Francis P. Alvarez

Francis P. (Frank) Alvarez is a Principal in the White Plains, New York, office of Jackson Lewis P.C. He is the founder and Leader of the firm's Disability, Leave and Health Management (DLHM) Practice Group.

DLHM is the growing body of complex and largely uncoordinated federal, state and local laws impacting employer responses to employees getting sick or injured; to their family members needing care; or welcoming additional children into their households. Mr. Alvarez invites clients to consider DLHM law and to find ways to do business while balancing these important but potentially competing interests.

Applying nearly thirty years of experiential knowledge, Mr. Alvarez closely collaborates with clients to “operationalize” these laws, including building leave management and reasonable accommodation programs that incorporate statutory and voluntary paid and unpaid leave programs. His goal is to help clients design systems that comply with the letter of the law, take care of employee needs, take control of legal and business risks, and develop a human resources narrative that significantly reduces employment litigation risks.

As necessary, Mr. Alvarez assists our firm’s litigators on the Americans with Disabilities Act, Family and Medical Leave Act, or other litigation within his practice specialty, including systemic investigations or claims from the Department of Labor and Equal Employment Opportunity Commission. He has been recognized as a preeminent thought leader on disability and absence issues.

In 2017, the Disability Management Employer Coalition (DMEC), awarded Mr. Alvarez its Partnership Award for his passion in advancing absence and disability management. Mr. Alvarez is invited routinely to speak on leave and accommodation issues and for the last several years has presented on medical issues in the workplace to federal court judges at the Annual Judicial Conference, sponsored by the Federal Judicial Center and New York University Law School.

Honors and Recognitions

•Disability Management Employer Coalition, Partnership Award (2017)

Published Works

•“Get Your Disability and Leave Management House in Order,” Society for Human Resource Management Viewpoint (June 2016) [Co-Author]
• Disability Management Law Grows Up: Examining the Supreme Court's Recent ADA and FMLA Rulings, Society for Human Resource Management Legal Report (September/October 2002)
•Making the ADA Work for You, Second ed. (Milt Wright & Associates, Inc., 1992) [Co-Author]

Speeches

• Medical Issues in the Workplace, NYU School of Law Annual Judicial Conference (New York, NY 2018) (Co-presenter)
• Medical Issues in the Workplace, NYU School of Law Annual Judicial Conference (New York, NY 2017) (Co-presenter)

Francis P. Alvarez In the News

Francis Alvarez Discusses COVID-19 Challenges Prompting Sick Leave Policy Reviews

March 18, 2020 • SHRM

Francis Alvarez Comments on Necessity of Reviewing Leave Policies Due to COVID-19

March 16, 2020 • SHRM

Francis Alvarez Comments on Need for Paid Leave Policy Review Due to COVID-19

March 13, 2020 • SHRM

Francis P. Alvarez Publications

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Responding to COVID-19 Concerns as a Retailer

April 15, 2020

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Department of Labor’s Temporary Rule for Families First Coronavirus Response Act

April 3, 2020

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Department of Labor’s Latest FAQs Expand ‘Health Care Providers’ and Define ‘Emergency Responders’ Under FFCRA

March 28, 2020

Webinars

webinar

Leave & Accommodation Developments for New York Employers

2 - 3:00 PM EST
Archived

webinar

Preparing for New York Paid Family Leave: Are You Ready?

1 - 2:00 PM EST
Archived

webinar

Preparing for New York Paid Family Leave: Are You Ready?

1 - 2:00 PM EST
Archived

Francis P. Alvarez Blog Posts

COVID-19 Workplace Law Advisor

EEOC Opines on COVID-19 Testing by Employers

April 27, 2020
Disability, Leave & Health Management

EEOC Opines on COVID-19 Testing by Employers

April 27, 2020
Disability, Leave & Health Management

Agencies Publish Guidance for Employers on Responding to the 2019 Novel Coronavirus

February 14, 2020