Sometimes an employee may have a crisis that requires him or her to need to take a leave. This could be to care for a sick family member or to deal with their personal illness. Some employees are called on to serve their country. Leave laws protect these employee’s jobs if they need time off for a valid reason. The Family Medical Leave Act gives employees up to 12 weeks of unpaid leave in case of a family crisis. While a company may hire a temporary worker to fill that position, the job must be available to the employee when he or she returns. In response to the increasing number of service men and women needing leave, the U.S. Department of Labor enacted some changes. According to the website the new leave law guarantees:

• Up to 12 weeks of leave for certain qualifying exigencies arising out of a covered military member's active duty status, or notification of an impending call or order to active duty status, in support of a contingency operation
• Up to 26 weeks of leave in a single 12-month period to care for a covered service member recovering from a serious injury or illness incurred in the line of duty on active duty. Eligible employees are entitled to a combined total of up to 26 weeks of all types of FMLA leave during the single 12-month period.