While doing some research on FMLA I came across this question on the DOL site “Does FMLA Leave Have to be Taken All At Once, or Can It Be Taken in Parts?”

The answer is it can be taken in parts,  FMLA leave may be taken “intermittently or on a reduced leave schedule” under certain circumstances. Intermittent leave is FMLA leave taken in separate blocks of time due to a single qualifying reason. A
reduced leave schedule is a leave schedule that reduces an employee’s usual number of working hours per workweek, or hours per workday. A reduced leave schedule is a change in the employee’s schedule for a period of time, normally from full-time to part-time.

You can read more about it here:
http://www.dol.gov/dol/allcfr/ESA/Title_29/Part_825/29CFR825.203.htm

Question:

I got my approval for FMLA but there were some problems with the wording for intermittent leave, now my employer is telling me I have not legal right to FMLA and it’s now in limbo. Can my employer take it away from me like that.

Response:

Employers are required to follow the letter of the law, and they sometimes require their employees to do the same, I suggest you review the information about Intermittent leave at the link below, and perhaps ask your employer to justify their reasoning based on the information outlined by the Department of Labor

http://www.dol.gov/elaws/esa/fmla/er3.asp

Thanks for your question!

Question:
IN A MEDICAL OFFICE- DO THE PAPERS FOR A FAMILY MEMBER NEED OUT BY THE PHYSICIAN THAT CARES FOR THE ILL PATIENT OR SHOULD THEY BE FILLED OUT BY THE PHYSICIAN OF THE CARETAKER

Response:

The Department of Labor addresses this question in section 825.306 paragraph a

“(a) DOL has developed an optional form (Form WH-380, as revised) for
employees’ (or their family members’) use in obtaining medical
certification, including second and third opinions, from health care
providers that meets FMLA’s certification requirements. (See Appendix B
to these regulations.) This optional form reflects certification
requirements so as to permit the health care provider to furnish
appropriate medical information within his or her knowledge.”

Which would indicate that the certificate would be that of the family member who is sick.
You can read the whole code here:
http://www.dol.gov/dol/allcfr/ESA/Title_29/Part_825/29CFR825.306.htm

All you employers out there need to be sure you have the new poster for Military FMLA, get it here:

http://www.dol.gov/esa/whd/fmla/NDAAAmndmnts.pdf

Question:

IF I TERMINATED FROM MY JOB, AND BEFORE I TERMED I WAS ELIGIBLE FOR FMLA/OFLA AND NOW I AM BEING REHIRED (3 WEEKS LATER) BY THE SAME EMPLOYER, DO I HAVE TO WAIT THE 180 DAYS FOR OFLA AND THE 12 MONTHS FOR FMLA AGAIN?

Suggestion:

That question has been of legal battles over the past few years, There was a case in California where an employee had worked for an employer for 7 years, quit then returned a few years later and requested FMLA shortly after being rehired, but the employer denied his request, and the employee took legal action.  The Federal Government did not specify that the employment had to be continuous, though it doesn’t say it has to be either.  Oregon law might have such a provision, ask your employer to confirm your eligibility with their legal council.