Legal Question in Employment Law in Florida
employee discharge
I had a heart attack on new years day. My employer said i had to get a full release from my Dr. in 30 days or my position would not be there for me. My Dr. will not release me until at least march 15. Do i have any recourse?
3 Answers from Attorneys
Re: employee discharge
The Family medical leave act protects you if your company is large enough. I think it applies to companies that have over 50 employees. Otherwise, without a contract, you are probably out of luck.
Re: employee discharge
This has to be analyzed in detail. The FMLA only applies to eligible employees of certain employers. In order to be an eligible employee, you must have worked over 1250 hours in the past year and have been with the employer for an entire year. your heart attack in all likelihood qualifies as a "serious health condition" so you may have a right to up to 12 weeks of leave under the FMLA. If you have no FMLA rights, matters are less in your favor, but there are possible discrimination claims albeit less clear and less strong. Two potential bases I can think of would be disability and age discrimination. That is where the additional analysis would have to be made.
Re: employee discharge
You can take 12 weeks of Family & Medical Leave Act unpaid. If you can't get back by then, they don't have to hold the job for you. You should ask for FMLA leave and ask for the forms from your employer.