If you do not have any vacation, sick time, or PTO, and you try and call in sick can your employer force you to go in to work? It has come to my attention that this is a new company policy with my employer. That they are forcing us to come in if we dont have any PTO.
Generally, employers have the right to have attendance policies where they can limit the number of absences an employee is permitted. However, larger companies, such as those with 50 or more employees, may be required to allow employees who are seriously ill or injured or who must take time off to care for a seriously ill or injured close family member. to take up to 12 weeks off. Also, if an employee has a qualified disability, an employer with at least 5 employees may be required to allow that employee time off for treatment or reasonable accommodation of their disability. So, it really depends on the size of the company and the reason for the absence.
At-will employment is a doctrine in which an employee can be dismissed by an employer for any reason without having to establish "just cause" for termination, and without warning. The basis for this rule is that an employee may be similarly entitled to leave his or her job without reason or warning. This includes work hours, pay, policies and job assignments.
As Mr. Kirschbaum said, of you are eligible for family or medical leave, you employer must permt you to take time off work.
FMLA applies to all public agencies, including State, local and Federal employers, and local education agencies (schools) and private sector employers who employ 50 or more employees for at least 20 workweeks in the current or preceding calendar year - including joint employers and successors of covered employers.
To be eligible for FMLA leave, an employee must work for a covered employer and:
have worked for that employer for at least 12 months;
have worked at least 1,250 hours during the 12 months prior to the start of the FMLA leave; and,
work at a location where at least 50 employees are employed at the location or within 75 miles of the location.
A covered employer must grant an eligible employee up to a total of 12 workweeks of unpaid leave in a 12 month period for one or more of the following reasons:
1. for the birth of a son or daughter, and to care for the newborn child;
2. for the placement with the employee of a child for adoption or foster care, and to care for the newly placed child;
3. to care for an immediate family member (spouse, child, or parent — but not a parent "in-law") with a serious health condition; and
4. when the employee is unable to work because of a serious health condition.
Leave to care for a newborn child or for a newly placed child must conclude within 12 months after the birth or placement.
Intermittent/reduced schedule leave may be taken when medically necessary to care for a seriously ill family member, or because of the employee's serious health condition.
If you have a disability or a medical condition which protects you under ADA, your employer may be required to provide a reasonable accommodation which includes time off work.
If you believe that you are protected under FMLA or ADA, you might benefit from consulting with an experienced employment law attorney and having them evaluate your case. The California Employment Lawyers Association maintains a list of employment law attorneys who represent employees against employers. Follow the link to:
www.cela.org
.
Your employer cannot force you to come to work, but they can consider you absent without leave (AWOL) and take adverse action against you. Employers can discipline of fire employees for absenteeism unless the employee qualifies for job protected leave like FMLA, CFRA or PDL, or has an approved request for disability accommodation in the form of intermittent unpaid leave.
