Privacy Issues in the Workplace

5. T HE C ALIFORNIA F AMILY R IGHTS A CT (CFRA) The California Family Rights Act (CFRA), Government Code section 12945.2, requires a covered public employer to permit eligible employees to take a leave of absence of up to 12 weeks in a 12-month period for, among other things, the serious health condition of the employee or the employee’s spouse, domestic partner, child or parent. Under certain circumstances, the CFRA allows an employer to require an employee to produce medical certification of the serious health condition entitling the employee to leave as well as certification that an employee is capable of returning to work. The CFRA also contains provisions for maintaining the confidentiality of medical information. The Family Medical Leave Act (FMLA), 29 U.S.C. section 2601, et seq., is the federal counterpart to the CFRA. Like the CFRA, the FMLA permits eligible employees to take a leave of absence of up to 12 weeks in a 12-month period for, among other things, the serious health condition of the employee or the employee’s spouse, child or parent. Likewise, the FMLA enables an employer, under certain circumstances, to require an employee to produce medical certification of the serious health condition entitling the employee to leave as well as certification that an employee is capable of returning to work. 7. T HE C ALIFORNIA O CCUPATIONAL S AFETY AND H EALTH A CT OF 1973 (C AL /OSHA) The California Occupational Safety and Health Act of 1973 (Cal/OSHA), Labor Code sections 6300-6719, regulates workplace health and safety conditions. It also contains provisions requiring the retention of certain medical and exposure records for up to 30 years. 8. T HE O CCUPATIONAL S AFETY AND H EALTH A CT OF 1970 (OSHA) The Occupational Safety and Health Act (OSHA), the federal counterpart to Cal/OSHA, 29 U.S.C. sections 651-678, also regulates workplace health and safety issues. 137 It too requires the retention of certain medical and exposure records for up to 30 years. 9. P REGNANCY D ISABILITY L EAVE (PDL) The Pregnancy Disability Leave Act (PDL), Government Code section 12945, is a California law permitting women who are disabled as a result of pregnancy to take up to four months of unpaid leave in addition to the 12 weeks of leave provided under the CFRA. Similar to the CFRA and FMLA, the PDL authorizes an employer to require medical certification from an employee seeking leave. 6. T HE F AMILY M EDICAL L EAVE A CT OF 1993 (FMLA)

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