Anemia due to pregancy

carecruiter

I have an employee who is experiencing morning sickness, headaches, and dizziness as a result of her pregnancy. Her doctor diagnosed her with anemia and wants to put her on disability for a month. The employee feels that it is not safe for her to drive to and from work in her condition. Is this condition classified under FMLA as family leave for the "birth of a child"? I don't believe this qualifies as a "serious medical condition".

Thanks.

Betty I_O

The medical diagnosis should be left to the physician treating the woman. If she provides the appropriate documentation from her physician, this employee is entitled to FMLA (providing, of course, that she has worked the required number of hours, etc. to qualify).

(You also may want to read previous postings about this very subject by doing a search on this site.)

Don D

Yes, this would be a serious medical condition. But don't let the employee's assumptions about driving enter the equation. Those are meaningless in an FML analysis. Tell her you will review the doctor's statements and if she wishes to discuss driving with him and have him restrict that, that's the approach she should take. Your ruling can only be based on the medical certification.

CAL

[font size="1" color="#FF0000"]LAST EDITED ON 02-04-04 AT 12:39PM (CST)[/font][br][br]Whoa, carecruiter! You need to look up the California Pregnancy Disability Leave law (a notice should be posted on your bulletin board). It is separate from California Family Rights Act (CFRA) leave, which is for baby bonding, and if you have 5 or more employees in your company, you are subject to its provisions. Also, there is no minimum length of service required for employees to qualify for PDL.

I agree with Don D that the driving should not enter into the equation, unless the Health Care Provider (HCP) specifically addresses it. However, if the HCP has put the employee "on disability" -- why would she need to worry about driving -- shouldn't she be off work altogether? Unless, what you mean is that she is going to work on an intermittent or reduced schedule.

Please take the advice given here -- and I can't make this any plainer -- it is not for you to decide whether or not the employee is unable to work - that is the call of the HCP, and ONLY the HCP.

P.S. If you don't have 5 employees in your company, kindly disregard the PDL tirade.

carecruiter

Thanks CAL for the WHOA! I did discover that the employee has up to 4 months of PDL in addition to FMLA. My confusion arose from the fact that it didn't sound like FMLA at this point. Thanks!