In April of this year, a tendon tore in my right hand and I ended up having surgery. I was out for a week and a half, had physical therapy for about 2 months, not to mention the post-op appointments with my hand surgeon. When I did go back to work, I was in a cast for 3 weeks, then I had brace that resembled a "Terminator arm" for the next month, month and a half. When I had the cast on, I was restricted to lifting no more than 1 lb. and I think no typing (it might have been "light typing," but I still couldn't type so it didn't matter.)
This December, I'm looking to have preventive surgery on my left hand and wrist to prevent any spontaneous tendon tears from occuring.
My question to you all is, should I take FMLA this time around for this surgery in Dec. I have about 150 of sick leave available and I think I could possibly use up my sick time if I opt to not take FMLA based on the time I was out for the surgery, as well as the follow up appointments and physical therapy that I will have to go to. If I should take FMLA, I was looking at taking 3-4 weeks of time away, simply because being in the cast for 3 weeks and trying to keep it elevated while at work gave me pain in my elbow and shoulder joints. Looking back, I probably should have stayed home where I could rest comfortably.
I'm really in a pickle because I feel like my supervisor is wondering "Well you didn't take FMLA before, why are you taking it this time around." I'm a good employee and I am always at work, but at the same token, I don't want to not take FMLA, use up all my sick time and worry about how I'm going to make it to Physical Therapy with limited sick time. If had taken FMLA to begin with, I would definitely have more sick time than I have, but you live and learn.
Any input is greatly appreciated!
Steph
I'm a Human Resource Specialist and deal with FMLA issues daily. We have about 400 employees at our facility (the majority of them are hourly) and most of them have Short Term Disability that will pay them to be off for up to 26 weeks (as long as the physician provides documentation to support the disability to the administrator). Anytime we have an employee going out on disability leave they also request FMLA. Sometimes they exhaust their FMLA before returning (since they can draw their STD for up to 26 weeks and FMLA is only up to 12 weeks). If they exhaust their FMLA prior to returning and they still have physical therapy to go to we would count it against their attendance. Eligibility requirements are as follows: You must've worked at least 1,250 hours dating back one year from the date FMLA is requested, employees are entitled to up to 12 weeks per rolling year (some employers use per calendar year).
Some employers sick days, Industrial Injury, and FMLA run concurrently so you may want to check with your HR folks to see how it's done where you're employed. FMLA is a booger to administer and I've delt with it for 14 years. You may not be eligible if you haven't worked enough hours?? Good luck!
Thanks for this information. I've been with my organization for seven years, so I definitely would qualify for FMLA. I wouldn't exhaust the whole 12 weeks, I would use four at the most and if things go as they did w. the surgery on my right hand, I would have physical therapy for 30 minutes 2x and week, then one time a week based on my progression, and 2 post op appointments. I also thought that I would apply for temporary disability in the meantime. I've read over our policy and I think I would be all set to take FMLA. Any other input?
Thanks!
Steph