The federal Family and Medical Leave Act (FMLA) and the New Jersey Family Leave Act (FLA) protect an employee’s job if they need time off from work for medical reasons or to care for a family member. It is illegal for an employer to interfere with these rights or retaliate against an employee for exercising their right to protected leave under these laws. If your FMLA or FLA rights have been violated, it is important to speak to an experienced New Jersey employment attorney.

Call: 609-934-4902 or Contact Us to schedule your free consult.

Family and Medical Leave Act (FMLA) 

The Family and Medical Leave Act (FMLA) provides job-protected leave from work for family and medical reasons. Employees are eligible if they work for a covered employer for at least 12 months, have at least 1,250 hours of service with the employer during the 12 months before their FMLA leave starts, and work at a location where the employer has at least 50 employees within 75 miles.  

FMLA Leave May Cover: 

• The birth of a child or placement of a child with the employee for adoption or foster care, 

• The care for a child, spouse, or parent who has a serious health condition, 

• A serious health condition that makes the employee unable to work, and  

• Reasons related to a family member’s service in the military. 

If you use FMLA leave, you have the right to go back to work at the same job or to an equivalent job. If your employer refuses or interferes with your right to FMLA leave, or if your employer retaliates against you for requesting or using FMLA leave, you may be entitled to damages under the law. 

New Jersey Family Leave Act (FLA) 

Under the New Jersey Family Leave Act (NJFLA), if you work for a state or local government agency, or a company or organization with 30 or more employees worldwide, and you have been employed by the company for at least 1 year (and have worked at least 1,000 hours in the past 12 months), you can generally take up to 12 weeks of job-protected leave during any 24-month period to care for a family member or care or bond with a child, such as a newborn baby. When you return to work, you are generally entitled to the same position and your employer may not retaliate against you for taking leave.  

A key difference between the FMLA and NJFLA is that the FMLA may be used for an employee’s own medical condition, whereas the NJFLA may only be used to care for someone else. Therefore, sometimes the protections of these laws overlap, but other times, an employee may be entitled to protection under both laws for different purposes. For example, a pregnant worker may be entitled to FMLA leave for herself and then NJFLA leave for her newborn child. If an employer refuses to honor these rights or retaliates against an employee for requesting or using their protected leave, the employee may have a claim under these laws. 

If you are experiencing interference or retaliation with your rights to family or medical leave at work in New Jersey, do not hesitate to contact an experienced employment attorney. At Schroll Law, LLC, I have successfully helped many clients throughout New Jersey with their FMLA and FLA claims.  

Call: 609-934-4902 or Contact Us to schedule your free consult.