Terminated while pregnant

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NettieG1

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I am currently 6 months pregnant but was terminated when I was 4months along. Prior to my termination I was brought into my bosses office a long with the HR director and asked if I would be able to continue to work. I told him at the present moment I was feeling okay and could work but was unsure of what would happen in the future. Two weeks after that meeting a new employee a (male) was hired in my department to do the same job that I was currently doing. Three weeks after that I was terminated. I obtained a lawyer and we were going to file suit for violation of my FMLA rights since I was never discussed with me and I was never offered the paperwork in this meeting with my boss. However prior to us filing suit we sent a demand and my former employer sent a response that the he and the HR director asked me if I needed to take leave and I told them that I could work sense my doctor said I could continue with my regular schedule. That is completely untrue. My question is since my former employer does not have handbook and I never was offered FMLA paper and I never signed any type of paper work regarding FMLA, what can they use to try and prove this false information and can they get a summary judgment ?
 
How many employees total does this company have?

Here's what I'm not getting. You say you were not offered FMLA paperwork. But neither did you, at that time, indicate that you were expecting to have to take any time off in the immediate future. So why would the failure to provide the FMLA forms be a violation of a possible leave you didn't need at the moment?

What reason did the company give for your termination?
 
I had actually been having complications with my pregnancy and had been to the hospital several times. My employer knew this information at the time that I was counseled for being absent. I was asked if I was able to continue to work and I informed him that at the present time yes I was feeling okay but that I couldn't say what would happen in the near future since I had already been placed on bed rest once and I had a history of high risk pregnancies. My employer stated that the health mead my baby came first but also informed me that the department that I worked in could not run effectively being short staff which was an indication to me that me being out due to my pregnancy was an issue. Each time I was out I brought documentation from the hospital as to why I was absent. My former employer has about 250 employees. The reason my employer gave for my termination was structural changes which is untrue since I was the only one terminated out of my department. My question is since I had already been out due to complications to my pregnancy and wasn't my pregnancy a qualifying reason to take FMLA? Did I specifically need to ask for leave although my employer knew that I was having complications and that my absences were covered under FMLA?
 
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Your absences are not covered under the FMLA until your doctor completes the certification forms and the employer accepts them. They must provisionally designate the absences as FMLA if they know or suspect they qualify. But unless the certification forms are completed and returned and approved, the designation is just that, provisional.

The employer should have given you the forms, yes.

I would suggest contacting the federal Dept. of Labor, which administers FMLA, and discuss it with someone there. You may have a valid complaint.
 
Yes there are more than 50 employees with in a 75mile radius of the job site. Majority of the employees (over 200) work in near by cities which are in very close range, less than 75 miles.
 
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Even if your absences related to your pregnancy were covered under FMLA (did you submit the doctor's certification to the employer-I'm still not clear on that), being on FMLA does not protect you from all job actions. A "restructuring" resulting in only one employee being let go does is not automatically a pretense. However, you are free to file a complaint with either the federal Dept. of Labor (for an FMLA violation) or with the EEOC (for discrimination under the Pregnancy Discrimination Act) and see what turns up.
 
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