How The Pandemic Changed Leave Expectations Of Employees

Here's how employers can show empathy through leave options

If we, as HR professionals, thought leave policies were complicated before the Covid-19 global pandemic, we were in for a wake-up call. The rules and regulations we came to live and breathe by were changed drastically, and seemingly overnight, to accommodate the changing needs of the workforce. For leave types that weren’t regulated, employees still expected them nonetheless. The question remains, however, which will stay and which will go?
 

Let’s look at a few different types of leaves and how the pandemic changed some expectations of how they are administered. 

1. Family Medical Leave Act

Perhaps no other legislation was as affected by the global economic and health crisis as the Family Medical Leave Act (FMLA). The Families First Coronavirus Response Act (FFCRA) required certain employers to provide paid sick leave for expanded FMLA for Covid-related reasons. While the effective date expired on December 31, 2020, its effects are still being felt by employers and employees who appreciated the deep empathy that the plan ultimately displayed for families requiring assistance.  

More employees were exposed to what FMLA is as they may have not needed or considered taking it before. Further, more employers learned how to leverage it to its fullest to help its employee base while navigating the need for FMLA enrollment, management and compliance to be 100 percent digital since many organizations went fully remote. 

Since FMLA hours can be used so dynamically – a single eight-hour shift can be broken into FMLA hours, for instance – a system that integrates time, attendance and payroll makes management easier and compliance less risky. Now, imagine doing that manually in person during the pandemic. The way of enrolling, managing and complying with FMLA will never go back to manual, pen-and-paper ways with more employees aware of FMLA benefits than ever before.  

2. Childcare Leave

We’ve seen the many reports that indicate women left the workforce in far greater numbers than their male counterparts during the pandemic to, in many cases, care for children whose childcare was closed or whose school went virtual. For those parents/caregivers who remained employed full-time, the potential of burnout was incredibly high. The FFCRA covered leave for employees to take should they need to care for children due to the aforementioned closures which is now not required but could greatly assist your employees. 

As many employers begin their return-to-office plans, they need to be highly flexible to the continuing childcare needs of their employees. Not only are school hours a district-by-district decision but the degree of anxiety that parents face over return to campus is wide ranging as well. 

While the FFCRA has lapsed and the requirements are now voluntary under the American Rescue Plan Act (ARPA), it’s critical to still lead with empathy during this time. 

As the pandemic is in the rearview mirror, HR departments should also evaluate how they help working parents and caregivers with their childcare situation. This is to treat the employee as their whole self and support them to do their best work as well as for their mental and financial wellbeing including making them aware of the new credits available in the ARPA such as an increase in the amount an employee is able to contribute toward their dependent care benefit. 

3. Voting Time

Legally, there are state-by-state mandates for how much time an employee must be able to take off to fulfill their civic duty. Ethically and from an employee experience point of view, companies need to consider what they stand for and how they want to empower their employees. 

More people voted in the U.S. 2020 election than in any other election in over a century. People were passionate about casting their vote and employers that stood in their way risked a negative culture and a negative employee experience. As future elections come into play, HR leaders should address their voting-leave policies to go beyond compliance.  

4. Volunteer Days

The combination of the pandemic, racial tensions and a polarized political environment has fostered a situation in which employees care more than ever that their employer supports their core values. One of the ways in which employers can truly show that they care is by offering paid volunteer days for employees to use. While not required by any legislation, it’s one of the many ways that employers can show empathy through leave options. 

While leave policies and best practices will continue to evolve, HR leaders must consider how to easily and compliantly manage them through a digital-first and fully integrated manner. Technology is available to manage the intricacies so an employee can self-serve and an employer can sustain and scale their empathy-led leave offerings. 

Amy Mosher is the Chief People Officer at isolved. With more than 20 years of global human resources experience, isolved Chief People Officer Amy Mosher has contributed to the success of multiple public and private companies across various industries, including software, biotechnology and hardware. For the last decade, she has served as the Head of Human Resources with Accel-KKR SaaS software portfolio companies, including HighWire Press, Inc., KANA Software, Inc. and, now, isolved – enhancing cultures and building positive employee experiences at each.   Connect  Amy Mosher Follow @isolvedHCM