Anyone understand fmla?

[dropitlikeitshott]

I'm a teacher. 

Does anyone know if I am on fmla for the birth of a child if they can require me to do work? Lesson plans were done before the baby was born. This is work that could not be done before hand (grading, report cards).

[Deleted]

I think FMLA simply saves your position for you during your outage. I don't know, however, if it protects you from having to work. I know I answered a few work-related calls while on leave after both births.

[mrsjrd23]

I was told by the company that manages out leaves that only a small number of hours can be worked while on a protected leave. I don't remember the number of hours - it was like 8 or 10 total to wrap up any open projects or complete time sensitive mandatory trainings.

[redheadbaker]

I don't think FMLA says anything about whether or not you can do any work while out on leave. STD, on the other hand, can be nullified if you work while receiving benefits.

[ttt]

This may help:
www.fmlainsights.com/employer-requires-employee-to-work-during-fmla-leave-ummmm-is-this-a-problem/

[dropitlikeitshott]

Thank you for the link. I wish the law was clearer. I am having to do report cards. When I asked to receive pay for the work I will be doing I was told no, so now I am working and not getting paid. It just really stinks.

I am really starting to get burned out with teaching. It makes me sad since I love most of my job but stuff like this makes me hate it. I should be able to have a baby and walk away for 12 weeks.

[JayhawkGirl]

Beyond fmla, did you receive any short term disability medical payout? That could restrict your working, though I only know that from here. My work emailed/called me just about every other day during my leave. Some of that was a power play on my then-director's part, some was legit the website is down and no one knows who to call type stuff.

[imimahoney]

When I was out on leave I was not allowed to do any work related to school at all.

Do you have a union rep you could talk to?

[taratru]

I wouldn't be doing report cards. If you've been out, how can you?

[dropitlikeitshott]

Jan 24, 2016 20:09:20 GMT -5 imimahoney said:

When I was out on leave I was not allowed to do any work related to school at all.

Do you have a union rep you could talk to?

We don't have a union in NC. I think it's becoming one of the worst states to teach in. I know teachers are leaving in droves. 

[AAM2012]

Are you salary or getting STD?

I do not believe FMLA does a thing but protect your job but I do know STD has specific work restrictions.

[imimahoney]

Jan 24, 2016 20:15:05 GMT -5 dropitlikeitshott said:

Jan 24, 2016 20:09:20 GMT -5 imimahoney said:

When I was out on leave I was not allowed to do any work related to school at all.

Do you have a union rep you could talk to?

We don't have a union in NC. I think it's becoming one of the worst states to teach in. I know teachers are leaving in droves. 

I'm sorry. If you've been out, shouldn't your sub be assigning grades? Do you have a department head or someone as such you can talk to?

[dropitlikeitshott]

Jan 24, 2016 20:11:02 GMT -5 taratru said:

I wouldn't be doing report cards. If you've been out, how can you?

That's my point. We also have standards based grading and my vp is putting the grades from the sub in my google doc. I keep telling them that they can't put one grade from a test in for all the standards. I need Info on how the students did on each standard but no change. 

[atlas]

I found this link. Something to read anyway.

www.fmlainsights.com/employer-requires-employee-to-work-during-fmla-leave-ummmm-is-this-a-problem/

[dropitlikeitshott]

Jan 24, 2016 20:09:19 GMT -5 JayhawkGirl said:

Beyond fmla, did you receive any short term disability medical payout? That could restrict your working, though I only know that from here. My work emailed/called me just about every other day during my leave. Some of that was a power play on my then-director's part, some was legit the website is down and no one knows who to call type stuff.

I do have disability. 

I just feel that if we have to have a certified teacher in the room they should do all parts of the job. I didn't mind coming in for a couple hours the day I was released from the hospital to go over stuff with the sub since I went out early.

[atlas]

At minimum I would document the hell out of what you did while out on leave. There are a lot of law suits in that link I posted. Should anything happen, it will be useful to have every minute you spent working while out on leave.

[artteach]

You shouldn't have to worry about it. Your sub is grading and your VP is putting the grades in. Done and done. I did not do any grading while I was out on maternity leave. I did a little bit of work at the beginning because I went into labor a week early and wasn't done with grades. I also had three different subs while I was gone for 12 weeks. I am in TX, another non union state

[dropitlikeitshott]

Jan 24, 2016 20:17:53 GMT -5 imimahoney said:

Jan 24, 2016 20:15:05 GMT -5 dropitlikeitshott said:

We don't have a union in NC. I think it's becoming one of the worst states to teach in. I know teachers are leaving in droves. 

I'm sorry. If you've been out, shouldn't your sub be assigning grades? Do you have a department head or someone as such you can talk to?

My principal is the on who told me I had to do report cards, but that she talked to my sub and she would be nice and grade papers.

[dropitlikeitshott]

Jan 24, 2016 20:22:32 GMT -5 artteach said:

You shouldn't have to worry about it. Your sub is grading and your VP is putting the grades in. Done and done. I did not do any grading while I was out on maternity leave. I did a little bit of work at the beginning because I went into labor a week early and wasn't done with grades. I also had three different subs while I was gone for 12 weeks. I am in TX, another non union state

I am having to do the actual report cards. Ours have over 20 different grades each quarter since we have standards based grading. If I was doing it he way we used to it would be easy to take the grades and put them in the system that averaged the grades and printed report cards. I have already spent about 8 hours working on them and they are not even half way done. 

[taratru]

Your principal is wrong. If you have a good relationship with her, call her and tell her that you're not doing it. You. Are. On. Leave. You are not required to do work during the leave. The End. If you don't have the relationship, call your HR person.

[imimahoney]

Jan 24, 2016 20:22:42 GMT -5 dropitlikeitshott said:

Jan 24, 2016 20:17:53 GMT -5 imimahoney said:

I'm sorry. If you've been out, shouldn't your sub be assigning grades? Do you have a department head or someone as such you can talk to?

My principal is the on who told me I had to do report cards, but that she talked to my sub and she would be nice and grade papers.

WTF. She would be nice? She's a sub, she should do the job she is being paid for. You are getting screwed over and I'm so sorry.

[dropitlikeitshott]

Jan 24, 2016 20:22:08 GMT -5 atlas said:

At minimum I would document the hell out of what you did while out on leave. There are a lot of law suits in that link I posted. Should anything happen, it will be useful to have every minute you spent working while out on leave.

I am. Plus printing the emails out telling me I have to do work while on leave. 

[JayhawkGirl]

How can you offer an accurate, current assessment if you have been out?

[dropitlikeitshott]

Jan 24, 2016 20:26:34 GMT -5 taratru said:

Your principal is wrong. If you have a good relationship with her, call her and tell her that you're not doing it. You. Are. On. Leave. You are not required to do work during the leave. The End. If you don't have the relationship, call your HR person.

She asked HR and forward the response saying that we are required to do lesson plans (which I did before leave) and report cards, so I don't think hr will be much help. 

[dropitlikeitshott]

Jan 24, 2016 20:29:35 GMT -5 JayhawkGirl said:

How can you offer an accurate, current assessment if you have been out?

I can't. I told her that, she said the policy said I was required. 

I also put in the comments that all data was collected by the sub and if parents had concerns they need to contact the school. 

[gault]

Send the emails to hr and request that if you are required to work, those hours are not part of your leave. You will be paid, and your fmla hours will not be taken away during work time thus extending the time you can be gone.

Fmla is very flexible. People can take fmla for chemo treatments in hourly increments, etc and go back to work in the same day. I would imagine your fmla could stop when you are forced to work during the time that would otherwise be yours.

[taratru]

Yeah...that doesn't sound right. What does your policy say?

[dropitlikeitshott]

Jan 24, 2016 20:40:03 GMT -5 gault said:

Send the emails to hr and request that if you are required to work, those hours are not part of your leave. You will be paid, and your fmla hours will not be taken away during work time thus extending the time you can be gone.

Fmla is very flexible. People can take fmla for chemo treatments in hourly increments, etc and go back to work in the same day. I would imagine your fmla could stop when you are forced to work during the time that would otherwise be yours.

Should I do that if I already told her that. 

This all came about because I am taking 3 days without pay because I don't have enough days saved. We had a snow day on Friday and an email was sent out saying that the school,was closed but that you could work from home on an honor system.

i sent an email saying that since staff was working from home I would like to be paid for one of the days since I was required to do report cards while on leave. She said she didn't think I could be but that she would ask hr. 

The he response she got was that while on leave we are required to do report cards and since I am on leave I will not be paid. 

[erbear]

I did no work whilst on fmla or maternity leave as s a teacher. 

No wait, that's not true.  I wrote my report cards before I went out because I was there for half the trimester. My sub wrote the second part. 

I dont agree that you shouldn't write reports. You were there for a portion of the grading period, no? You are responsible for that set of grades. Your sub is responsible for the other part, yes, but you need to do those grades.  How can your sub be reponsible for grades he/she wasn't there for?

eta: it's a moot point now. You can't do them on leave, and shouldn't. But I would have done my part of the grading/writing before leaving if possible because I was there for that part of the grading period. 

[artteach]

Are you filing for std? Does NC require your long term sub be a certified teacher?