Three Chicago police communication officers (PCOs) used the FMLA as the ticket for time off for a Caribbean cruise together, according to a recent report from the City of Chicago Office of Inspector General (OIG). Two of these PCO’s took a “combined ten cruises using sick leave and/or FMLA leave dating as far back as 2010,” according to the report. A fourth PCO took two FMLA Caribbean cruises. Three of the PCO’s have been discharged, one resigned.
The three who cruised together had booked the cruise almost a year in advance and used intermittent FMLA leave “for at least a portion of the vacation,” according to the OIG report. The doctor of one of the cruisers had recommended the PCO be on bedrest during the time the PCO was on the cruise, according to the report. A second PCO submitted a doctor’s note indicating that he would be having a surgical procedure during the time the PCO went on the cruise, according to the report. The OIG noted that “[w]hile on the cruise, the three PCOs consumed alcohol, went to numerous restaurants, attended night clubs, toured Caribbean islands, went Horseback riding, rode jet skis and even went on a ‘booze cruise.’”
That the FMLA is abused regularly is no secret. Just ask anyone who administers FMLA leaves. The FMLA does not protect those who abuse it but it facilitates abuse by limiting the information available to an employer concerning an employee’s absence. That is especially so when managing intermittent leave, which is one of the most vexing leave management challenges.