Your Rights Under FMLA

Do you need to leave work for a family emergency or sickness? Are you worried you will lose your job because of this absence? The Family and Medical Leave Act, or FMLA, is a federal law that requires employers to provide employees job-protection and unpaid leave for qualified family and medical reasons.

To qualify for FMLA a worker must be;

• Employed at a place of business with more than 50 employees.
• Have worked for the employer for at least 12 months or 1250 hours within the previous 12 months.

If you qualify for FMLA, you’re eligible for unpaid, job-protected leave for up to 12 weeks in 1 year to;

• Care for a new child, including the birth of a child or the adoption or placement of a child in foster care.
•  To care for a seriously ill family member like a spouse, child under the age of 18 or a child over the age of 18 protected by the American Disabilities Act, or parent.
• To recover from serious illness.
• To care for an injured service member in the family.
• To address issues that may arise with a family member’s deployment.

Federal FMLA benefits do not apply to;

• Workers in businesses with fewer than 50 employees, part-time workers who have worked fewer than 1250 hours in the 12 months preceding the leave and a paid vacation.
• Workers who need time off to care for seriously ill elderly relatives (other than parents) or pets.
• Workers who need time off to recover from short-term/common illness such as a cold or to care for family members with similar illness.
• Workers who want time off for routine medical care like check-ups.

To learn more, go to: http://www.dol.gov/whd/fmla/

Managing Your Student Loan Debt

The United States is one of the only countries in the world that has private higher education. To compensate for the fact that college is not free for all to attend, the Government and private lenders offer student loans which many view as a great investment towards the futures. Even then graduates can have difficulty repaying those loans. Lenders offer borrowers many methods to repay their loans but one of the newest and least known about methods is the IBR (Income-Based Repayment Plan).

Available since 2009, this initiative allows borrowers who have federal student loans that have enough debt relative to their adjusted gross income to qualify. An individual would qualify if it would take more than 15% of whatever they earn above 150% of the poverty level to pay off their federal student loans on a standard 10-year payment plan. This is a way for borrowers who make a modest income but have sought for higher degrees to be able to make their monthly obligations without breaking the bank. Sometimes, IBR can seem intimidating to borrowers and the application process can seem complicated, but the complications of applying for the loan are greatly outweighed by the benefits. 

•  You pay $0 of your loans if you earn less than 150% of the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services Poverty Guideline for your family size, all the while remaining in good standing and not defaulting on your loans.Your IBR monthly payment is based on your annual Adjusted Gross Income (AGI) and the size of your family.
• The government will pay your unpaid accrued interest for up to 3 consecutive years from the date you began as a member of the IBR program on subsidized loans. If your monthly IBR payment doesn’t cover the interest that accrues monthly on your loan, the government pays the unpaid accrued interest on Direct Subsidized Loans or Subsidized Federal Stafford Loans.  You are responsible for paying the interest that accrues on unsubsidized loans during this three-year period.
•  Limits the capitalization of interest- While you have the partial financial hardship, interest that accrues but is not covered by loan payments will not be capitalized, even if the interest accrues during a deferment or forbearance.
•  After 25 years your loan is canceled- If an individual repays under the IBR for 25 years and meets certain other requirements, their remaining balance will be canceled.
• 10 year Public Service Loan Forgiveness- If an individual, while being employed full-time for a public service organization, makes 120 on-time full monthly payments under IBR or other qualifying repayment plans, they may be eligible to receive forgiveness for their remaining balance of their loan.

This formula to see if you might qualify for the IBR program is available at a variety of online websites, like www.studentaid.ed.gov and www.ibrinfo.org.  

October is Adopt-A-Shelter-Dog Month!

October is extra special month because it’s Adopt-a-Shelter-Dog Month. This is a time to pay tribute to all things canine and give some thought to helping homeless pups find homes. The ASPCA sponsors this month by hosting adoption events and has set up a special portion of their website, ASPCA.org, which is entirely devoted to shelter dogs. Whether you’re an experienced shelter dog parent or considering becoming one, this section of their site will have all the information you need to be completely informed on Shelter Dogs. You can learn how to find the right dog for you, use their nationwide search tools to find your new companion, and read about how to keep them happy and healthy. In honor of this month, the Employees of Merritt Webb have sent in pictures of their own furry, four-legged friends. Head over to http://tinyurl.com/ctr6lsa to take a look!

Remember, there are millions of wonderful, adorable shelter dogs in our country who need homes, so please consider adopting today!

Merritt Webb is Hosting a Flu Shot Clinic

Flu season is nearly upon us! Merritt Webb’s Durham office is hosting a Flu Shot Clinic on Tuesday, October 2, 2012 from 1:00 PM to 4:00 PM for all of our clients in the Raleigh-Durham area.

The Center for Disease Control and Prevention recommends that everyone who is at least 6 months of age or older should get a flu vaccine this season. This is especially important for people who have certain medical conditions including asthma, diabetes, chronic lung disease, pregnancy, or people 65 years or older. These individuals are considered high risk and should get a flu shot.

The vaccine takes up to 2 weeks to take effect so the CDC also recommends that you get vaccinated as soon as the flu vaccine becomes available in your community. 

Come out on to our Durham office on Tuesday and get yours!

Some Dogs Need Space

A new Facebook campaign may make taking your dog for a walk that much safer. The Yellow Ribbon campaign has been launched as an initiative to prevent unwanted conflicts while taking your pet out in public. 

The new campaign, which promotes attaching a yellow ribbon to the leash of a dog that needs “space” from other dogs, hopes to promote fewer public canine conflicts by warning other dogs owners, people, and small children to proceed with caution and give the dog some space.

The initiative is aimed to protect not only the dog but the people as well and is meant to focus on dogs who might be members of an “aggressive” breed. The campaign is intended for all dogs that might require space for a variety of reasons, including health, training, or even for owners who would like people (and children) to think twice before rushing up to pet their dog.