California’s medical leave laws protect employees facing serious health conditions or family emergencies, ensuring job security and benefits. Discover eligibility, rights, and employer obligations under CFRA and FMLA for a leave of absence in California.
By Brad Nakase, Attorney
Email | Call (888) 600-8654
Have a quick question? I answered nearly 1500 FAQs.
California has a number of rules that allow people to take time off work. In total, these rules protect your job while you take time off to get better from a serious illness or to care for a family member who has a disability or illness.
The California Family Rights Act (CFRA) is the primary statute governing paid leave in the state. In many ways, it mirrors the FMLA, or Family and Medical Leave Act. But that’s not all. If you want to know which of those statutes is relevant to your case, this page gives you a quick rundown of them all.
In most cases, a leave of absence is a period when an employee is not required to work due to medical reasons, such as treatment for a major illness or the care of a family member with a serious illness. Sometimes it’s time off for things like military training, jury duty, or voting.
Historically, companies could simply fire employees who required time off. No doubt this has a terrible impact on the lives of hardworking employees who needed a temporary break from their jobs to attend to a family member or recuperate from a medical emergency.
This kind of corporate callousness prompted the state of California to pass an array of leave of absence regulations, which some businesses are now required to follow. Further, a qualified leave taker cannot be subject to discrimination in the state of California. Consequently, California’s leave of absence regulations are among the most employee-friendly in the United States.
The state of California allows eligible workers to take time off for specific reasons:
You have just seen the tip of the iceberg. The list of acceptable reasons for an employee to take time off is long.
For major health issues, bonding with a kid, or caring for a parent, sibling, or other family member with a significant health condition, an eligible employee can often take a 12-week leave of absence.
Workers can also take time off to care for a domestic partner or family member using sick days or vacation time that they have accrued.
While some leave durations are longer (up to four months for pregnancy disability, for example), some are shorter (intermittent leave, for example).
Without question. To start, you won’t get any money while you’re out on leave. During your absence, you will not get any monetary compensation; however, your company is obligated to provide health coverage and other benefits.
The second requirement is that you must have worked for the same company for a year and put in a minimum of 1,250 hours of work. Typically, a big business is defined as one with over fifty staff members within a 75 mile radius.
Third, there are a number of limitations, such as the need for a doctor’s note, a notice, and the fact that your “severe health condition” needs to meet the legal definition of such a condition, among others.
Following these laws is mandatory for businesses. They risk legal action if they fail to uphold or otherwise hinder these employment rights.
It is possible to sue an employer for damages if they fire an employee who tries to take a leave of absence under the rules of CFRA or FMLA. Further, these losses may be quite substantial.
Employees have the right to seek compensation for their lost earnings, emotional anguish, punitive damages, and attorney’s costs in the event that their employer disregards these rules. The majority of these claims end in settlement, with amounts ranging from reinstatement to over a million dollars. Each case is unique.
Has your employer rejected your request for a medical leave due to your pregnancy or illness? Or maybe you got approved for leave, but now you feel like you’re being punished for it now that you’re back at work. Get in touch with a lawyer now.
Have a quick question? We answered nearly 2000 FAQs.
See all blogs: Business | Corporate | Employment Law
Most recent blogs:
Contact our attorney.