Fmla

[tigger22472]

What is the name of your state? Indiana

I have a friend who is going through a divorce. Just after they separated her husband said he made an apointment with a psychologist or a counselor of some sort. She knows of only one other time he's seen this person yet that's not the issue. She does know that he was taking a day off of work here or there. His excuse was he was just having a bad day. Last night he told her that he wasn't going to work today and that his work had granted him a FMLA and could basically take off when he felt he needed. I thought that FMLA's were only for medical reasons (be it yourself or a family member). Does this mean that the psychologist would have had to give him a medical reason to be able to qualify or am I way off on the FMLA?

 

[Beth3]

If an employee has a "serious medical condition" as defined in the FMLA and a medical professional provides appropriate certification of that, then an employee qualifies for leave provided the employer is subject to the FMLA and the employee has also fulfilled certain requirements.

Does this mean that the psychologist would have had to give him a medical reason to be able to qualify or am I way off on the FMLA? Assuming the husband isn't giving his wife a load of baloney, yes, it's certainly possible that the husband has applied for intermittent FMLA if the psychologist diagnosed him with some mental health problem and certified that he needed such leave due to his illness.

 

[tigger22472]

If an employee has a "serious medical condition" as defined in the FMLA and a medical professional provides appropriate certification of that, then an employee qualifies for leave provided the employer is subject to the FMLA and the employee has also fulfilled certain requirements.

Does this mean that the psychologist would have had to give him a medical reason to be able to qualify or am I way off on the FMLA? Assuming the husband isn't giving his wife a load of baloney, yes, it's certainly possible that the husband has applied for intermittent FMLA if the psychologist diagnosed him with some mental health problem and certified that he needed such leave due to his illness.

Hum... interesting. That is what I thought but I know things change sometimes. This particular friend had gotten an FMLA when her father was still alive so she could have an extra 30 minutes of lunch 3 times a week to take him to dialysis and I didn't know it worked like that either.

In this particular situation he makes it sound as if he wakes up one morning and he's just down and doesn't feel like going to work he doesn't have to because of this FMLA and I did find that odd. I guess another question to go with this would be... if in fact he's telling the truth about the FMLA would his employer hold liability if on the days he DID go to work and was driving a vehicle and were in an accident? He travels daily with his job and I would think if his company was aware of a situation that would have to involve his 'mental stability' (again, as you said as long as he's being truthful) that if he were to drive and had an accident they could be held accountable. I would find it odd they would take this risk.

Thanks Beth.

 

[Beth3]

This particular friend had gotten an FMLA when her father was still alive so she could have an extra 30 minutes of lunch 3 times a week to take him to dialysis and I didn't know it worked like that either. The FMLA also provides leave time for employees to care for an immediate family member with a serious health condition.

In this particular situation he makes it sound as if he wakes up one morning and he's just down and doesn't feel like going to work he doesn't have to because of this FMLA and I did find that odd. Which is why many employers want to tear their hair out over intermittent FMLA leave. Once an employee files medical certification forms and qualifies for intermittent leave, the employer is extremely limited in what they can do if abuse is happening. While certainly not every employee who has been approved for intermittent FMLA leave abuses it, it's just amazing how often migraines, asthma flare-ups, and other ailments repeatedly strike on Fridays and Mondays. And then when all the employee's FMLA is all used up for the year, their medical condition remarkably improves until such time as a new FMLA-year begins, at which time the employee's health starts to take a nose dive...

if in fact he's telling the truth about the FMLA would his employer hold liability if on the days he DID go to work and was driving a vehicle and were in an accident? Yep.

He travels daily with his job and I would think if his company was aware of a situation that would have to involve his 'mental stability' (again, as you said as long as he's being truthful) that if he were to drive and had an accident they could be held accountable. (a) Just because someone has been diagnosed with a mental health problem does not mean he or she is mentally unstable - far from it in most instances. (b) The employer deciding someone is "mentally unfit" to do his or her job leads to a huge host of other legal problems, particularly violations of the Americans with Disabilities Act. An employer cannot presume someone is disabled.

I would find it odd they would take this risk They almost certainly don't have a choice unless an employee is clearly unstable in which case the employer could insist the employee see a physician of the employer's choosing to determine whether he or she is fit/safe to work. That still wouldn't be the end of the story but it's getting pretty complex to go into more detail. In the situation you describe however, there are about a dozen legal landmines the employer needs to be aware of and not take a misstep if they don't want to land in the soup.

 

[tigger22472]

Thank you very much... and I must say, He did inform her late Sunday night how he just couldn't go to work on Monday..

 

[Gadfly]

So what's the actual issue here?

 

[tigger22472]

So what's the actual issue here?

The issue was understanding FMLA for sure and how it can be taken and how you qualify. He has just now after 5 months told her of this, and of course as with many divorces there has been resentment and 'words' passed and said. He told her this after she mentioned that he had taken several days off and maybe he should be careful not to lose his job.