Can city make changes to notice of suspension and change to dismissal?

DO NOT QUIT . . . at least not until you speak with one or more experienced employment law attorneys with whom you can discuss the details of this complicated situation. AND immediately contact your union to file a grievance for dismissal without proper cause. Help the union in any way you can. Time limits to file grievances are very, very short.

If you quit, you are very likely to ruin any chance you have to protest the termination either through the legal process or the union grievance process. You are also likely to eliminate your opportunity to receive unemployment benefits.

Being able to give you any useful guidance will depend on specific facts, and your facts look more complcated than is typical. The MEL board is not really set up to handle the kind of detailed analysis that is needed in your situation. MEL works best for short, specific questions that allow for short, specific answers. Perhaps more importantly, anyone can read the discussions on MEL so they are not confidential. Your employer or whoever you are in a dispute with can read everything written here.

Generally: You may have legal protection if you have a disability as defined by the California Fair Employment and Housing Act, California Government Code sections 12900, et seq. (FEHA) (a physical or mental impairment that limits one or more major life activities).

You may have legal protection if you have a disability as defined by the Americans with Disabilities Act of 1990, 42 U.S.C. sections 12101 et seq. (ADA) (a physical or mental impairment that SUBSTANTIALLY limits one or more major life activities).

Both laws prohibit an employer from firing an employee because of disability, discriminating against an employee in any way because of disability, and both laws require an employer to provide reasonable accommodation to an employee with a disability if doing so will help the employee perform the essential functions (main parts) of his or her job.

Reasonable accommodation may include transferring some non-essential job duties to other employees, providing equipment or devices to enable you to do the main functions of the job, allowing extra time off work for things related to the disability, and more. Also, the employer may not treat you differently from other employees because of your disability. For example, the employer may not refuse to promote you, deny you training or otherwise limit your job opportunities, and the employer may not fire you because of your disability. Please look at my guide to the ADA: http://www.thespencerlawfirm.com/tslf-ada.php and my guide to the differences between the ADA and California's more generous FEHA: http://www.thespencerlawfirm.com/tslf-feha-vs-ada.php.

As you have already pointed out, your employer's actions might have violated the Family and Medical Leave Act, 29 U.S.C. section 2101 et seq. (FMLA). The FMLA is a federal law that provides up to 12 weeks of unpaid leave to employees who have a serious medical condition as that is defined by the FMLA, or who have responsibilities for an immediate family member with a serious medical condition. In general, a serious medical condition is something that lasts more than a day or two and requires medical attention. Note the 12 weeks of leave may be taken all at once or broken up into units of one month, one week, one hour or even less, provided the total does not exceed 12 weeks. At the end of the leave, the employer must return you to the same position or one that is substantially similar. Please look at my guide to the Family and Medical Leave Act, 29 U.S.C. section 2101 et seq. (FMLA): http://www.thespencerlawfirm.com/tslf-fmla.php.

California has a law that is very similar to the FMLA: the California Family Rights Act, Government Code section 12945.2 (CFRA). The main differences between the FMLA and the CFRA are with respect to pregnancy issues. Also, the FMLA allows two years to pursue a claim, and the CFRA allows one year.

I cannot urge you strongly enough to speak with qualified, experienced employment attorneys before quitting or before deciding what to do. To find a plaintiffs employment attorney in California, please go to the web site of the California Employment Lawyers Association (CELA). CELA is the largest and most influential bar association in the state for attorneys who represent working people. The web site is www.cela.org, and you can search for attorneys by location and practice area. Many CELA attorneys represent clients throughout the state.

I hope there is a good resolution to this situation.

posted by Marilynn Mika Spencer  |  Nov 27, 2016 7:28 PM [EST]