Legal Question in Employment Law in Illinois

Hi. About a month ago I was admitted to the hospital for four days following a trip to the ER, which turned out to be a ruptured cyst. Let me also tell you that I was diagnosed with Fibromyalgia 2 years ago. I have extreme flare ups and since my stay in the hospital my condition has worsened. I took 7 days off of work following my release from the hospital under my doctors reccomendation. Upon my return to work my employer told me that the note from my doctor was not sufficient considering the amount of days I was off. In our company handbook it clearly states "an employee that is off of work for more than three days must have a doctors note in order to return to work." At this time my director of HR told me that I must have my doctor fill out the FMLA paperwork. Upon receipt of the FMLA certification my employer granted the FMLA. I use this time intermittently as needed. Since I have been taking time off my employer has begun harrassing me. They have written me up twice since my FMLA was approved, once for an incident that happened three months ago; my employment record is otherwise spotless and I have received nothing but excellent reviews. Now they are making my recertify my FMLA - the HR Director says its because the doctor wrote the FMLA certificate when I was incapacitated, which is not the case. He sent the paperwork to them AFTER my return to work and after my employer requested it. I feel they are harrasing me and discriminating because of my FMLA. What rights do I have and is this legal?


Asked on 7/22/10, 4:24 pm

1 Answer from Attorneys
Betty Tsamis Tsamis Law Firm PC

It sounds like your employer could be interfering with your rights under FMLA. The FMLA was recently overhauled which has created a lot of confusion for HR departments with respect to its administration. I have handled cases like these in the past and would be happy to speak with you about your situation.

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Answered on 7/23/10, 5:48 am


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