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What employers should know about the Living Donor Protection Act

On Behalf of | May 24, 2021 | employment law for employers |

Pennsylvania Governor Tom Wolf recently passed a measure called the Living Donor Protection Act to protect employees who donate organs and tissues. The new law, set to take effect in June 2021, applies to workers who serve as living donors and would otherwise qualify for protection through the Family and Medical Leave Act.

Review the new provisions so you can make sure your small business remains in compliance.

LDPA eligibility

You must provide your employees with family or medical leave if you have at least 50 workers within a 75-mile radius, which includes medical leave related to organ or tissue donation. Eligible employees have worked for you for at least 12 months for 1,250 or more hours during the prior 12 months before starting leave. They do not have to be a donor for a family member to qualify for LDPA.

Provisions of LDPA

Like FMLA, LDPA gives workers 12 weeks of unpaid leave that they can take all at once or as needed within a 12-month period. They can request leave for the medical care and recovery associated with organ and tissue donation or to care for a family member who serves as a living donor.

If FMLA applies to your Pennsylvania company, you must provide leave for donors and donor caregivers under the terms of LDPA. The employee must give at least 30 days’ notice before taking time off except when an emergency makes it unfeasible to do so.

While you can ask an employee for medical certification when he or she requests leave under LDPA, you cannot ask for medical records.