Short Term Disability and Layoff

[AliD]

I live in Texas, and work out of a home office. My company is in North Carolina. I will be laid off as of 1/31/02. My dr has indicated that I am disabled due to recurrent blackouts. My job requires travel over 4 states, and I am no longer able to drive until they diagnose and treat my problem. (I've had blackouts for over a year, but did not tell the company because I knew I would be fired.) At this point, I need to file disability due to the layoff, first to continue my health coverage (COBRA costs $500/mo and with no job...well), and also to have some income while I am disabled. I am my sole support. I cannot interview for jobs if I cannot drive. The company is self-insured for short term disability, and says I have to file for FMLA (Medical Leave) which is unpaid leave. The HR person says I would be paid though "while I am employed". So in other words another few days. I don't know where to turn, or what to do next. How do I force them to provide the short term disability?

 

[cbg]

I'm not sure I understand. Under my policies, (although I am fully insured) FMLA and short term disability can run concurrently. So while an employee would be on unpaid leave as far as payroll goes, they would still receive short term disability payments through our disability carrier.

Is there a waiting period before your disability insurance kicks in? Have they told you you are not eligible for STD?

 

[AliD]

Shorrt term disability and layoff

According to the HR people, FMLA is the STD. There is no stand-alone STD policy. They are self-insured for the STD portion, and therefore just consider you on medical leave, but do have a disability carrier for the LTD portion. I don't understand how they can legally just put you on FMLA which is unpaid, and deny a person their STD income benefits.

 

[cbg]

I'm still confused. How can they be self-insured for the STD portion, if there is no stand alone STD policy? There is no legal requirement that there be an STD policy to go alone with the FMLA; while FMLA is mandatory by law, STD is not.

 

[AliD]

What I'm trying to say is that the FMLA *is* the STD. They just don't call it that. My concern is how they can not honor the disability after the lay-off date. Seems to me they have to continue the coverage if I file a claim prior to the lay off.

 

[cbg]

And what I'm trying to say is that there is NO legal requirement that they provide paid STD.