Indiana Protects Employee Absences to Attend Certain Meetings Regarding Their Children

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Patricia Tsipras

June 20, 2025

Indiana recently amended the Indiana Code concerning labor and safety to provide protections to employees who attend certain meetings regarding their children.  See Senate Enrolled Act No. 409.

No Adverse Employment Action
Effective July 1, 2025, an employer may not take an adverse employment action against an employee as a result of the employee’s absence from work to attend

1. an attendance conference under IC 20-33-2.5 (dealing with compulsory school attendance for students under 18 years of age); or
2. a case conference committee meeting (i.e., a meeting with those who develop an individualized education program (IEP) for students with disabilities)

regarding the employee’s child.[1]

Exceptions
The prohibition against adverse employment actions does not apply if

1. the employee has attended more than one conference or more than one meeting for the calendar year;
2. the absence was longer than reasonably necessary to attend the conference or meeting or travel to and from the conference or meeting; or
3. the employee failed to give the employer notice of the conference or meeting at least five days in advance of the conference or meeting.

No Pay Required
Employers are not required to pay employees for attending the conference or meeting or traveling to or from the conference or meeting.

Documentation Required
Employees must provide to their employer documentation that the employee attended the conference or meeting.  Upon request, a school must provide to an employer (or to the employee of the employer) documentation of the conference or meeting.

Duty to Cause the Least Disruption
Employees have a duty to make a reasonable effort to schedule the conferences or meetings to be held electronically so as to cause the least disruption to work.

Indiana Employer Takeaways
In advance of the July 1 effective date, review your policies and practices, and train your Human Resources professionals and managers, regarding time off to ensure compliance with this new law.

The author of this article, Patricia Tsipras, is a member of the Bar  of Pennsylvania.  This article is designed to provide one perspective regarding recent legal developments, and is not intended to serve as legal advice in Pennsylvania, Indiana, or any other jurisdiction, nor does it establish an attorney-client relationship with any reader of the article where one does not exist.  Always consult an attorney with specific legal issues.

[1]              “Child” means a biological child, adopted child, foster child, or stepchild.