In California, both the Family and Medical Leave Act and the California Family Rights Act protect your right to take a leave of absence. Unfortunately, not everyone is protected under these acts. To claim the right to take a needed leave of absence, you must first:
- Work for your employer for at least one year,
- Have worked 1,250 hours in the past year, and
- Be employed by someone with at least 50 other employees in the surrounding 75 miles.
Because of this limitation, only half of workers are actually covered by the FMLA and the CFRA. The amount of leave time you can take depends on the nature of your leave of absence.
If you need to care for a newborn, newly adopted child, seriously ill family member, or for your own illness, you qualify for up to 12 weeks of unpaid leave.
If you have a disability of which you made your employer aware upon employment, you may qualify for additional leave time past the 12 week maximum.
For those incapacitated by pregnancy, childbirth, or related medical conditions, the California Pregnancy Disability Leave Law qualifies you for four months of leave time. After you have used your four months of PDLL leave, you can take your additional 12 weeks of CFRA leave if you choose, for a total leave of up to seven months.
It is illegal for your employer to treat you differently for taking medical leave. If your right to leave has been violated, contact your Los Angeles employment law experts.
