fired because of sick baby

What is the name of your state? Kentucky
I was fired from my job at a public library here in KY about a year ago.I had missed about two days a month due to the chronic illness of my infant child.She had 9 ear infections in less than a year.I thought that I would be protected by Family Medical Leave Act, but the libraries director said because they employ less than 50 people full time, they didn't have to comply.I couldn't afford a lawyer, so I just applied for unemployment, which I got. I looked for a job for almost a year before I got hired at a part time job that barely keeps my young family afloat.I just had my 90-day evaluation, and my boss told me that when he called to verify that I had worked at the library they gave me a very unflattering reference.This upset me because I had had only three evaluations when I worked for the library, and they were all excellent.I was angry, so I looked up the US Dept of Labor online, and I found out that the library is a public agency (supported by govt), and should have to comply with FMLA....do I have a case against the library?I lost my childs and my own health insurance, wages, and they have given me a poor recomendation, and I think it is keeping me from getting moved up to full time. Please advise.

I have no public sector experience so I went directly to the actual Act to see what it says. You are right:

"An employer covered by FMLA is any person engaged in commerce or in any industry or activity affecting commerce, who employs 50 or more employees for each working day during each of 20 or more calendar workweeks in the current or preceding calendar year. Employers covered by FMLA also include any person acting, directly or indirectly, in the interest of a covered employer to any of the employees of the employer, any successor in interest of a covered employer, and any public agency.
Public agencies are covered employers without regard to the number of employees employed."

Since we're talking federal law, the agency to file a complaint with is the federal DOL. Now let me go back and see if I can find something about the statute of limitations for you.

Here ya go:

"(a) The employee has the choice of:
(1) Filing, or having another person file on his or her behalf, a
complaint with the Secretary of Labor, or
(2) Filing a private lawsuit pursuant to section 107 of FMLA.
(b) If the employee files a private lawsuit, it must be filed within two years after the last action which the employee contends was in violation of the Act, or three years if the violation was willful.
(c) If an employer has violated one or more provisions of FMLA, and if justified by the facts of a particular case, an employee may receive one or more of the following: wages, employment benefits, or other compensation denied or lost to such employee by reason of the violation; or, where no such tangible loss has occurred, such as when FMLA leave was unlawfully denied, any actual monetary loss sustained by the employee as a direct result of the violation, such as the cost of providing care, up to a sum equal to 12 weeks of wages for the employee. In addition, the employee may be entitled to interest on such sum,
calculated at the prevailing rate. An amount equalling the preceding sums may also be awarded as liquidated damages unless such amount is reduced by the court because the violation was in good faith and the employer had reasonable grounds for believing the employer had not violated the Act. When appropriate, the employee may also obtain appropriate equitable relief, such as employment, reinstatement and promotion. When the employer is found in violation, the employee may recover a reasonable attorney's fee, reasonable expert witness fees, and
other costs of the action from the employer in addition to any judgment awarded by the court.