Is it legal for a manager to deny full 12 weeks of FMLA based on staffing issues?
Can an employer limit FMLA leave to only 4 weeks even if HR approved 12 weeks for baby bonding?
What to do if a manager refuses to grant FMLA leave despite eligibility and HR approval?
Experience challenge with obtaining FMLA leave for baby bonding due to staffing shortage at work?
Is it fair for a manager to reject FMLA based on “people have babies every day” comment?
How to handle a situation where a manager denies FMLA leave despite being eligible for the full 12 weeks?
Is it within the rights of a manager to override HR approval for FMLA leave based on staffing issues?
What steps can be taken when an employer refuses to grant approved FMLA leave for baby bonding?
Struggling to secure full 12 weeks of FMLA for baby bonding due to low staffing at work – what can be done?
Facing difficulty in obtaining full FMLA leave for baby bonding due to manager’s denial – seeking advice.
Why is his manager emerge recipient of the paperwork? The paperwork should be going through HR. They may have leave administrators just for FML and ADA.
With my employer the paperwork goes through the leave administrator. The manager doesn’t see it and they are only informed the dates of the leave. Managers only know we disclose .
I would check with HR of their leave process .
HR rep here in CA….it’s against THE LAW to deny FML. As long as he’s met the requirements (worked for 12 months and 1250 hours) they cannot deny him. You need to report this!
Boss may be saying you are an “essential” employee and that might be the angle he uses to deny bonding leave, assuming you are eligible.
*The FMLA allows* ***eligible employees to take up to 12 work weeks of unpaid leave during any 12-month period to care for a new child****, care for a seriously ill family member, or recover from a serious illness. The FMLA covers both public- and private-sector employees, but certain categories of employees, including elected officials and highly compensated employees, are excluded or face certain limitations. To be eligible for FMLA leave, an employee must have worked for their employer for at least 12 months, have worked at least 1,250 hours over the past 12 months, and work for an employer with at least 50 employees within a 75-mile radius. Several states have passed laws providing additional family and medical leave protections for workers.*
[*https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Family_and_Medical_Leave_Act_of_1993*](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Family_and_Medical_Leave_Act_of_1993)
It doesn’t matter if the manager doesn’t like the fact you’re having a baby, or that your husband wasn’t the one to give birth, or they are going to be short-staffed. Your husband needs to be talking DIRECTLY WITH HR and they need to tell his manager to suck eggs and he gets FMLA/12 weeks if that’s allowed according to federal law. All he should do is get it formally approved through HR, and ask them to make sure the manager understands the danger he’s courting by flouting federal law for the company (remember HR is there to protect the company, not the employees and if the manager ends up screwing around and getting them into a federal lawsuit because he’s a jerk that doesn’t understand he law, they’re going to be hurting for more than just a few thousand it would have cost them to hire some temp workers, not even counting the bad press if this got out that the company thinks it is above the law and screwing over their employees).
There are only a few reasons that your husband’s business can deny him FMLA, and you’ll need to review the law. If the business meets all the requirements to take FMLA, then they can’t arbitrarily decide to not allow the full amount. The only issue would be that he can still be fired since assholes are gonna be assholes and might decide to test the idea that they don’t have to follow federal law, and decide if you are willing to risk that and pursue legal avenues in the event that occurs. You’d probably should talk to a lawyer that specializes in employment law, and make sure to talk directly to HR about how they are breaking federal law by not allowing this, and retaliation in the form of firing/demotion etc when he returns is very unwise. A good lawyer can draft a threatening and yet oh so polite kick in the ass about how the company could be in serious trouble if they think they can flout the law.
ETA: If you are in California, DEFINITELY look up the applicable laws as it looks like they might be one of the few states to have instituted **paid** leave on the state level.
How many people work at his workplace?