Legal Question in Medical Leave in Florida

Re: short term disability ended

You have a lot going on here, and it's not entirely clear what is happening, but this information should help.

Short term disability is an insurance policy. It covers your pay for x amount of time, in your case, 6 weeks. It does not affect how much leave you are entitled to, unless your company policy says you only get as much leave as the STD polciy allows. (Very unusal. Leave amount is a combination of paid and unpaid leave available by other policies - vacation, sick, LWOP, including FMLA-protected leave if you are eligible for that - see below.)

There is no such thing as "ADA leave".. You may be referring to FMLA-protected leave. If your company is covered by the FMLA (basically, if they have more than 50 employees), and you are eligible (worked for the company more than 12 months total and at least 1250 hours in the 12 months prior to starting leave), then you are entitled to up to 12 weeks of unpaid leave in a 12 month period for a "serious health condition". Surgery almost always qualifies unless it's elective.

You do not need to ask for FMLA leave. You only need to put the company on notice of a situation that might be covered. Since they know about your surgery and need for leave, they should be on notice, but you should tell them right away anyway that your leave should be covered by the FMLA. They will then give you paperwork that your doctor must fill out (called "certification").

Assuming you then get the FMLA protection, you can not be fired for taking up to 12 weeks of leave for the covered condition (the surgery and related issues). They also must bring you back to the same or an identical position when you return.

As for unemployment, you only get that if you lose your job and are ready and willing to work elsewhere. So, if you lose your job, you might have a problem collecting until the time you can work again and start looking. If the company does not allow you to return or otherwise work, that is the same as firing you even if they don't call it that(called "constructive discharge") and you can file for unemploymemt benefits. Do not resign (unless you want to, of course),even if asked to - that could affect your rights to benefits.

If you do lose the job but feel you are entitled to FMLA protection, you can file a claim against the company for free with the US DOL (look them up online - dol.gov.) They will investigate and help you regain your job if you are illegally fired. (You can also sue but it is costly and time-consuming.)

Hope that helps. if you need to hire an attorney, feel free to email to me directly.

Jeff Sheldon

The Sheldon Law Firm

[email protected]

Caveat: This is general advice only and should not be relied upon as legal advice because all facts and circumstances are not known to the author.