Consider this difficult situation: Jane Doe has used up all 12 weeks of her FMLA leave. She has absolutely no vacation time left and has also used all of her sick days. Due to a mental/physical condition, she is not yet well enough to return to work and needs more time off. She wants to take more time off in order to preserve her health, but she also doesn’t want to lose her job. What should Jane Doe do? Does she have any options?
Many southern California employers may overlook a number of leave laws in place to protect employees from job loss when they legitimately need time off for mental or physical health purposes. Providing the 12 weeks as required under FMLA does not necessarily fulfill all legal obligations to the employee in need
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The same could be said for holding a job open for an employee in a similar situation who requires additional recuperation or healing time.
While California’s disability leave provisions do not necessarily pinpoint exactly how much leave is necessary in this type of situation, the question is approached on a case by case basis with the Courts expecting employers and employees both to be reasonable. Unfortunately, there is not appropriate “one size fits all” policy that would allow us to use an exact formula to determine how much time is necessary for a reasonable leave of absence. It is evident that employers who automatically terminate employees who need additional time after utilizing the 12 weeks as provided in accordance with FMLA, may be found in violation of California labor law.
If you need assistance with obtaining legal advice regarding a leave of absence from your job, contact the southern California employment law attorneys at Blumenthal, Nordrehaug & Bhowmik today. We can help you determine what you should reasonably expect from your employer in accordance with federal and state