unemp question re: privacy laws
NaeNae55
3,243 Posts
Hiya everyone
I need some help. Here are the facts:
Employee became ill in late January. 1/29/03 I sent her a letter with fmla form, dol statement of rights, a copy of our regular leave policy and a copy of our fmla leave policy. Also said if she became in a leave without pay situation we would make payment arrangements for her insurance.
The fmla paperwork was returned to me (signed by an ARNP on 2/10). It stated employee would be out from 1/27 to 2/16.
Employee called every week, but did not return. On 2/25 I noticed that we were well beyond the end date of the paperwork (oops) and wrote employee. Letter stated we must have new form within 15 days and since employee was now on leave without pay, showed insurance amounts due. Received no response and at this time employee stopped calling weekly.
March 14 sent a certified letter informing employee we should have received her form by March 12. Told employee if we did not hear from her within 7 days (March 21) we would assume job abandonement. Told her what she still owed for Feb. insurance and what it would be for March, but that since she had not made a payment she currently did not have insurance for March.
March 17 I received a call from employee. She said she did not get my 2/25 letter and could not be without insurance. That she would get me the money, and that she was waiting to hear the results on 2 tests she had done the previous week. She kept talking about the money and not having insurance; I stressed that I needed the form signed and returned right away (3 times). I then documented the phone call and sent employee copies of 2/25 letter.
Did not hear from her again, but sent a certified letter informing her that we considered her terminated on March 26th. (Also told her what she owed for Feb. and regular "termination" info.)
Employee filed for unemployment. I completed the form stating that we considered it job abandonment and that it was because of no fmla form though we had tried 3 times. Unemployment was denied.
Employee has now appealed (says I told her ok on the phone and that her letter says "termination of employment"). Now I come to my question. The judge is willing to look at my documentation, but how much of this can I send without violating privacy laws? I assume I can send copies of my letters and documentation on the phone conversation since I did not specifically refer to her exact illness, but what about the fmla form. Isn't the dates on the form important to my case? Would it help if I copied the form and then made sure the medical part is unreadable? Help!
I need some help. Here are the facts:
Employee became ill in late January. 1/29/03 I sent her a letter with fmla form, dol statement of rights, a copy of our regular leave policy and a copy of our fmla leave policy. Also said if she became in a leave without pay situation we would make payment arrangements for her insurance.
The fmla paperwork was returned to me (signed by an ARNP on 2/10). It stated employee would be out from 1/27 to 2/16.
Employee called every week, but did not return. On 2/25 I noticed that we were well beyond the end date of the paperwork (oops) and wrote employee. Letter stated we must have new form within 15 days and since employee was now on leave without pay, showed insurance amounts due. Received no response and at this time employee stopped calling weekly.
March 14 sent a certified letter informing employee we should have received her form by March 12. Told employee if we did not hear from her within 7 days (March 21) we would assume job abandonement. Told her what she still owed for Feb. insurance and what it would be for March, but that since she had not made a payment she currently did not have insurance for March.
March 17 I received a call from employee. She said she did not get my 2/25 letter and could not be without insurance. That she would get me the money, and that she was waiting to hear the results on 2 tests she had done the previous week. She kept talking about the money and not having insurance; I stressed that I needed the form signed and returned right away (3 times). I then documented the phone call and sent employee copies of 2/25 letter.
Did not hear from her again, but sent a certified letter informing her that we considered her terminated on March 26th. (Also told her what she owed for Feb. and regular "termination" info.)
Employee filed for unemployment. I completed the form stating that we considered it job abandonment and that it was because of no fmla form though we had tried 3 times. Unemployment was denied.
Employee has now appealed (says I told her ok on the phone and that her letter says "termination of employment"). Now I come to my question. The judge is willing to look at my documentation, but how much of this can I send without violating privacy laws? I assume I can send copies of my letters and documentation on the phone conversation since I did not specifically refer to her exact illness, but what about the fmla form. Isn't the dates on the form important to my case? Would it help if I copied the form and then made sure the medical part is unreadable? Help!
Comments
My $0.02 worth............back after an exhausting day at a golf tournament! x:D
DJ The Balloonman
Thanks to everyone for your input. I'll try to remember all this if I ever get stuck in this position again.
The only other suggestion I have, which may come too late for you, is to mark each item, which will become items of evidence. I always mark them, for example, item a,b,c,d1,d2. I mark the copy I provide the judge as well as my own for ease in referring to and locating them. It would keep you from having to say (on the phone), "No sir, I'm referring to the two-page letter, the one with the heading 'ABC Clinic', not the one from Charity Hospital, yes, that one, I believe we have the same document, tell me again what yours says." When that happens and the claimant chimes in, "Wait a minute. I'm not sure what ya'll are looking at", the judge gets frustrated and the ruling begins to slant in the direction of the claimant. Call me anal, but I've lost one appeal in several decades (and it was in California of course).
We had the hearing over 2 weeks ago, and I cringe with embarrassment at some of my mistakes. For instance, I actually had the stupidity to put in my final warning letter that if we had not "heard from" employee within the week we would consider her termed. x:-8 Of course, employee called during that period, but did not supply the form. She stated in the hearing that I had basically told her that everything was ok (NOT!!!)during that phone conversation so she did not worry about getting the form in.
Though my final point to the judge was to repeat over and over again that we did everything we could short of escorting the employee to the doctor so we should not be charged, I really felt we could not win. Between my dumb "heard from" statement and the fact that things kept sounding like the judge felt we termed her for not following instructions when she was just sick, not to mention employee's testamony about my response to her phone call, I just knew it was a lost cause.
Late yesterday I finally got the decision. Employee gets benefits. Employer does NOT get charged!!!! xclap YIPEE!!! It CAN happen!!! :DD