Reference no: EM132887781

An employee was hired and began work on May 15, 2020. He worked full time and didn't use any of his paid leave because he was trying to save it for his upcoming wedding and the anticipated birth of his first child. His fiancée unexpectedly went into labor on April 1st, 2021. The employee notified his manager of the situation and requested to use several days of accrued paid leave. The request was granted. The employee returned to work a couple of weeks ago on April 5th, 2021. The child had been born several months premature and would remain in the neonatal intensive care unit until at least June 15th, 2021. The fiancée was using her own leave while their child was in the hospital. The employee submitted a request to you that he would need to take FMLA leave to care for the child when the child returned home in mid- or late June this year.

1) Briefly summarize the facts of the situation above.

2) Summarize the applicable legal concepts. Be sure to identify any applicable laws or principles by name (for example, "The Americans with Disability Act (ADA) requires that..." or "the concept of respondeat superior means that an employer is liable when _________.").

3) Describe to the COO the potential legal claims that could be brought by the employee and explain how you handled the situation in a way that would reduce the employer's liability for potential legal claims as much as possible.