Los Angeles Family Medical Leave Act (FMLA) Lawyer

The federal Family and Medical Leave Act (FMLA) allows eligible employees to take unpaid time off from work if they have a serious medical condition, have just had a baby, or if they need to care for a family member with a serious medical condition. Under the Act, employees can take leave without fear of losing their employment position or certain benefits that come with it, such as health insurance. Unfortunately, employers sometimes make it very difficult for employees to take this leave. An experienced attorney can help employees in these situations make things right.

What is the Family and Medical Leave Act?

The FMLA provides certain employees with 12 weeks of unpaid leave in a 12-month period under certain circumstances. These include when employees:

• Give birth to or care for a newborn within one year of the child being born,
• Adopt or provide foster care for a child within one year of placement,
• Must care for a spouse, child, or parent that suffers from a serious medical condition,
• Must care for their own serious health condition, or
• Have another urgent need or demand in relation to the employee’s spouse, child, or parent that is a covered member of the military.

To qualify for this leave, employees must have worked a minimum of 1,250 hours during the 12 months prior to the beginning of the leave. The employer must also be part of the private sector and have a minimum of 50 employees within a 75-mile radius of the main employment location.

Retaliation Against Employees

Employers often do not want to give employees their leave, even when they qualify, for a number of reasons. To deter employees from requesting leave, sometimes employers will retaliate against their employees for taking or even just requesting leave. Retaliation can take many forms, but most commonly involves:

• Refusing to hire an employment candidate because they took medical leave while with their former employer,
• Demoting or refusing to promote any employee that took or requested medical leave,
• Factoring in FMLA leave or requests when making employment decisions, conducting performance reviews, or taking disciplinary actions,
• Removal of important work responsibilities,
• Removal of certain employment benefits,
• Factoring FMLA leave into attendance policies,
• Terminating an employee because they took FMLA leave.

Losing a job or being treated unfairly simply because you have exercised your rights is extremely frustrating. While the situation may seem hopeless, it is not. A lawyer can advise on the legal action you can take to recover any losses you have sustained.

Reach Out to Our Los Angeles Family Medical Leave Act Law Firm

The FMLA provides many rights to eligible employees, but employers do not always want to uphold those rights. If you have been denied your rightful FMLA leave, or your employer has taken action against you for taking or requesting this leave, a LA FMLA attorney at Litigation, P.C. can advise on your case. For a confidential consultation with an experienced lawyer, contact Litigation, P.C., at 424-284-2401 or online to learn about your legal options. We routinely handle matters throughout SoCal.