Employer Interference with Family and Medical Leave Act ("FMLA") Rights

Congress passed the Family and Medical Leave Act (FMLA) in 1993 in an attempt to balance the demands of the workplace with the needs of families. When a family emergency arises, the FMLA provides protection to employees by ensuring that employees are not asked to choose between their employment and their family obligations.  At its core, the FMLA  provides job security to employees who must miss work because of their own illnesses, to care for family members who have illnesses, or to care for newborns. 

To be eligible for FMLA leave,  an employee must have worked at least a year and at least 1250 hours in the past year, and work for an employer with at least 50 employees within 75 miles.  The employee can take leave for the following reasons: a) birth or newborn care; b) adoption or foster care; c) family care for a serious health condition; d) care for the employee's own serious health condition; e) qualifying exigency due to family member in the military; or f) care of a covered service member with a serious injury or illness by family or next of kin.

To invoke rights under the FMLA, employees must provide adequate notice to their employer about their need to take leave.  Where leave is unforeseeable, the employee must notify the employer as soon as possible. If the leave is foreseeable, the employee must provide advance notice of leave. An employee, however,  is not required to specifically request FMLA leave to satisfy the notice requirement.   The employee requesting leave does not need to specifically invoke the FMLA, or say "I need to take FMLA leave." It is enough if an employee informs her employer of the need for leave from work for a medical reason or other qualifying reason. Verbal notice is sufficient, and employee need only give enough notice that the employer is aware the leave may be qualifying. 

             

An eligible employee who gives notice of leave cannot have its FMLA rights interfered with, or otherwise be retaliated against for taking FMLA leave. Interference with FMLA rights can take a variety of forms, including: a) discouraging an employee from taking leave; b) refusing to authorize leave for FMLA qualifying reasons; c) manipulation by an employer to avoid FMLA obligations, such as reducing work hours; d) modifying an employee's duties to preclude leave; e) attaching negative consequences to taking FMLA leave in order to dissuade employees from taking leave; f) failing to reinstate an employee to the same or equivalent position following the return from FMLA qualifying leave; g) requiring excessive documentation to substantiate leave; h) mistreating FMLA leave as unauthorized leave; i) harassing an employee because of her leave or its affect on other employees; or  j) engaging in any other conduct that deters an employee from notifying an employer of her need for leave or taking FMLA qualifying leave.

If you have been denied FMLA leave, retaliated against for taking leave, harassed upon your return to work following leave, or terminated after you exercised your right to FMLA, you may have been denied your rights under the FMLA.  If you have questions about your situation, please feel free to contact one of our FMLA lawyers at 801-758-7604 or contact us online at www.utahtriallawyers.net.