An employee’s out on FMLA leave, and you learn he’s been anything but home sick. Can you fire him? Read the facts of this real-life case and decide — who won?
The facts:
An employee filed a request for vacation time. It was denied. Later he requested FMLA leave (to recover from an injured knee) for roughly the same time frame, with a medical certification from his doctor. He was approved for leave but while he was gone the company, putting two and two together, decided to check in with him. He wasn’t home. So when he came back, he was questioned and he admitted to spending part of the time in Las Vegas. Not surprisingly, he was fired. But he sued, maintaining that his leave was legit.
The employer said:
The FMLA fraud was obvious: The employee asked to take vacation, was turned down, and faked a medical condition so he could take the trip anyway. But the employee claimed that once the company approved leave, that was the end of it, and if it suspected foul play, it should’ve asked for a second opinion or not approved the leave.
Who won the case?
Answer: The employer.
Why: The judge didn’t buy the employee’s argument. The law says that employers can ask for a second medical opinion – there’s nothing that says they can’t look into suspected fraud if they choose not to.
Also, courts have upheld employers’ policies of checking in with employees who are out on FMLA leave. That can be an effective way to make sure that employees who say they’re home sick really are.
Cite: Crouch v. Whirlpool Corp.
