Legal Question in Medical Leave in Georgia

Re: Family Leave

According to the Department of Labor on who is an "immediate family member," the agency writes the following:

"Q: Who is considered an immediate "family member" for purposes of taking FMLA leave?

An employee�s spouse, children (son or daughter), and parents are immediate family members for purposes of FMLA. The term "parent" does not include a parent "in-law". The terms son or daughter do not include individuals age 18 or over unless they are "incapable of self-care" because of mental or physical disability that limits one or more of the "major life activities" as those terms are defined in regulations issued by the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC) under the Americans With Disabilities Act (ADA)."

There are also other issues of eligibility regarding the number of employees, your length of employment, etc. Go to www.dol.gov/esa/whd/fmla/ to read further on qualifications.

Even IF you are not eligible under FMLA, if you are considered a valuable employee, and if your employer is otherwise reasonable under the circumstances, you should be able to work out something.