Family Medical Leave Act - FMLA Ohio Attorneys

Our Columbus Ohio FMLA attorneys represent employees all over Ohio for claims of discrimination, interference and retaliation with an employee’s FMLA rights. We have successfully won several verdicts related to FMLA discrimination, retaliation for taking or requesting medical leave, and violations of FMLA rights. Our Ohio employment lawyers know the ins and outs of the FMLA and can evaluate your case today. Give us a call or contact us.

The FMLA entitles eligible employees to take up to 12 work weeks of unpaid, job-protected leave in a 12-month period for specified family and medical reasons, or for any “qualifying exigency” arising out of the fact that a covered military member is on active duty, or has been notified of an impending call or order to active duty, in support of a contingency operation. The FMLA also allows eligible employees to take up to 26 workweeks of job-protected leave in a “single 12-month period” to care for a covered service member with a serious injury or illness.

It is unlawful for an employer to discriminate or retaliate against an employee for:

Requesting FMLA leave or FMLA paperwork for a potential leave;

Using Intermittent FMLA leave;

Using Continuous FMLA;

Any employee must be returned back to his or her position upon a return from FMLA leave.  If your employer denies your right to use FMLA leave or does not restore you to your former position upon your return from leave, your rights have been violated.  Contact your Ohio FMLA lawyers today.

What are the FMLA Ohio eligibility requirements?

Eligible individuals who are employed with a covered employer are entitled to take medical leave pursuant to the Family Medical Leave Act.

Employers are covered by the FMLA requirements if they employ at least 50 employees within a 75-mile radius of the workplace within the preceding calendar year. However, this 50-employee minimum requirement does not extend to public agencies.

To be eligible to take FMLA leave, an employee must have worked no less than 1,250 hours for that employer during the 12 months prior to the start of the FMLA leave.  This includes hours the employee actually worked.  This does not include time spent on vacations, holidays, sick days, or other paid or unpaid time off work.

An eligible employee may request FMLA leave for any of the following reasons:

For the employee’s own serious health condition
To care for a spouse, child, or parent with a serious health condition
To care for a newborn child or to prepare for the birth of a child
For adoption or foster care placement of a child
To care for a family member who was injured while on activity military duty
To assist with transiting the employee, or the employee’s spouse, who is called to active military duty

An employee in need of FMLA leave need not specially mention the FMLA by name.  However, employees are required to provide their employer with sufficient information that would lead the employer to believe that the leave is FMLA-qualifying, and the anticipated duration of such leave.

If the need for leave is foreseeable, employees must provide notice at least 30 days in advance of the need for leave, if possible, or as soon as practicable if a 30-day notice is not possible.  If the need for leave is unforeseeable, the employee must notify the employer of the need as soon as practicable.  Employees must always follow their employer’s usual call-off policies and procedures even if the need for leave is FMLA-qualifying.

After an employee gives his or her employer notice of the need for FMLA-qualifying leave, the employer must, within 5 business days, inform the employee whether he or she is eligible for FMLA leave. The employer must also inform the employee of the expectations and rules associated with such leave.  If the employer requires the employee to obtain medical certification in support of the reason for the requested leave, the employee has 15 calendar days from the date of the request to return the completed certification to his or her employer.