Legal Question in Medical Leave in Washington
My father-in-law is very suddenly ill and sadly terminal. My mother-in-law has worked for a large company for nearly 35 years and has been a model employee. She has taken 4 days off (vacation time) to take him to the doctor and be with him in the hospital. The HR department head notified her yesterday that her job was under review, because of this. She will qualify for FMLA, but the head of the HR department is threatening her and creating a very hostile work environment for her. To be honest, the HR head is a total jerk and everyone in the company is scared to death of her. From another employee there, we were told that the FLMA paperwork would need to be submitted to the president of the company or it would be denied by this HR head. What are my mother-in-law's rights? What legal action could be taken against the company? She is not trying to accomplish anything other than spend the last few days or possibly weeks with her husband, keep her health insurance, and make sure that she has a job to go back to and a life after he is gone. The stress that the company has placed on her is shocking at a time like this. What can we do?
1 Answer from Attorneys
So long as the employer has a sufficient number of employees (50) and the employee has been employed with the company at least a year averaging at least 25 hours per week, he or she is entitled to protected medical leave to care for the serious medical condition of a spouse (and other family members). "To care for" includes, in most cases, emotional and psychological support for the family member. No particular paperwork is necessary to take such leave, but if the employer requires paperwork, it needs to be completed. The employer does not have a right to deny family leave if the employee qualifies and provides 30 days notice if possible, or as much notice as practical under the circumstances.
Once an employee takes leave for a qualifying purpose (i.e., to care for a seriously ill family member), he or she is protected from retaliatory actions by the employer, such as termination, demotion, or other retaliatory acts. Time taken for medical leave cannot be counted against the employee under an attendance policy or otherwise held against the employee.
Even though discrimination or retaliation for taking medical leave may be unlawful, it is difficult to prevent such actions. The remedy is to bring an action for damages after the discrimination has occurred. Still, an employee would likely be well served by giving the employer information about the right to take medical leave and offer to provide whatever medical substantiation the employer requests. Information about the federal law can be found at http://www.dol.gov/esa/whd/fmla/. The comparable Washington state law can be found at http://apps.leg.wa.gov/RCW/default.aspx?cite=49.78
If an employer retaliates or discriminates because an employee makes use of protected medical leave, the employee should consult an experienced employment lawyer for assistance.
The above is not specific legal advice but is offered for general discussion purposes only. Specific advice can only be provided after all the relevant facts and circumstances are provided to an experienced employment lawyer.
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