FMLA Ruling by Fifth Circuit in Acker v. General Motors Reaffirms That Employers Can Enforce Reasonable “Call-In” Procedures

The U.S. Court of Appeals for the Fifth Circuit ruled recently, consistent with the Department of Labor’s 2009 revisions to the regulations implementing the Family and Medical Leave Act (FMLA), that an employer is permitted to require an employee to follow specific notice procedures when requesting FMLA leave.

In Acker v. General Motors, LLC, No. 16-11174 (5th Cir. April 11, 2017), the appeals court found that the revised FMLA regulations require employees to follow their employers’ usual and customary procedures for requesting FMLA leave, absent any “unusual circumstances,” and that there were no unusual circumstances that prevented the plaintiff in this case from complying with the company’s requirement of calling in before taking intermittent FMLA leave.

A copy of the decision in Acker is available here.

Members of the Equal Employment Advisory Council (EEAC) can read more here.