Fmla

[kkimmy513]

I was on short term disability I had 5 weeks left of fmla. This was in Jan 2012. I received a letter from my employer stating they accepted my resignation. The problem is I did not resign. I received a certified letter stating all that. I immediately called our human resource dept. They said because I was no longer an employee they could not discuss anything with me. 2 weeks later I was released to go back to work. I filed for unemployment and after they fought it I was awarded unemployment. I lost everything my car my home all my belongings that were in storage. My question is can i sue this company for wrongful termination and damages for everything I lost

Thank you

 

[cbg]

Even if you had a case at the time (and it's not clear if you do or not) the SOL has run out. You've waited too long.

 

[army judge]

I was on short term disability I had 5 weeks left of fmla. This was in Jan 2012. I received a letter from my employer stating they accepted my resignation. The problem is I did not resign. I received a certified letter stating all that. I immediately called our human resource dept. They said because I was no longer an employee they could not discuss anything with me. 2 weeks later I was released to go back to work. I filed for unemployment and after they fought it I was awarded unemployment. I lost everything my car my home all my belongings that were in storage. My question is can i sue this company for wrongful termination and damages for everything I lost

Thank you

If you're curious, I suspect your "resignation" came from a known acquaintance, most likely an enemy or adversary.
I'd certainly attempt to see if I could get a copy of the letter purporting to be your resignation.
If you could connect the resignation to a specific individual, you might have a case against the person sending the "resignation" letter.
A case might even be initiated against your former employer for accepting the "resignation" letter, if it can be shown you were terminated without them doing proper due diligence.
It might be worth your time to discuss this matter with a few local attorneys and see what they think.
Bear in mind, I am not saying you have case, but it could be worth your while to see what attorneys in yoru county think.
Good luck.....

 

[cbg]

FYI, in Ohio the employer has no legal obligation to provide copies of anything from the employee's file, even if AJ's somewhat way-out theory is true.

 

[army judge]

FYI, in Ohio the employer has no legal obligation to provide copies of anything from the employee's file, even if AJ's somewhat way-out theory is true.

The person claims to not know how he or she resigned.
I've seen this done (letters sent to an employer by a perplexed employee or former employee, in most cases its a former or angry spouse or partner) a couple of times, when a person has an evil adversary bent on destroying the other party.

A subpoenas can overcome those objections and resistance.
People often claim to lose things, so there's always that last gasp.
There is a cure for that, too.

Anyway, I hope the OP gets things sorted.
The world is filled with evil events executed by very evil people.
I've never had any trouble getting a judge to issue a subpoena or summons.

 

[cbg]

The problem is that the SOL for filing a wrongful term claim has already expired. I think she's going to have trouble getting a lawyer to find a judge to issue a subpoena for a document that may or may not exist when she is time-barred from taking any legal action.

 

[army judge]

The problem is that the SOL for filing a wrongful term claim has already expired. I think she's going to have trouble getting a lawyer to find a judge to issue a subpoena for a document that may or may not exist when she is time-barred from taking any legal action.

Probably, but civil remedies aren't the only way to address this.

I believe the standard SOL for a garden variety fraud in Ohio is four years.

If the fraud were part of an orchestrated conspiracy (doesn't require much to tie that package up, either), its six years, and six years for fraud considered to be felonious.

If the OP says he or she didn't resign, and the company accepted a letter purporting to be his or her resignation (and he or she had five weeks remaining of FMLA leave), its worth pursuing.

The only thing I find more puzzling than the alleged letter of resignation is why wait almost two years? Heck, had that been me, I'd have begun investigating and questioning things back in January of 2012!!!

OP certainly presents, for my money, a rather interesting set of allegations and assertions.

 

[cbg]

We have no information to suggest that there was a letter of resignation at all. The OP doesn't say so.

It is far more likely, given the information the OP has provided, is that she was termed when she did not return to work after a medical leave. Many, many employers consider that a resignation, and there are valid reasons to look at it that way. That may or may not have been a FMLA violation at the time, depending on facts we do not have. But almost three years after the fact, it's too late to address it - the SOL ran out in January of this past year.

And yes, I am also wondering why the OP did not address the question at the time.

 

[army judge]

We have no information to suggest that there was a letter of resignation at all. The OP doesn't say so.

It is far more likely, given the information the OP has provided, is that she was termed when she did not return to work after a medical leave. Many, many employers consider that a resignation, and there are valid reasons to look at it that way. That may or may not have been a FMLA violation at the time, depending on facts we do not have. But almost three years after the fact, it's too late to address it - the SOL ran out in January of this past year.

And yes, I am also wondering why the OP did not address the question at the time.

You see, after four decades, this is why I still don't hate the law.
I dislike it more each day, but I don't hate it.
If ten people (generally lawyers) read a passage, they come up with 50 interpretations, often 100 of that passage.
You and I have just done this.
That is why I continue to troll the waters of various legal bodies.
One day I'll lay this nonsense down forever, just not this day.
I was sucked into giving a couple lectures on the fifth amendment at a couple local high schools this week in honor of constitution week in Texas.

 

[Betty3]

If the OP was terminated while still having FMLA leave left - the SOL for filing a complaint (lawsuit) is 2 years or 3 years (1-2015) if it was a willful violation. We don't really know exactly what happened here for sure though.

 

[kkimmy513]

fmla. wrongful remigration

I thank you all for your replies
I understand why you question the late request for an action. I was worried that it would go against me in the pursuit for another job. I was told a grievance with the dol would be seen by future employers. And because I needed a job that's why I did not take any action until now. There was no letter of resignation. Odjfs -unemployment requested this alleged letter
They could not provide it. Also I had copies from my employer stating I did have 5 weeks left of fmla. Someone in this post mentioned that the Sol could be 3 years of it was a willful violation. Can someone please explain. I was on std was getting paid why would I resign. I think there was an delay in my Dr sending in paper work but I was not aware of that till it was to late.
Thank you all for your help.

 

[army judge]

I thank you all for your replies
I understand why you question the late request for an action. I was worried that it would go against me in the pursuit for another job. I was told a grievance with the dol would be seen by future employers. And because I needed a job that's why I did not take any action until now. There was no letter of resignation. Odjfs -unemployment requested this alleged letter
They could not provide it. Also I had copies from my employer stating I did have 5 weeks left of fmla. Someone in this post mentioned that the Sol could be 3 years of it was a willful violation. Can someone please explain. I was on std was getting paid why would I resign. I think there was an delay in my Dr sending in paper work but I was not aware of that till it was to late.
Thank you all for your help.

Visit with a couple local attorneys, take any proof or documents you possess, and they'll lay it all out for you, possibilities and impossibilities.

The initial meeting is normally free of charge. You usually get 30-45 minutes to ask questions and learn about any remedies.

 

[cbg]

You were told incorrectly. A grievance with the DOL is not visible to other employers.

A willful violation means that the employer knew that they were violating the law and proceeded anyway. The burden of proof will be on you to show that the violation was willful and not the result of an error or misunderstanding.

By all means talk to a couple of lawyers but don't set your expectations particularly high.

 

[Betty3]

We can't say if there was or wasn't a willful violation regarding FMLA leave. (don't have enough/complete information etc.) Talk to an employment lawyer or two as suggested & see what he/she has to say.

 

[ElleMD]

By the way, a delay by your doctor in getting the paperwork submitted can cause you to lose FMLA protection. A lot depends on the details but it is your responsibility to ensure that the paperwork is submitted in a timely manner, not the doctor's.