Legal Question in Employment Law in California

If your employer employs 50 or more employees within 75 miles, then you are entitled to up to 12 weeks of leave for a serious health condition. However, your employer can't just fire you once your 12 weeks are up if your condition qualifies as a disability. Rather, the employer must have a conversation with you about how much more time you need and make a determination whether providing you the additional time off requested will pose an undue hardship on the employer. You are not entitled to an indefinite leave. If your employer has less than 50 employees, but at least 5, the employer and you must have a conversation about how much time-off you need before you are able to return to work with or without a reasonable accommodation, as described above. Just as with larger employers, the employer must make a determination whether providing you additional time off will pose an undue hardship on the employer. Once again, you are not entitled to an indefinite leave. If you believe your employer may be violating the law, please give us a call at 213.536-4236.

The answer to this question depends on the nature of your condition. If you have one of the recognized disabilities, then the employer has to engage in interactive process and figure out whether providing extended leave beyond FMLA would be a reasonable accommodation. Failure to do so is often a common mistake that employers make and grounds for liability under FEHA (Fair Employment and Housing Act).

Thanks,

Arkady Itkin

San Francisco / Sacramento Employment Lawyer