How much notice to give employer for surgery related time off

[bananas85]

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I am scheduled for an orthopedic surgery later in the year. My current place of work, is an outpatient practice and at the time of my surgery I would have been working here for about 6 months. I may need about 4-8 weeks off. The PT is recommending 8 weeks, I am leaning towards 4. The surgery is not in the same state, so I wont be able to work light days or part time.

How much notice do you think would be appropriate to give my employer? I obviously don't want to deal with their wrath or passive aggressiveness in case there is any for too long, but I also want to give them enough time for making temporary adjustments.

I was thinking a month or two heads up should be sufficient. Do you guys agree?

 

[rokshana]

I am scheduled for an orthopedic surgery later in the year. My current place of work, is an outpatient practice and at the time of my surgery I would have been working here for about 6 months. I may need about 4-8 weeks off. The PT is recommending 8 weeks, I am leaning towards 4. The surgery is not in the same state, so I wont be able to work light days or part time.

How much notice do you think would be appropriate to give my employer? I obviously don't want to deal with their wrath or passive aggressiveness in case there is any for too long, but I also want to give them enough time for making temporary adjustments.

I was thinking a month or two heads up should be sufficient. Do you guys agree?

whatever your contract says, but the norm for canceling clinics is usually 90 days. Will you have that many days of sick leave? FMLA probably won't be available to you since you would only have been employed for 6 months.

 

[bananas85]

Contract does not list out anything with regards to this type of situation. It only states if I am resigning I need a 3 month notice.

All benefits kick in at 2 months.

 

[jdh71]

This is elective? Yeah.

Let your people know NOW that you want to do this surgery and figure out when it would be the best time with everyone involved.

 

[rokshana]

Contract does not list out anything with regards to this type of situation. It only states if I am resigning I need a 3 month notice.

All benefits kick in at 2 months.

you have 8 weeks of sick leave with this job? that is pretty generous... or are you having to use your vacation time to do this?

 

[bananas85]

no I do not have 8 weeks of sick leave. Matter of fact we only have accumulated time off. But isn't that what FMLA is for?

but I was told that my temporary disability will kick in after two weeks.

Yes it is semi elective. I am managing it with PT right now but it is simply delaying the inevitable.

 

[rokshana]

no I do not have 8 weeks of sick leave. Matter of fact we only have accumulated time off. But isn't that what FMLA is for?

but I was told that my temporary disability will kick in after two weeks.

Yes it is semi elective. I am managing it with PT right now but it is simply delaying the inevitable.

you may want to check with HR about eligibility for FMLA

from the FMLA website

Eligibility
(Q) Who can take FMLA leave?

In order to be eligible to take leave under the FMLA, an employee must:

• work for a covered employer;
• have worked 1,250 hours during the 12 months prior to the start of leave; (special hours of service rules apply to airline flight crew members)
• work at a location where the employer has 50 or more employees within 75 miles; and
• have worked for the employer for 12 months. The 12 months of employment are not required to be consecutive in order for the employee to qualify for FMLA leave. In general, only employment within seven years is counted unless the break in service is (1) due to an employee’s fulfillment of military obligations, or (2) governed by a collective bargaining agreement or other written agreement.

https://www.dol.gov/whd/fmla/fmla-faqs.htm

 

[gutonc]

Tell them yesterday.

 

[Crayola227]

Unless your state has a special provision about getting FMLA-like leave earlier into your job (one state I know has something that kicks in 6 mos in), and unless your contract explicitly states that you can take this sort of time off at this point in your time with your employer, do NOT assume that you can just wait until a few months beforehand and then drop this bomb on them and have a job to come back to.

You need to talk to them NOW and be willing to work with them, because as I see it you have little protection on paper so far.

The hope is that this is a large enough group, and they like you well enough, and it was a bother to find someone they liked as well as you, that they will tough it out without you and keep your job waiting for you to come back to. There is no guarantee, so your best bet is to talk with them, do not come across as entitled in any way, and express the desire to try to make this as less inconvenient as you can for them as far as when you schedule. If you can tough it out a few weeks or what have you to make this easier on them, DO SO. Because in that case they are bending over for you, because you haven't been there long enough to have "earned" the right to certain protections.

There's more to this. If this is related to workman's comp, it's a condition that was made worse at work, you might have recourse. If this is an ADA issue, that can change things, however remember if you invoke ADA, it still might not protect you if the group is small and makes the argument they cannot give you the time off hold onto your job as something they can reasonably accommodate.

You can always contact an attorney with your contract and run your HR dealings by them to try to obtain the best outcome. Keep in mind, I am NOT telling you to let your employer know in any way shape or form that you are getting help from an attorney, it's just one way to be sure you're as protected as you can be in this case (and I don't think so far that you're very protected at all. So don't antagonize your employer. If they don't legally have to give you the time off and keep your job, and they let you do so, it is purely because they are cutting you a break. In that case, act like it.)

Good luck with your new job and your health.