Intermittent FMLA

Meece

I am in the middle of a lot of dr. appointments and would like to apply for intermittent FLMA.  Has anyone else experienced this?  My HR Mgr. says she's never done one before, so I am having to wait on her to figure it out.  All I want is to feel free to make my dr appointments and miss work, un paid, without a fight.  The last request I put in took 12 days to be approved because I was .53 hours short in my Paid Leave bank!  I had to agree to reduce my planned leave in November by one hour.  I am hoping to have reconstructive surgery at that time, and this means I have to come in for one hour during the leave.  If i get Intermittent FMLA, I should be able to get that hour back, even if it is unpaid.

 Am I on the right track here?  Is there something eles out there to help out when we can't get the time off work?  I have at least 4 more appointments which are coming up which will also be short in my time bank.

Suggestions, advice....appreciated!

lookingforward4more

I had to submit another FMLA request. My employer thought that since I was done with chemo and radiation I was "DONE". They kept comparing me to someone who had another form of cancer. They neglected to realize that I had body parts removed and reconstructed, was on hormonal treatment and had extensive followup appointments. I kept getting some discontent for taking time so I got my oncologist to write up another FMLA for intermittent leave for doctors appts. Remember, cancer is a disability and they must grant you the leave. Cover your you know what and make it formal! As it turns out I am going to have a out patient surgery this spring on my implants (to correct some things) and will be out for two weeks. Its nice to know that I have the leave set aside.

Meece

Since my original dx was over 5 years ago, and I have only worked for this company 15 months, I wasn't sure if it was going to qualify.  I had recon. surgery last Dec, but used my vacation time on it.  I requested time for a second recon surgery for this month and had it denied, because the other employee in my dept was taking leave (she has a lot of leave built up) and I am not allowed to have leave on "back to back" weeks with her.  She has five days leave about every 7 weeks, so it is hard to get any time off.  The stress is doing a number on me.

 I wrote a letter to the HR Mgr on Wendesday, and formally requested it, but she called me on Firsday and told me she needed time to get the paperwork ready.

LittleRed

In case your HR Manager did not provide you with information on FMLA, the Department of Labor has everything you need to know about your rights and obligations and those of your employer.

For a quick overview go to:  http://www.dol.gov/esa/whd/fmla/finalrule/whdfs28.pdf

More specifics:  http://www.dol.gov/esa/whd/fmla/finalrule.htm

Once you have given them notice of a qualifying event, even verbally, your employer must respond within the mandated time period. 

Also, different states have family leave laws - some expand beneits beyond those provided under Federal law, so look to see if your state has family leave requirements.

The matter of whether leave is paid or unpaid can vary by company practice:

See "Substitution of Paid Leave":  http://www.dol.gov/asp/archive/reports/fmla/APPENDIXF.htm

Also, check if you also qualify for intermittent disability payments under your employer's plan.  Typically, disability programs and FMLA run concurrently.

Good luck -

Meece

I got my paperwork today at work.  They would like to have some sort of schedule that I will be off.  How the heck am I going to figure that one out?  I have to have appointments for mammos, biopsies, onc visits, surgeon visits, pre-op visits, cardiologist visits, gyno visits, and any other thing that might come up!  I have three appointmets in the next 8 days, and I need to get all these other things planned out as well.  I was planning on recon in November, but won't know what to do until after the biopsy results.  I live week to week right now. 

Do they usually require a schedule?  I mean I can see if you ae going through chemo or rads, I know I had my schedule planned out from week one.  But this stuff, is not as easy to "plan"...or is it, and I just can't see it right now.  I need to reveiw all this, see if I qualify for the disability payment.  It would be nice to ba able to have time to go to appointments that didn't hit me in the pocketbook as well.

 Thank you, LittleRed.  You've given me more to check up on.

I did get a compliment from the HR Mgr today.  She said I have about 10 steps above anyone else from the company who has  applied for fmla.  

LittleRed

Dear Meece:

I believe your requirement in this instance is to provide as much notice as is feasibly possible, and to try your best to have continuity for your time out - like say, you tend to do all appointments after 2pm where possible.  However, this may not work in all cases, so your duty is to inform your employer as soon as you can of the appointments so they have as much notice as possible to provide for appropriate coverage.  Your Dr. should be able to complete the paperwork with mention that appointments are always subject to the availability of medical staff and facility schedules.  i.e.  "you get 'em when you get 'em".  You can stress to your employer that you will strive for continuity in the times where possible, as that benefits them and you.  It is in your best interest to try to maintain as much structure as possible for your own sake.  Best of luck!

FMLA can be very confusing for HR folks, so the more you know the better.  You will be able to ask informed Qs that address your concerns and keep HR pointed in the right direction.