SEDWICK IS CLAIMS ISSUING WRONG FMLA CAUSING ....

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savemyjob253

New Member
Jurisdiction
Washington
I Believe I may need a demand letter fastmy employer which is an extremely large one utilizes sedwick for their leave. I am a new employee still in probation however I am a victim of domestic violence. Sedgwick is reporting my leave as intermediate absences and has even failed to report the last 2 days. I requested continuous leave for a 4 week period. It was granted then it was erased after I told my claims manager my domestic violence leave did not require a dr clearance on return and if he could take that stipulation off my continuous leave claim I reached out to my supervisor my HR to the claims rep I even emailed Sedgwick corporate on this. .
 
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There are more factors to this that fall under Ada fmla violation employer failing to comply with interactive process and a major impact on my ptsd. However this is the issue I am trying to resolve as of now.. I will prefer to not go thru the state just in case a wrongful termination arise or a constructive discharge. I know I am an at will employee right now however wa state has an extremely strict law when it comes to dealing with women in domestic violence
 
I want my employer and the 3rd party claim partner they utilize for employee leaves of absence, to know they are violating my rights and breaking the law I do not have the $600 to give my potential attorney in order for him to make one for me.. I am going to consult with my domestic violence advocate on Monday at the ywca with hopes on maybe they can pay the fee. If push comes to shove can I notarize a copy of my own? Or is that too risky..
 
savemyjob253 said:
If push comes to shove can I notarize a copy of my own? Or is that too risky..
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You may send a demand letter if you choose. It wouldn't have to be notarized. But what you say in the letter matters and if you say the wrong thing it could hurt you. You'll have to decide whether that risk is worth saving the money you'd otherwise spend to have a lawyer do it.
 
The ADA doesn't cover people who don't come to work. It only requires reaonsable accomodations to allow people to perform their job (to the level it requires, an employer is not required to accept lower performance).
 
savemyjob253 said:
There are more factors to this that fall under Ada fmla violation employer failing to comply with interactive process and a major impact on my ptsd. However this is the issue I am trying to resolve as of now.. I will prefer to not go thru the state just in case a wrongful termination arise or a constructive discharge. I know I am an at will employee right now however wa state has an extremely strict law when it comes to dealing with women in domestic violence
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What is scary is the fact you know a lot of this type of issue. Like you have gone down this road many times. I would suggest you take the advice given here. Then get your life on track.
 
There is a Washington state law that requires employer to provide leave to those employees in a domestic violence situation, that's true. However, it is not unlimited and there are requirements as far as verification is concerned. It is NOT FMLA leave, which is a completely different thing, and it is unclear if first, you meet the requirements and second, if you do meet them, if you have provided the necessary documentation. It takes more than just demanding that your employer give you leave, and you must be able to back up the necessity and the purpose of your leave.
 
CBG is of course correct, and if this was to seek treatment, then you will need documentation from the provider (or a legal representative). They're not obliged to remove the condition (in fact, there are good reasons why they need to maintain proof). What you don't get is time off just because you think your PTSD requires it.
 
I have provided my employer with proper documentation I have also offer to provide more but my employer refuses to take it... and even if my dv protection does not fall under FMLA it has the same baisic 12 week time frame under the employer providing REASONABLE time...the biggest issue is my employer DID grant me my 4week request and I did not demand I asked if they were able to remove the dr note stipulation and backed up the reason lawfully... b lawfully I do not require a dr to clear my return my employer can ask for other documents pertaining to the DV leave yes but not restrict it on my return other than on a basis of me violating the leave itself.

Instead my employer placed me on an intermittent absence leave under a claim that doesn't state the reason under intermittent absence we are required to follow our company's call out procedure for each time we call out.. this is not the claim i requested and supposed to be on. I am thankful I screenshot and saved everything to prove the switch However i am afraid I am going to get terminated due to being on this type of leave
 
Okay, let me ask you this, and these questions are not to dispute what you are saying, but to help you either get your leave or present the best case you can if you end up needing to go to an attorney or regulatory agency.

What is the reason you need leave? Possible reasons - to obtain medical care, to arrange to move to a shelter, to obtain legal representation - what is your reason or reasons?

Maybe when you answer the first question this will become obvious but right now it isn't - the WA law permits intermittent leave; what is it about your situation that requires a consecutive four week leave? Could your situation be resolved, objectively, with intermittent leave?

What documentation have you already presented?
 
cbg said:
There is a Washington state law that requires employer to provide leave to those employees in a domestic violence situation, that's true. However, it is not unlimited and there are requirements as far as verification is concerned. It is NOT FMLA leave, which is a completely different thing, and it is unclear if first, you meet the requirements and second, if you do meet them, if you have provided the necessary documentation. It takes more than just demanding that your employer give you leave, and you must be able to back up the necessity and the purpose of your leave.
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I provided them the police report .. I offered to provide the restraining order and the stipulations I am required from CPS I also offered to provide something from my therapist my supervisor said he did not need it
 
cbg said:
Okay, let me ask you this, and these questions are not to dispute what you are saying, but to help you either get your leave or present the best case you can if you end up needing to go to an attorney or regulatory agency.

What is the reason you need leave? Possible reasons - to obtain medical care, to arrange to move to a shelter, to obtain legal representation - what is your reason or reasons?

Maybe when you answer the first question this will become obvious but right now it isn't - the WA law permits intermittent leave; what is it about your situation that requires a consecutive four week leave? Could your situation be resolved, objectively, with intermittent leave?

What documentation have you already presented?
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I requested consecutive leave because when this happened CPS took my kids I Lost my place I have a few legal things to handle as far as with my abuser and the trial I have to sort things out with my housing specialist to get a new voucher I have to do the things cps wants me to do in order to get my kids back such as mental health treatment drug and alcohol assessment and show them that I am not going back to my abuser and that I am taking the initiative to prove my kids will be safe back with me.. all of this stuff happened to me all at once! If u can imagine having all this responsibility and pressure these demands from everyone when u just got through being abused AND your 3 month old baby was assaulted as well? I haven't even had time to process anything after it happened I had to go to work 3 days after the event still in shock THEN I had to meet the demands of my employer so I would not lose my job the only thing I want is a chance to just start the training over after I sort things out as women we are strong yes but right now this is too much me being worried about loosing my job is tremendous.. I can recieve all the help I need to get into a new place with no issues cps is offering to pay for that .. I can take time to attend support groups and see my therapist and console with my children and get them the help I need... however if I do these things then lose my job I won't be able to provide for my kids it would cause so much more problems .. I am trying my hardest to comply with my employer and do everything to secure my job but it seems like it's not working... and while a settlement would do me good I don't think I could handle that right now
 
The most unlawful thing my employer has done here so far that is definite was provide me the continuous leave that had the days I needed off approved the continuous leave stated the exact reason backed up by wa state law.. the only issue was the DR clearance for return.. it is very difficult dealing with wa state law as our state is very finicky over everything but I do know wa state is extremely hard when it comes to domestic violence victims.

My employer simply should have. Reviewed what they gave me and verified my request and returned stipulations then reissued the documents correctly


I feel like my supervisor has been discriminating against me this whole time... I reported it to my HR rep she didn't do anything she just said "oh no no" as in that's not true.. I reported how I felt to the company's report line .. they haven't said anything..
 
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cbg said:
How long have you worked for this employer?
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I'm a probationary employee my first day of work was 10/22/2018 yes I'm extremely new however my employer firing me under an at-will status will possibly be harmful being that I have reported discrimination and nothing has been done and this whole other bullshit. My employer has not even had the full opportunity to evaluate me properly to even determine if I'm a good fit or not on top of the traumatizing event that has affected me. The mere fact that I tried to accommodate to my employer in the beginning and attempted to stay at work to satisfy my employer shows I made an honest attemp and sincerely care about my employment I expressed to my supervisor how successful I want to be at my job and how important it is for me to be able to give my job the undivided attention during training so I can be the best. I expressed to my supervisor mentally and emotionally I was getting worse behind my neglect to myself for this job.. his response caused me to have a mental breakdown it was horrible my therapist diagnosed me with depression and is now trying to recommend I get on medication... I don't understand why this has to be so damn difficult like this this is crazy
 
SPECIFICALLY what documentation have you provided to your employer to show that it is necessary - not just more convenient, but necessary - for your leave to be continuous?
 
The only document I gave them was the police report to back up my claim.. my continuous leave has already been approved based on that document alone it is satisfactory for the amount of time I requested according to them already
 
savemyjob253 said:
The only document I gave them was the police report to back up my claim.. my continuous leave has already been approved based on that document alone it is satisfactory for the amount of time I requested according to them already
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I think you don't understand what the NEW WA law provides employers do for DV
victims.




Allow employees who are victims to take an UNPAID leave of absence in order to:

> Seek legal or law enforcement assistance
> Seek treatment for physical or mental injuries
> Obtain help, or assist a family member to receive help
> Take measures or plan for safety, relocate, or provide safety from future victimization




It is better than the old law (new law took effect in June), but NOT as comprehensive as you think.


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A great article listing 24 points about the new DV leave law in WA:

24 Points on Domestic Violence Leave in WA State - EHL Insurance




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Read this informative article by a WA firm:

Washington State Amends Domestic Violence Leave Law


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Here is the NEW law in its entirety:



Chapter 49.76 RCW: DOMESTIC VIOLENCE LEAVE



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This might also be a consideration for you:

It's important to note these rules apply to all Washington employers and cover not just employees, but also qualifying family members* of the employee who may be in need of assistance as a result of a domestic violence situation.



*Qualifying family members include children, spouses, parents, parents-in-law, grandparents, or any person with whom the employee has a dating relationship.


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Again, I suggest you read the information provided by the sites above.

Think about your situation and see IF the law applies to you.

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If you have a substance abuse problem, the law might not apply in your case UNLESS the burdens placed upon you by child services has nothing to do with any issues you have in addition to being victimized by the thug who brutalized you.

You might wish to discuss this with your counselors and/or anyone else officially assisting you get through this difficult time.
 
Disabled Vet said:
What is scary is the fact you know a lot of this type of issue. Like you have gone down this road many times. I would suggest you take the advice given here. Then get your life on track.
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I have never gone through this situation ever in my life I have never gone to work after being traumatized and my kids taken my house lost everything striped from me still in shock

I however do have a knack of educating myself and researching when I need to be aware in order to protect myself. I knew from the moment when I broke down to my boss and explained to him what I was going through that he did not care empathize or show any concern in any shape or form I knew at that moment I was going to be looked at differently I felt like he did not believe me so I have taken the steps to attempt to protect my rights through education
 

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