Anne Yuengert Interviewed on LXBN TV Concerning DOL’s Application of FMLA Rights to Same-Sex Couples

Labor and employment attorney and co-editor of BABC’s Labor & Employment Insights blog, Anne Yuengert, was interviewed on by Colin O’Keefe of LXBN TV regarding the implications of the Department of Labor’s recently updated regulations to include same-sex married couples in the Family and Medical Leave Act (FMLA) rights and benefits. The DOL issued these regulatory changes in the midst of a high-profile controversy over Alabama’s legal stance on same-sex marriage. Yuengert, based out of the firm’s Birmingham, Ala., office, is familiar with the challenges that the state’s private employers face in light of these shifting regulations.

“Employers have been trying to deal with this issue for several years now with employees who are in same-sex relationships or who may have gotten married outside of the state and returned,” said Yuengert. “A lot of them have been trying to retain employees, retain talent, and have found ways to extend benefit coverage to same sex partners, but this change in Alabama will actually require them to do it now.”

In the video interview below, Yuengert shares recommendations for employers to consider in light of the new federal rules—such as reviewing policies, procedures, insurance contracts, and tax withholding structures, and conducting employee training.