PREGNANCY, FAMILY, & MEDICAL LEAVE
When Life Happens, You Shouldn’t Have to Worry About Your Job.
At some point, many employees will need to take time off due to medical conditions, a disability, or the addition of a child to their family. No one wants to deal with the added stress of possibly losing their job when these situations arise. Fortunately, there are multiple laws that provide employees with the right to take job-protected leave to address medical concerns, family issues, and pregnancy. If your employer fails to provide you with required leave, or retaliates against you for taking leave, they may be subject to liability. Some of the major laws providing for job-protected leave are listed below.
The Family Medical Leave Act (“FMLA”) and California Family Rights Act (“CFRA”)
The FMLA and CFRA require certain employers to provide eligible employees with up to 12 workweeks of unpaid, job-protected leave each year for the following reasons:
To bond with a new child by birth, adoption, or foster care placement, within one year of the child’s birth, adoption, or foster placement;
For the employee’s own serious health condition;[1]
To care for a family member with a serious health condition; and
For qualified exigencies related to the deployment of a family member in the military service.
The FMLA is a federal law, whereas the CFRA is a state law. Under both the FMLA and the CFRA, employers are required to ensure that qualifying employees are provided the same or comparable job position upon return from leave, and to maintain group health benefits during the employees’ leave.
Although the FMLA and CFRA are similar in many respects, there are some key differences. It is important to be familiar with these differences in case you find yourself in a situation where you need to take leave.
Covered Employers: The FMLA only applies to employers that have 50 or more employees within 75 miles. The CFRA applies to businesses with 5 or more employees, without no limitation on location.
Covered Employees: Under both the FMLA and CFRA, employees must have worked 1,250 hours during the 12 months prior to the start of leave in order to be eligible.
Covered Family Members: The scope of family members covered by the FMLA is much more limited than that of the CFRA. The FMLA only requires that leave be given to care for immediate family members (i.e., a spouse, parent, or child). The CFRA requires employers to provide leave to care for a spouse, parent, child, domestic partner, grandparent, grandchild, or sibling.
Medical Information: The FMLA allows employers to ask for a diagnosis of an employee’s serious health condition. The CFRA allows employers to require written certification stating the reasons for leave and probable duration of the condition, but prohibits requiring disclosure of the underlying diagnosis.
Pregnancy: The FMLA covers pregnancy disability. The CFRA only covers baby bonding time. However, the California Fair Employment and Housing Act (“FEHA”) separately provides most employees with the right to pregnancy disability leave. See below for further details.
Combined Leave: Under the FMLA, if spouses work for the same employer, they are limited to a combined total of 12-weeks of leave for the birth of a child or placement through adoption or foster care, bonding time, and care for a parent. Under the CFRA, each parent is separately entitled to 12-weeks of leave.
The Fair Employment and Housing Act and Pregnancy Disability Leave (“PDL”)
The FEHA requires employers to provide up to 4 months of disability leave to employees disabled by pregnancy, childbirth, or a medical condition. PDL can be taken before or after birth during any period of time the employee is unable to work due to pregnancy or a pregnancy-related condition. This includes time needed for:
Prenatal or postnatal care;
Severe morning sickness;
Doctor-ordered bed rest;
Childbirth;
Recovery from childbirth;
Loss or end of pregnancy; and
Any other related medical condition.
PDL covers all employers with five or more full-time or part-time employees. Unlike FMLA and CFRA leave, there are no tenure, hours, or other eligibility requirements for employees. Employers are also required to reinstate employees returning from PDL to the same or comparable position the employee had before taking leave.
If your employer has refused to allow you to take job protected leave, or has retaliated against you for taking leave, you should speak to an experienced lawyer to determine if your rights were violated. Contact us today for a free initial consultation.
[1] The FMLA and CFRA define “serious health condition” as an illness, injury, impairment, or physical or mental condition that involves inpatient care or continuing treatment or supervision by a health care provider.