Performance Expectations May Need to be Adjusted During FMLA
By Brian P. Goodman, Storm B. Larson and Mai Chao Chang
Employees who take protected leave under the FMLA have certain rights to be free from retaliation and interference with their use of leave. A recent decision from the 7th Circuit highlights how unwary employers can risk an FMLA interference claim by refusing to adjust an employee’s performance expectations to reflect missed time from work due to protected FMLA leave.
In Wayland v. OSF Healthcare System, an employee began taking FMLA in October 2018, including intermittent leave of 1-2 days per week. This employee was responsible for managing at least 30 other employees and her leave coincided with a major operational expansion. After the employee began taking leave, her employer told her that she and her team had “no choice” but to meet the deadlines for the new expansion. While the employee was able to meet some of these demanding deadlines, she was unable to meet others.
The employee’s leave ended in April 2019, and she was placed on a PIP just one month later. She was ultimately terminated in July 2019. The trial court originally dismissed the lawsuit in favor of the employer, but on appeal the 7th Circuit reversed that decision. The 7th Circuit explained that holding the employee to the same standards she had been prior to taking leave and then terminating her for not meeting those standards could be a form of interference and retaliation. In light of this decision, employers should carefully consider how they are evaluating employees who are out on protected leave to ensure that performance expectations are fair and account for time missed due to protected leave.
This post is locked to comments.
