Employment Tips for Maryland Businesses—The Availability of Sick Leave

By Jamie Kent Hamelburg

Even though sick leave is a customary benefit, no law requires Maryland businesses to offer sick leave -- paid or unpaid--to their employees.  However, employers that do in fact offer paid sick leave (or any other form of paid leave) have certain obligations under Maryland law.  [We intend to address the law in Virginia and Maryland in a forthcoming blog.]

The Maryland Flexible Leave Act (the “MFLA,” which was enacted in 2008 and clarified in 2009) entitles employees who have any type of accrued leave (for example, vacation, sick, paid time off, personal days or compensatory overtime), to use the leave to take time off to care for any member of their immediate family who is ill.  Note that this law applies only to employers with 15 or more employees.  Also note that this law does not require employers to offer sick leave.  However, if a covered employer offers any type of leave, then it must allow its employees to use that leave to care for members of their immediate family.  “Immediate family members” includes a child, parent or spouse. 

If an employee has more than one type of paid leave, the employee has the right to elect the type and amount of accrued and unused leave.  And employers may not discharge or in any way discriminate against an employee for taking leave authorized by the MFLA.

The "take-away" for employers is that the general rule in Maryland is that neither sick leave nor any other type of "leave" is a mandatory benefit, but if it is offered, then employers must follow the guidelines set forth in the MFLA.

Employment Tips for Maryland Businesses—What It Means To Be An Employer “At Will”

By Jamie Kent Hamelburg

Since Maryland is an “employment at will” state, many employers think they can terminate employees at any time and for any reason at all.  While this is true generally, there are two important exceptions. 

The first exception is when the employer and employee agree in advance that the employee will be employed for a set time period.  For example, if the parties agree that the employee will work for a two-year time-period, then the employer cannot terminate the contract at its will but can terminate for cause – although to be safe, that should expressly be part of the original agreement and it would be best if the agreement is in a writing signed by, at least, the employee.

The second exception is that an employer cannot terminate an employee on the basis that the employee has done something that is a protected right, or for a reason that is in clear violation of public policy.  Examples of activities that will not prove a legally sufficient reason for discharging an employee include reporting a criminal activity to law enforcement, refusing to submit to a polygraph examination, refusing to engage in sexual activity and filing a worker’s compensation claim.  And employers cannot discharge an employee based on categories such as race, color, gender, national origin, religion, age, disability or marital status. 

The general rule in Maryland, then, is that in absence of an express contract, agreement or policy to the contrary, an employee may be hired or fired for almost any reason, or for no reason at all.  Before terminating an employee, an employer should look carefully at any agreement it has with the employee that might set a term of years for the employment, and should make sure that its reasons for the termination do not violate public policy.  [We intend to address the law in Virginia and D.C. in a forthcoming blog.]