1. How do you handle Cal’s three-month absence with the least disruption? This isn’t the fi rst time you’ve had an employee who wanted to take leave under the Family and Medical Leave Act (FMLA). The act has been in place for over a decade, and you’ve had employees take leave for childbirth, for elder care, and to recover from surgery or injuries. In general, most people have used the FMLA as it was intended and have been relieved that they didn’t have to choose between their job and caring for a family member. As with most things, however, there are always abuses, and you have occasionally had to grapple with a request for time off that you considered questionable. Today, you’ve received one of those requests.

You operate two upscale restaurants, one in the fi nancial district and one in the entertainment district. Last week, you had to tell Cal, one of your experienced bartenders in the fi nancial district location, that he would be moving from the happy hour to the lunch hour because you needed his experience there. Although Cal would now be the team leader on the day shift, he was angry about the change, insisting that it amounted to a pay reduction because no one has three-martini lunches anymore. He said he’d only be serving soda and coffee, and tips on those drinks weren’t going to pay his rent.

Even without drinks, lunchtime checks generally average $75 per table, so you assure Cal that once the fi ve waitresses tip out (give a portion of their tips to the bartenders and table clearers), his pay should be the same. You reiterate that you really need him on days because the new crew is having trouble keeping up, even though they are just serving soda and coffee. But Cal announced his resignation. Before leaving at the end of his shift, however, he told you he had changed his mind. Today he came in late, with a doctor’s note saying he required a 12-week leave for stress!