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I was fired while on maternity leave, is that legal?

Asked almost 3 years ago - Philadelphia, PA

I live in Phila. Pa and it has been five weeks since i had my child< called my job to discuss a return date. they called me back a few days later and told me my job was eliminated and our office was over staffed with nurses. I've been there the longest and make the least so how did they come to my position to down size. I worked full time for over 3 years. the company was a work at will company. meaning they could fire you at will or you could quit at will. paper work was filled out before i left for my prgnancy leave.

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Harold Mark Goldner

Reputation Level 11

Answered almost 3 years ago. Employment / Labor Attorney in Blue Bell, PA.

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If your employer had more than 50 employees, and you had been working full time for one or more years, working at least 1250 hours during that year, your position was protected under the Family & Medical Leave Act, which requires employers to provide up to 12 weeks leave for maternity (or a serious health condition).

If your employer was SMALLER than 50 employees, FMLA does not apply, however, it is possible that the termination violated the Pregnancy Discrimination Act. That would require an employment attorney to further assess the circumstances of the termination, asking question such as, were other employees *really* terminated? Were they really downsizing? How many besides you were laid off?

Your best course is to contact an employment lawyer so that you can engage in a dialogue about what happened. It's very hard to 'diagnose' via the web.

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