I am the office manager for a small physician's office. We are in the process of merging with another similar practice by April 1. Once merged, we will possibly have too many staff and some may lose their positions due to attrition. They are all aware of the situation. One of my female employees is expecting in April. She informed me that she wants 3 months off. She does not have a lot of vacation and has only been employed 1 year. We do not have a maternity policy in our handbook due to the nature of our practice.
I explained the situation to her and told her to take the time off that she needs and due to the merger I cannot guarantee her a position when she decides to return to the work force. It would not be fair to lay off employees and promise her a position. However, if I do have a position available I would hire her back. In the meantime, I told her if she finds another position closer to home she is free to accept because I cannot promise her anything at this time.
She wanted me to fire her so she could collect unemployment. I informed her that she came to me and asked for off. I was not going to fire her! If she were not expecting, I could still not guarantee her a position if she wanted to take a leave of absence. Her pregnancy was not the reason for this decision. However, I believe she is going to use the pregnancy to her advantage to apply for unemployment, collect it if possible and stay home with her infant as long as she can.
What rights does my employer have in this situation?
I explained the situation to her and told her to take the time off that she needs and due to the merger I cannot guarantee her a position when she decides to return to the work force. It would not be fair to lay off employees and promise her a position. However, if I do have a position available I would hire her back. In the meantime, I told her if she finds another position closer to home she is free to accept because I cannot promise her anything at this time.
She wanted me to fire her so she could collect unemployment. I informed her that she came to me and asked for off. I was not going to fire her! If she were not expecting, I could still not guarantee her a position if she wanted to take a leave of absence. Her pregnancy was not the reason for this decision. However, I believe she is going to use the pregnancy to her advantage to apply for unemployment, collect it if possible and stay home with her infant as long as she can.
What rights does my employer have in this situation?