If an employee is out for an extended period of time because of a non-work related illness am I required to keep the position open. We have less than 10 full time employees.
Thanks for your help,
George in MA

Nope. With fewer than 50 employees you are free to set your own policy regarding extended leaves and when you will reinstate employees.

Just watch for the Massachusetts Maternity Leave Act (MMLA). It applies to companies as few as 6 employees and overlaps with the FMLA.

Here's a link the MCAD's guidelines on the Act. It's a good place to start.
http://www.mass.gov/mcad/maternity1.html

Just for my further education -- Massachusetts does not have its own version of FMLA?

Maine does. It reaches down to employers with 15 employees, but only extends for 10 consecutive weeks in two years (no intermittent leave).

No, MA does not have its own version of FMLA.

We, as a state, have a maternity leave policy that goes into effect at 6 employees and requires that the employee receive up to 8 weeks of (currently unpaid) leave. This CAN run concurrently with FMLA but the employer is obligated to provide this even if FMLA has already been exhausted.