SpineAZ

FMLA is a federal law (Family and Medical Leave Act) that provides for up to 12 weeks of unpaid leave for your own medical need or for the care of a sick direct relative or for family need (bonding after birth, etc). It provides job protection for those 12 weeks. If you have a disability and qualify for FMLA you would likely have the full period approved under FMLA.

I see that you live in NJ. NJ also has State Disability (TDB). The administration of that is unrelated to FMLA.

In order to qualify for FMLA you must have been employed with your current employer for one year and have to have worked a certain amount of hours in the last year. Your employer must be over, I think, 50 employees.

Thus, if you start a new job January 2008 and become very ill in June 2008 - NJ state disability may pay you for your disability but you would not qualify for FMLA as you had not been with your employer long enough.

In addition, if you start a new full time job in January 2007 and in February of 2008 need to take 6 weeks to care for a sick family member you would qualify for FMLA (having worked 13 months for the employer) and then have only 6 weeks of FMLA remaining for that year. So later in the year you get ill and need to be out 10 weeks - only 6 weeks of FMLA would be applicable so your job is safe for only 6 of those 10 weeks.

Please note: Some states extend FMLA a bit (CA is quite generous and I'm not sure where NJ regulations stand) and some employers start the FMLA clock ticking every January 1st while others start it when you take leave (if you take leave starting June 1, 2008 you have 12 weeks from 6/1/08-5/31/09).

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Rt&Lt thumb arthroplasty 2012 ; RT TKR & Bilat CTS 2011
Fusions: L5-S1 (87), L4-S1 (93), C5-C7 ('06), L3-S1 ('10)
C5-C7 foraminotomy 08