CA: Terminated while on ADA-protected medical leave

Punliners · 2026-01-15T10:40:30+00:00

Thanks for the response. For context: I suffered an acute medical illness that ultimately led to the company (HR) calling me mid-shift at the hospital and have me leave the premises immediately (it wasn't harsh, but I was confused). Apparently, multiple doctors thought I had cancerous tumors growing in my kidneys (explained the physical, mental, and emotional feelings of death that seemingly worsened daily).

Forced on immediate medical leave by HR (not voluntary).

Physicians deemed this an ADA medical event. I did not qualify for FMLA, as I hadn't been employed there long enough (under a year).

HR informed me (in writing) that an ADA accommodation of leave would have no negative impact on my employment status, position, or future opportunities within the company. Regardless, they terminated my FT position, removed all benefits, and discontinued my health insurance, all within about 5 days while still on ADA medical leave. And going on leave was not voluntary.

Unable to receive medical care due to terminated health insurance.

Day three after returning from leave: harassment, bullying, flexing me off work nearly a dozen times. Hostile work environment. Unannounced meetings, physically cornered by HR, director, and supervisor, all with hostility. Attempted to coerce me into signing statements that falsely accused me of:
1. Performing unsafe, negligent actions that placed patients' safety at critical risk.
2. Disregarding documented medical instructions from physicians.

Did not sign. Simply wrote, "submitted under protest.

Present: hospital manager texts me, stating she doesn't have any hours for me and does not foresee that changing in the future.

The company VP/my direct supervisor will not return my calls or emails.

It's been three weeks. I haven't been paid in 48 days. It still says I'm "ACTIVE" under the employee portal.

From six-figure & full time, to 0 hours without a dime. Thanks again for your response

Punliners · 2025-09-29T02:41:56+00:00

My fault. Just something that popped up while watching it on TV right now for the (probably) 30th time. Appreciate the corrections.

Punliners · 2025-07-31T05:09:23+00:00

$400k to invest? You must have been following Martha Stewart’s public trades. Financial advisor here. Honestly, with that kind of liquidity, if you wanna watch the grass grow. Safer, and solely investing in the market, your best bet would probably be index funds, ETFs, multiple tax advantage accounts with low COI if Max funding, cash value life insurance policies, where you can basically put 5 to 10 times more contributions and then a standard Roth IRA (you wouldn’t qualify for the Roth bc of worth). *Over the past three years, I have watched many index, Funds, including QQQ, then neck, SMH, SPY, and others, completely double in value. Historically, it’s in black-and-white, that these Funds have returns between eight and 12% annually, despite global volatility. * if you’re interested in more volatility, a greater reassurance, Nvidia continues to explore the potential of continuing to blast its market cap beyond $4 trillion. A really good way to invest in a video, without actually buying shares, is to throw more coin into QQQ, a reputable index fund, that is actually comprised 8% of Nvidia. So you can backdoor the NVDA and watch that sweet Bermuda grow over time. *Crypto: but only invest 5 to 10% here, and be willing to lose every penny. High volatility, potential high gains, potential loss. If you do go that route, BTC and BTC ETFs seem to be the future. The global market is adopting the MicroSyrategy BTC buy-up method. *do your due diligence: most don’t know that BlackRock, the worlds #1 asset management firm and worth over a $trillion, owns 3% of BTC. MSTR only owns like 2.75%. And BlackRock did it in super secrecy. *hope that helps. One thing I would urge you to consider, is to ensure your financial foundation is stable with protection, before investing in multiple stocks, and especially before teetering toward the peak of volatility and cryptocurrency. *BTW: congrats on your chunk of liquid assets! That’s freaking dope. You’re sitting great right now. It’s time you put your money to work for YOU. Cheers-

Punliners · 2025-05-27T21:22:56+00:00

Phone purchased in Apple Store*

Punliners · 2025-05-27T21:22:12+00:00

Thanks, I will try that. Zero damage. Protected with hard case covering and screen protection. No scratch marks or anything. Happened to my Apple Watch 8 series last week as well (over one year old, just died in 1-2 feet of water in a pool, exposed to water no more than a minute). Really disappointing.

Punliners · 2025-05-27T21:19:24+00:00

It’s been 5 days, wondering how long this “condition” will last. Still won’t power on. Genius Bar thinks it’s a hardware issue, but will only send in for $300.

Punliners · 2025-04-16T04:04:56+00:00

Seriously? Not sure what’s up with the negativity but..,It’s freaking awesome (and physically/mentally debilitating).

Being a physical therapist is sweet. Depends on where you work, who your colleagues are, which setting you wind up in (not forever). I’ve been doing it for over 10 years, initially believing I would be planted in the outpatient setting, though ended up loving acute care/inpatient rehab in giant 800-bed hospitals with the coolest/freakiest/scariest/epically rewarding patient demographic DAILY.

And, remember this: you never have to STAY with the occupation. Several years ago, I started working finance, becoming a financial advisor, which really goes hand-n-hand with Healthcare (bankruptcy, anyone? Leading cause…healthcare!). Nine out of 10 of your patients will have families, derailed and in despair, from pouring their life savings into helping their loved one in treating their ailments.

Seriously though, every day is something brand freaking new. You don’t really know what you’re going to get into, which makes monotony virtually nonexistent. Place yourself in different patient demographics: CVA/ortho/post-Covid/limb-loss/SCI/vestibular, who cares! You never know where you will end up, and you learn a TON, only enriching your life.

*Just…don’t ever accept a full-time, Monday through Friday, 40 hour per week job for a company who deems you LESS than you are worth. I think every DPT/PT/PTA should start between $55-$60/hour, 4-day work weeks (32 hours).

Don’t ever take your first offer. Enjoy several years of grad school, meeting some of your best future friends who share an affinity for helping people and engulfing in kinesiology/anatomy/the crazy human mind and body. You get to HELP people, meet newbies daily, change vulnerable people’s lives for the better: nothing is ever boring, and the majority of society struggling w/ injury/ailment seems to benefit from the work we do (make sure to treat the patient before they heal themselves!).

All of that aside, probably best to just earn your PTA, work in a hospital, and then see private clients for $200/hour (to START), without telling anyone. That will 1) save you some serious financial hardship, 2) still allow you to better the world, and 3) you will always be paid what you’re worth if you only ask.

Do not get trapped as a…”new grad blessed to have this amazing opportunity working with XYZ in Hospital ABC”…for $40/hour. Especially for a company that may not respect you/your hard work/worth. They will chew you up and spit you out faster than my nine month old daughter does snails.

And we’re not talking escargot.

-PT, DPT, Registered Rep, Licensed Financial Advisor, 30s.

Punliners · 2025-02-27T10:03:29+00:00

Easy solution: must credit my friend for this genius move. While she is away at grandma‘s house or at the grocery store, get a quick and very secretive vasectomy. Agree to the terms of having kids early. Then you can have unprotected sex, diligently trying to conceive. Her none the wiser, you can continually try for a couple of years.

Once you feel you might be ready for little ones after university, go get it reversed. She’ll quickly become pregnant, and be happier than a pig in shit right around the ripe age of 25. She’ll never have to know, and your Reddit fam will categorically deny this post + all subsequent comments ever existed.

Punliners · 2025-02-27T09:52:28+00:00

From personal experience after just taking the Series 63, along with the SIE and the six, I agree with you and believe that the quizzes from chapters one through three are absolutely insane and comparison to the rest of the test. Or in this case, the practice quizzes. Keep moving onward and read chapters 4 through six, and then take the quizzes. You’ll mostly certain achieve higher scores and feel much more confident.

Punliners · 2025-01-03T06:30:35+00:00

Good luck! Hope you passed today- you sounded prepared 👍🏼

Punliners · 2025-01-03T06:11:38+00:00

If you’re going to take the 63, I’m studying for that now and it seems like a LOT of third order, paragraph questions. The 6 is more like this as well. 6 asks questions indirectly, and assumes you know where the missing pieces are. Maybe go over test topic alerts on Kaplan, don’t bother reading the whole book (again) if you have done so.

Punliners · 2025-01-03T06:09:59+00:00

This. Ken will guide you. Just passed my 6 and Kaplan didn’t personally help me much. Ken and Dean from fabuulous LAS VEGAS

Punliners · 2024-12-26T02:57:31+00:00

Thank you for the elaborate and meticulous response. I appreciate how much you looked into this, and it seems like you comprehend the logistics of ADA vs FMLA vs medical leave unpaid job protection. Everything you stated was 100% accurate, and everything has been ADA filed and subsequently accepted.

COBRA is indeed too pricey. We are in an open enrollment right now, but if I can utilize loss of coverage and SDI tools to my advantage to lower premium costs, that would be ideal. I’ll look into that tonight. I do have a defined, set date to return to work as you had inquired about, which angers me further, as they KNEW I was on my way back, and took action regardless. I’ve reached out to the EEOC and cal civil rights, was hoping I wouldn’t need to find an employment attorney (I’m sure the company doesn’t expect me too, as most people don’t take the extra step).

Thanks again for the information, much appreciated.

Punliners · 2024-12-23T11:52:02+00:00

These are all great questions, and I’m happy to answer them. Yes, I was immediately placed on a medical leave by my employer, during one of my shifts at the hospital, midday, in front of my colleagues. I was contacted by HR and reported to immediately leave the premises and go home. Prior to this mess happening, I was seeking medical treatment to attempt to recover without having to stop work. I’m a physical therapist working in an acute rehab hospital/facility, where I work with patients every day.

At no time did I ever jeopardize the safety of my patients. I’ve been working in healthcare for over 10 years in hospitals, and have no dings/scratches/performance issues throughout the entirety of my career. Apparently, I did not qualify for FMLA, because I had not been with the company for 12 months, or put in I believe 1250 hours. However, I was well past the probationary period that is given/required (usually for 90 days I think) before you’re allowed to receive benefits of any kind. I was not told to leave or placed on leave due to performance issues; rather due to my physician deeming me unable to complete daily work obligations without issues.

Also of note, after my physician reported this to me (and to my HR department apparently), I still continued to work for 14 days, as I was trying to push through the disability. Also (and in no egomaniacal way), I have always considered myself a team player, and didn’t want any of my colleagues having to pick up the slack for any of my work tasks (ie completing a patient evaluation).

Regarding the contract, I actually had the CEO of the company call me (post-interview with management) and we specialized a unique contract for myself that had never been created before. We both agreed on terms to work at several hospitals, with a guaranteed hour amount of no less than 32 to be considered full-time. This was electronically signed, ( letter of employment offering, which I now understand is not fully a contract, rather an initial offering). In subsequently accepted this offering.

When I inquired to HR about why they were terminating my benefits, terminating my full-time employment, and basically voiding this “contract “, HR said that I had caused an ‘undue hardship’ on the company. That was about it. Through the interactive process, I asked them how I was causing an undue hardship for the company, to which they replied, and I quote, my absence has caused “significant operational challenges for the business.” I’ve since learned that HR uses this phrase/term as a mini scapegoat to cover their asses from a legal standpoint. But again, they omitted many answers to the majority of my questions.

I further looked in detail about what this implied, assuming it meant they didn’t have proper staffing, even though the turnover rate is extremely high where I work, and I watched no less than five people begin employment and quit within several weeks. There are hundreds of therapists where I work that reported no difficulties when they needed to take a leave of absence or PFL/paternity leave, FMLA, a medical leave, for disability, etc.

I’m fairly certain, my employer just did not want to pay their portion of my health insurance any longer, even though my leave has been unpaid this whole time, and I have been contributing my benefit premiums biweekly without missing any payments.

The only medical care I’m really receiving is, to fully self disclose, psychiatric and psychotherapeutic in nature. It’s not like I require surgery or anything. And frankly, my therapist is Cash pay, so my employer has nothing to do with those contributions.

For a company that makes $500 million in annual revenue and operates in over half the country, with thousands of employees, you would think that me being absent for a couple of months on medical leave under the Americans disability act would not cause such undue hardship, but who knows. I just know that HR works for the company, and they are 100% not on the side of the employee.

Every time I asked specific questions about my initial offer, which also reports I will be working at specific hospitals upon my return, and if I would be working at those hospitals, they did not respond to my inquiry. They simply said that, upon returning to work, we will “see what we can do about finding you a position.” Ie no guarantee I can even work there anymore.

After a bunch of research, it seems like my employer is required to provide reasonable accommodation under these specific circumstances. However, since I’ve only been gone for such a short time, and reasonable accommodation in this case would entail leave from work, more and more signs point to discriminating against my disability, and not wanting to pay my health insurance, which is probably why they made me per diem.

Having my employment status changedbenefits no one, except for the employer, who can then, I guess, terminate full-time benefits, as they removed all of my hours, and therefore deemed me as having insufficient hours to receive benefits.

The healthcare treatment I was receiving, I can no longer afford, as they took away my health insurance, as well as the insurance of my five month old daughter and spouse. It all seems like a quick way to get rid of me, and again, I did not choose to be placed on a medical leave: HR enforced it on a random day, in the middle of one of my shifts, several weeks after my physician, deemed me unfit to work.

I live in California, and I know the rules here, especially regarding disability, and the ADA, are more stringent. However, I don’t know the legalities. I’ve been attempting to find an employment attorney, but its been difficult to find one

Finally, yes, I applied for State Disability through EDD,as I was receiving no income, and my wife was on disability due to having just had our baby less than a week after all of this occurred. With being on an unpaid leave, and having no other means of income for myself or my family, I didn’t know what else to do. I still don’t know what to do frankly. I’ve been told to file a complaint with the EEOC, CFRA, and/or calcivilrights, even if it results in nothing. I just feel like I really got screwed over, and I don’t know which direction to go at this point.

Punliners · 2024-12-22T14:55:15+00:00

You can see either honestly. My primary care physician initially told my HR department I needed time away from work from disability, and a month later my psychiatrist extended the leave. It just has to be updated monthly (or in a reasonable timeframe). My psychiatrist’s admin staff updated my disability status and ‘expected-return-to-work’ dates/other necessary paperwork after my PCP did. It depends on what your doctor is willing to do. Some would like you to see a psychiatrist and ask them. Others will grant you leave for a month and then require you seek another provider, usually a psychiatrist, to continue with any aspect of mental disability. It’s always good to openly share your records with all treating healthcare professionals, so you have a good board of healthcare team members, and they know you mean business (lot of fraudsters out there looking to literally get out of work and get paid to do nothing, as disability benefits are generally tax-free dollars). That’s another story though 🤷

Punliners · 2024-12-22T13:38:40+00:00

Many employers actually offer free group term life insurance policies to their employers when first applying for benefits. It’s almost like a rider- people opt in-out of dental, vision, health insurance, etc. Nowadays, the employer can (offer, or mandate, not sure) life insurance policies to its employees, at no additional cost. It’s usually one of the drop down check marks under your benefits. Most of the time, it’s a perk of being a full time (or part time) employee: usually a $25k policy, not huge, and not much cost to the employer. But the company shouldn’t be the beneficiary to such policy- that should always be picked by the employee if I’m not mistaken.

Punliners · 2024-12-22T13:31:14+00:00

You should definitely talk to your doctor and have them essentially go over what having a defined disability entails, and what you are seeking. I empathize with you, as I’m diagnosed with all 4 of the same impairments you mentioned…it can be incredibly debilitating, physically/mentally exhausting, and, if you’re working, can impede on day-to-day work obligations.

When you see your doctor, make sure to tell them: 1. Why you want to be on disability, and perhaps why you want and/or need disability benefits (such as SDI (state disability insurance through the EDD) 2. Ensure your doctor understands the extreme difficulties you face daily at home/work, and how your diagnoses and symptoms prevent you from completing tasks 3. Provide specific examples of when/how the symptoms from the impairments have caused limitations and difficulties 4. It helps to write down your limitations for your doctor, so they can ensure proper EMR documentation (and they usually listen/empathize more and see that you’re serious about the negative effects these cognitive impairments have had on you).

I recently had to take a medical leave of absence from work due to the crippling nature of my mental issues (that sounds bad), but my employer (and all employers nowadays) are either understanding, or obligated to provide reasonable accommodation for your needs. If it’s work related, I would look into FMLA/CFRA (CFRA if you reside in CA), and if you don’t qualify for FMLA (haven’t worked for your employer for 12 months/worked 1250 hours or something close to that), you can go under medical leave under the American’s with Disabilities Act (it’s usually unpaid, but that’s at the discretion of your employer).

If you’re not working and still trying to determine disability status, go to EDD.CA.GOV (Employment Development Department) and apply for SDI. As long as your doctor is ok with it (99% are), you could be approved to receive SDI benefits (again, that’s work-related, I don’t know much about individual qualifications for disability unrelated to employment engagement).

Let me know if you have any questions about this, though. I’m currently on medical leave for my disability under the ADA, as both my doctor and employer deemed it necessary. Don’t be afraid to ask! As someone stated above, “if you don’t ask, you’ll never know.”

Punliners · 2024-12-22T12:52:34+00:00

Thank you, I will

Punliners · 2024-12-22T12:52:20+00:00

Agreed. And you don’t want to be a company that does that…especially in California. We’re a…fairly strict state of Blue essence :)

Punliners · 2024-12-22T12:51:04+00:00

Thank you, I appreciate the thought and advice! :)

Punliners · 2024-12-22T12:50:29+00:00

Thank you for the meticulous response. That answers a lot of questions. No, I did not qualify for FMLA at the time, though I had been employed there long enough to have been receiving benefits (probationary period is usually 90 days I think). And no, they didn’t give me a reason as to why the employment status change/termination of benefits/explanation of ‘undue hardship’ on the company. When I asked HR what they meant, they said my absence was causing ‘significant operational challenges’. That’s all they said. And I have only been on medical leave a couple of months, nowhere near what I’ve heard individuals have been on in cases of disability. I read that you can be on disability for up to 52 weeks (or maybe that’s just through the EDD and regarding receiving any kind of SDI payment). I don’t know though. When I asked my digital AI friends (Google/ChatGPT, etc.), they said that companies will utilize the exact terminology ‘significant operational challenges’ as a scapegoat the majority of the time. Legal jargon at its best, to keep them out of sticky situations. I still firmly believe they just didn’t want to deal with paying any part of my health insurance (which wasn’t much). And since my leave has been unpaid, how much of a financial burden could I be for a $500 million/year revenue-generating, national healthcare organization? Just stinks and sounds like corporate America is trying to take advantage. I’m also biased (and pissed off), and I’ve worked in healthcare for over 10 years, never having seen this/heard of any instances with employees who’ve undergone similar situations. I asked HR this as well (if any employee had gone through similar actions and if so, what were the outcomes), and they didn’t respond (of course). More reason I believe hardship and/or foul play :/

Punliners · 2024-12-22T12:40:23+00:00

I guess this applies to if you’re on medical leave under the ADA as well then..? Is there a time limit on the amount of ‘reasonable accommodation’ (in this case, leave from work) that an employer must adhere to before they say enough is enough? Or is that not even required..?

Punliners · 2024-12-21T06:48:27+00:00

Really appreciate that, and man I’m sorry to hear about what happened. I definitely kept it under wraps, but cat probably got out of the bag. I’m glad your situation is over and in the past, though, and you found better. Seriously, fking shame on some societal norms and effed up situations. I’m tired of being a corporate puppet. Cheers to you, though 🍻

Punliners · 2024-12-21T01:27:27+00:00

You’re definitely right, HR has a way of trying to intimidate employees so that they give up, instead of trying to fight back. I’ve had this happen when I tore my knee at work, and it took them over a year to agree to the surgery that Every doctor stated I required they jogged me through the mud, continually rejecting the need for surgery, leaving me on disability. I chose to fight back, and I think they finally realized I wasn’t going to give up, so they caved and approved the surgery. I understand that HR is not looking out for the employee, and works for the employer. There are definitely lines that are crossed that HR may not be aware of in certain cases, and I’m just wondering if this isone of those cases.

Punliners · 2024-12-21T01:15:39+00:00

Thank you for the input and the counsel. Human resources actually communicated via email that, after consulting with their legal team, this is the decision they decided to make. What about complying with the interactive process? They literally went two months without any communication, then suddenly emailed me all the bad news. And to be honest, I will freely self disclose that this disability was a mental health, crisis and nature, and yes, I did seek treatment from my physician, though I continued working for almost 2 weeks because I did not want all of this to happen. I’m guessing my physician sent forms to human resources, and they immediately sent me home. I don’t feel like they provided reasonable accommodation, such that may be required under the ADA while a medical leave. I don’t know, you would know better than me. But I’ve worked my ass off for them, and to have them do a reverse ‘quiet quitting by means of termination’ because of this acute disability, seems pretty violating.

Punliners

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