a reasonable accommodation. 

With the FMLA, leave is limited to just 12 weeks in a year. Sometimes, FMLA and ADA rules can intersect. For example, someone may stop working in a warehouse because of a back injury. After their FMLA finishes, they may not be able to work in a warehouse without extra accommodations. 

At this point, the ADA kicks in. The employee may be transferred to an office job or provided with accommodations when they come back to work. As a part of the workplace’s FMLA compliance, an employer may also require a medical provider’s verification that the employee can safely return to work.  

Learn How to Handle ADA Vs FMLA Requirements as a Small Business 

As a small business owner, it is your duty to understand the difference between ADA and FMLA rules. If you don’t have time to learn about ADA vs FMLA regulations, we can help. For more information about fulfilling your FMLA requirements, reach out to Asure’s small business HR professionals today.