The California Family Rights Act (CFRA) provides eligible employees with crucial job-protected leave. This is so that someone can care for themselves or their families during times of need. However, many employees are unaware of their rights under CFRA. Employers sometimes violate these rights, leading to stressful and unlawful situations. The following is helping to shed light on CFRA violations and how KAASS Law can help protect your rights.
What is the CFRA?
The California Family Rights Act (CRFA) has aimed to ensure employees with a right to a temporary leave from employment. The CFRA allows eligible employees to take up to 12 weeks of unpaid, job-protected leave during a 12-month period for the following reasons:
- To bond with a new child: This includes birth, adoption, or foster care placement.
- To care for a seriously ill family member: This includes a spouse, domestic partner, child, parent, grandparent, grandchild, or sibling.
- To care for their own serious health condition: Illness, injury, impairment, or physical or mental condition that requires immediate care.
Who is Eligible for CFRA Leave?
To be eligible for CFRA leave, you must meet the following criteria:
- Work for a covered employer: This generally includes employers with 50 or more employees.
- Have worked for the employer for at least 12 months: And for at least 1,250 hours during the 12 months preceding the leave.
- Work at a location where the employer has at least 50 employees within 75 miles.
Elements of California Family Rights Act Violations
According to CACI 2600 to establish this claim of refusing to grant family care or medical leave, or refusing to return to the same or a comparable job when the family care or medical leave ended the plaintiff must prove all of the following elements:
- Plaintiff was eligible for family care or medical leave.
- Plaintiff requested or took leave for either of the following reasons: the birth of a child or bonding with the child; for the placement of a child for adoption or foster care; to care for a child, parent, spouse who had a serious health condition; for own serious health condition that made him unable to perform job functions.
- Plaintiff provided reasonable notice to the defendant of the need for family care or medical leave, including its expected timing and length.
- Defendant refused to grant the plaintiff’s request for family care or medical leave, or, refused to return the plaintiff to the same or a comparable job when or otherwise violated CFRA rights.
- As a result of the defendant’s decision, the plaintiff was harmed.
Eligibility for Family Care or Medical Leave
The plaintiff must also prove the following to show the eligibility for family care or medical leave:
- Plaintiff was an employee of the defendant.
- Defendant employed 50 or more employees within 75 miles of the plaintiff’s workplace.
- At the time the plaintiff requested or began the leave, he had more than twelve months of service and had worked at least 1,250 hours during the previous 12 months.
- At the time the plaintiff requested or began the leave he should have taken no more than 12 weeks of family care or medical leave in the 12-month period.
The employee must provide reasonable notice to the defendant of the need for medical leave or family care including its expected timing and length. An employee is required to give their employer 30 days advanced notice of taking family leave.
Benefits of California Family Rights Act
California Family Rights Act leave is generally unpaid leave unless the employee chooses to use sick leave, vacation time, or other paid leave time.
In case CFRA leave is for the employee’s own serious health condition, the employer can require the employee to use accrued leave. Full-time employees can take leave for up to twelve workweeks in a twelve-month period and part-time employees can take leave on a proportional basis. An employee doesn’t need to take leave in one continuous period of time.
Remedies for Violating California Family Rights Act
Unfortunately, CFRA violations are not uncommon. Some of the most frequent violations include:
- Denying Eligible Employees CFRA Leave: Employers cannot refuse to grant CFRA leave to eligible employees who have a qualifying reason for leave.
- Interfering with CFRA Rights: Employers cannot discourage employees from taking CFRA leave or retaliate against them for doing so. This includes actions like demotion, disciplinary action, or termination.
- Failing to Reinstate Employees: Upon return from CFRA leave, employees are generally entitled to be reinstated to their same or a comparable position.
- Discriminating Against Employees Who Take CFRA Leave: Employers cannot discriminate against employees based on their use of CFRA leave. This includes denying promotions, raises, or other benefits.
- Counting CFRA Leave Against Employees: Employers cannot count CFRA leave as a negative factor in performance reviews or attendance records.
- Employees to Use Paid Leave Concurrently: they cannot force employees to exhaust all paid leave before taking unpaid CFRA leave
If you believe you have been denied a family leave by your employer we invite you to contact our Los Angeles employment lawyer at (310) 943-1171 for a free consultation.
KAASS Law is here to help!