Massachusetts Family Medical Leave Act (FMLA) Attorneys

The FMLA is a federal law which protects your job (with certain qualifications). If you need to take leave to deal with personal or family medical issues, including pregnancy, you may be eligible to do so under FMLA. An employer is not required to pay you while you’re out on leave, but many companies offer benefits that cover wages while you’re out. Short term disability benefits may pay you a percentage of your lost wages. In order to qualify for some protection you must at your job for at least one year. If you have been denied a request for leave, or terminated during FMLA leave, you should contact a FMLA attorney immediately.

While your job demands a lot of you, sometimes you need to put your family’s needs first. The Family and Medical Leave Act (“FMLA”) was enacted in 1993 “[t]o grant family and temporary medical leave under certain circumstances” and to “balance the demands of the workplace with the needs of families.”

Who is Eligible for FMLA?

To be eligible for FMLA leave, an employee must generally meet certain criteria:

  • The employee must be employed by a covered employer at a workplace within 75 miles of which the employer employs at least 50 people;
  • The employee must have worked at least 12 months for the employer; and
  • The employee must have worked at least 1,250 hours during the previous 12 months before the date FMLA leave begins.

If you qualify, the FMLA provides you the right to take “job-protected” leave for certain events, including the birth and care of your child, the care of an immediate family member, and your own serious health condition. You have the right to have your health insurance maintained during the FMLA leave and the right to be restored to the same or similar position at the end of your FMLA leave.

If you feel your employer has failed to follow the FMLA’s requirements or has interfered with, restrained or denied your FMLA rights, please contact us at 617-963-8977 for a free consultation.