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Specifically asking about a baby that died at two weeks. Mom is now expected to come back much sooner than otherwise. It was explained that she can’t take maternity leave for a baby no longer iwith us.
Personally, I think she should hire an attorney and blast the employer publicly, but I’m too close to the situation to think as rationally as normal.
This employer is beyond the pale! I would even take up a collection amongst coworkers to pay for some of her hardships, including an attorney, as you suggested.
"Most of the time, people say their employers have been pretty understanding, but there are also the employees who say their employers have been, 'Get back to work or your job is gone,'" said Farley, who also runs grievingdads.com and the @GrievingDads Twitter. "I recently talked to someone who lost a child, and the employer's comment was, 'The war goes on, and I need you back to work sooner than later.'"
Bad example. She wouldn't have been on maternity leave if the child was 3 and she wouldn't have had to recover from the birth which takes at least 3 months.
Did you see the follow-up post?
Quote:
Originally Posted by JONOV
I suspect finances are the motivating factor (on both sides, really...) Maternity was paid leave, FMLA may not be. Weeks of NICU aren't cheap...nor are funerals...I think that they did plan unexpected medical costs, not so much that + loss of income.
It seems the mother can certainly get the time off; but wants it to be paid time off. My guess is that the company pays for maternity bonding time; which (unfortunately) is not the case here. She still can get FMLA time off to heal from the birth.
This is a horrible situation, and I do feel for all involved. But it sounds like they want to use Maternity leave benefits for bereavement leave. These aren't the same thing and can't be exchanged.
It seems the mother can certainly get the time off; but wants it to be paid time off. My guess is that the company pays for maternity bonding time; which (unfortunately) is not the case here. She still can get FMLA time off to heal from the birth.
This is a horrible situation, and I do feel for all involved. But it sounds like they want to use Maternity leave benefits for bereavement leave. These aren't the same thing and can't be exchanged.
I get what you're saying. It's a hairy situation for HR to sort out, but I think it's something they do need to sort out. If not for the sake of being a good employer, at least to avoid the bad PR. Amend the bereavement policy to include pay for minors under 18 if you need to. Raid the employee hardship fund. Arrange for a one-time bonus or lay her off and re-hire her with a signing bonus and future start date or something.
Another thing to consider here is this: parental leave is usually proven simply by a birth certificate. You don't have to prove that your child is still living, or that you didn't give it up for adoption, or that some other person doesn't have custody. I think a skilled lawyer might be able to argue that she is being treated differently than other employees who took leave.
Unfortunately, as others have explained, this wouldn't qualify as maternity leave for FMLA. Other medical leave could be applied for, but FMLA isn't necessarily paid.
That said, how is maternity leave written up by the employer? Maternity leave may be an employee benefit that is separate/different from FMLA.
I believe you said this is mostly monetary for her, so my two cents, tell her to take the FMLA unpaid and start a GFM (not sure if I can spell it out). At least she can recover physically. Or maybe she can work something out with her employer about her hours or working from home to keep some of her income. It's not ideal, but you know what, none of what she's dealing with is ideal.
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This employer is beyond the pale! I would even take up a collection amongst coworkers to pay for some of her hardships, including an attorney, as you suggested.
