What is Job-Protected Leave?

There are many different kinds of situations in which employees in Florida and throughout the country seek what is known as “job-protected leave.” Federal law provides forms of unpaid job-protected leave through the Family and Medical Leave Act (FMLA). Various state laws can also provide forms of both paid and unpaid leave from employment under different types of circumstances, although the only additional type of job-protected leave in Florida is for employees who are facing domestic violence to take time off for related purposes. Our Palm Beach Gardens employment law attorneys can explain these rights under federal and state law to you in more detail.

Understanding Job-Protected Leave 

When a law refers to “job-protected leave,” what does this mean? In short, it means that the law allows you to take leave for a specific purpose or for specific purposes, and it prohibits your employer from terminating you or retaliating against you for requesting or taking leave. To put it more simply, you cannot lose your job for taking leave for one of the reasons specified in the relevant law. And if your employer does fire you, refuse to allow you to return to work after the period of leave is over, or retaliate against you, it may be possible to file a claim.

Types of Job-Protected Leave in Florida Workplaces 

There are two kinds of job-protected leave available to Florida employees:

• Leave to care for yourself or a family member with a serious illness, or as a result of a new baby, under the federal FMLA; and
• Domestic violence-related leave under Florida state law.

FMLA Leave for Florida Employees

The FMLA allows employees who work for covered employers to take up to 12 work weeks of unpaid, job-protected leave within a 12-month period for one of the following reasons:

• Birth and care for a newborn, or a child newly placed through adoption or foster care;
• Care for a close family member (i.e., a spouse, child, or parent) with a serious health condition;
• Care for the employee’s own serious health condition; and/or
• Exigency arising out of a close family member’s military covered active duty.

To be eligible for FMLA leave, your employer generally must either be a public/government employer or be a private employer with at least 50 employees. Then, you must have worked for the covered employer for at least 1,250 hours over the last 12-month period.

Domestic Violence-Related Leave for Florida Employees 

Under Florida law, employees who have been victims of domestic violence, or have a family member or shared household member who has been a victim of domestic violence, may be able to take up to three days of job-protected leave. That leave can be requested to petition for a domestic violence injunction, to seek medical care or legal assistance, and/or to relocate.

In order to be eligible for this job-protected leave, you generally must work for an employer with 50 or more employees in Florida.

Contact a Palm Beach Gardens FMLA Attorney 

If you are entitled to a form of job-protected leave in South Florida and have either been denied leave or faced adverse action as a result of requesting or taking leave, you may be eligible to file a claim. Federal and state law provide the protections we have discussed above, and an experienced Palm Beach Gardens FMLA lawyer at Sconzo Law Office can help you to ensure that your rights are protected in your South Florida workplace. Contact us today for assistance with your claim.

Sources:

dol.gov/agencies/whd/fmla

leg.state.fl.us/Statutes/index.cfm?App_mode=Display_Statute&URL=0700-0799/0741/Sections/0741.313.html