Bed rest and employment protection?

Bigboneded

I have been having mild cramping, no blood, almost daily. The past couple days after a long hard shift, I added back pain. I am only at 17w 3d. My doctor seems unconcerned and will have my cervix checked at 9/3 scan, but described it is "gargantuan", at over 6cm from 8 wk u/s.

I am new at my job and wont hit my 1 year mark until November. I can use 12 weeks FMLA and 4 more weeks for maternity leave only. But if FMLA protects my job for a total of 12 weeks, can I be fired for using more if I am on bedrest? Or if I am on bedrest for 12 weeks or so, will I lose my maternity leave?
I know these are good HR questions, but they seem to be very inconsistent and unreliable in their answers to me... so I just wonder if anyone here knows?
Cause I started crying at work last night and I cant think that will be viewed favorably if it continues :-S

Thanks for any insight :-)

chickyclg

What about STD?

minirella

Here is a fact sheet from the Dept of Labor, to be protected you must be eligible to take FMLA. One of the requirements is working for your employer for at least 12 months or 1,250 hours....

 

minirella

I'm not sure why the link didn't go through but if you just type in 'dept of labor FMLA' it will bring up their page and fact sheets.

dal2aus

I'm not sure what you mean by 4 weeks maternity leave.  Is that a state-mandated benefit or just a benefit at your company?  

Regarding FMLA, you have to have worked there for a year and accumulated 1,250 work hours to be eligible.  The company is required to protect your job for only 12 weeks total, regardless of the reason or number of different reasons.  Once you exhaust your 12 weeks, the company is not required to hold your job.  

However, you may be able to ask your employer for reasonable accommodation under the Americans with Disabilities Act to prevent you from going on bedrest.  For instance, is it an essential job function for you to be on your feet, or can you ask for a chair or stool to take the load off your back?  

The good news is that in most cases, there is little evidence that bedrest does anything to prevent PTL or other complications, and so doctors don't prescribe it like they used to anymore.  You may want to talk with your doctor about the best course of action for your situation.

DivaMom22

A lot of people get confused between maternity leave and FMLA. FMLA is the federal law that requires you company to give you 12 weeks of unpaid time off while protecting your job. As stated above by PPs you have to meet certain requirements. Maternity leave, Short term disability or sick leave are all different options that a company can offer to pay you during this leave. The company can set there own qualifications or requirements. Also a company has the right to go above and beyond the federal law of FMLA but again that is up to your company to determine.

carrotcake06

What PP said. The only thing I have to add is that FMLA only applies to larger companies. If your company has less than 50 employees, you have no job protection whatsoever under federal law.

All that being said, state laws vary widely and individual company policies add an additional layer of variation.

Do you have an employee handbook?