Pinellas County FMLA Lawyers

When you are having a baby or need to take care of a seriously ill loved one, you should be able to take time off of work without facing retaliation or discrimination. An FMLA lawyer in Pinellas County can help.

Family medical leave is a right given to most employees across Pinellas County, the state, and the country by the federal government. If your employer is violating the FMLA, know that an FMLA lawyer in Pinellas County has the expertise you need to get justice and a fair resolution to your case.

Contact Wenzel Fenton Cabassa, P.A. Our employment law attorneys fight hard to hold your employer accountable as tough legal advocates for employees. We are here to help.

FMLA Violations Attorney On Your Side

Employers will often intimidate, harass, and even threaten employees to stop them from filing a complaint about FMLA violations. But know this: the law – and your FMLA violations attorney – are on your side. They have their own lawyer – you should too.

A skilled FMLA lawyer in Pinellas County will take action to represent your case and fight for the justice you deserve. These actions include, but are not limited to:

• taking the lead in dealing with bullying employers,
• develop a strong, detailed case,
• ensure each step of the process is performed correctly,
• negotiate forcefully for your rights to a fair resolution, and, if necessary,
• represent your interests in court

Types of FMLA Violations in Pinellas County

Employers take various types of actions that may be considered FMLA violations. An FMLA attorney in Pinellas County can help with:

• Discrimination — treating an employee differently for taking FMLA leave, such as implementing a reduction in pay, changing to a difficult schedule that other employees do not have to work, adding new job duties not in the job description as a punitive measure, not providing equal access to training important for getting promotions, and not providing reasonable accommodations

• Demotion — placing an employee in a lower-level position when they come back to work after taking FMLA leave

• Termination — firing an employee during any part of the FMLA process, either when they request and/or are granted approval, during their time off work, or when they come back from work after taking FMLA leave

FMLA lawyers in Pinellas County also help with pregnancy discrimination. Employees have many rights under federal and state law against discrimination and other employee rights violations.

Who Is Covered by FMLA?

For an employee to be covered by FMLA, they must work for an employer with at least 50 employees within 75 miles of the employee’s worksite for at least 20 weeks in the current or previous year. Employees must also have been with the employer for at least one year, working at least 1,250 hours during the previous year.

The Family Medical Leave Act also has certain qualifying reasons for leave under the FMLA:

• The birth of a child and to bond with the newborn child within one year of birth.
• The placement with the employee of a child for adoption or foster care and to bond with the newly placed child within one year of placement.
• A serious health condition that makes the employee unable to perform the functions of his or her job.
• To care for the employee’s spouse, son, daughter, or parent who has a serious health condition.
• Any qualifying exigency arising out of the fact that the employee’s spouse, son, daughter, or parent is a military member on covered active duty.

The standard is up to 12 weeks of unpaid leave per year. However, the FMLA allows for an eligible employee to also take up to 26 workweeks of FMLA leave in a single 12-month period to care for a covered servicemember with a serious injury or illness if the employee is the spouse, son, daughter, parent, or next of kin of the servicemember (military caregiver leave).

What to Do If Your Rights Were Violated

If you have been the victim of an FMLA rights violation in Pinellas County, working with an FMLA lawyer is important to get the best outcome possible. Take action right away. Your statute of limitations may be running out.

At Wenzel Fenton Cabassa P.A., we have extensive expertise and decades of experience standing up for employee rights and holding employers accountable when they break the law.

Contact our Pinellas County FMLA lawyers to schedule a free, confidential consultation today.