Third Circuit Finds Notice of Potential Need for FMLA Leave Sufficient
Pursuant to a recent decision by the Third Circuit, an employee's oral notification to his supervisor of his potential need for surgery served as sufficient notice for leave to his employer to warrant protection under the Family and Medical Leave Act. In a holding that broadens the type of conduct sufficient to put an employer on notice of an employee's need for FMLA leave, the Third Circuit Court of Appeals vacated the District Court of New Jersey’s grant of summary judgment for the employer on the plaintiff/employee's FMLA claim. Sarnowski v. Air Brook Limousine, No. 06-2144 (3d Cir. Dec. 12, 2007). (The Third Circuit has jurisdiction over Delaware, New Jersey, Pennsylvania, and the U.S. Virgin Islands.)
To exercise the right to FMLA leave, an eligible employee must provide his or her employer with reasonably adequate information under the circumstances to give the employer notice that the employee seeks leave under the FMLA. Generally speaking, the employee does not have to expressly assert rights under the FMLA or even mention the FMLA. The decisive question is the manner in which the information conveyed to the employer is understood.
In Sarnowski v. Air Brooke Limousine, Inc., the Third Circuit vacated and remanded the award of summary judgment to the employer dismissing the employee’s FMLA interference claim. In that case, Sarnowski was terminated eight days after informing his supervisor that his doctor had advised him of the need to monitor his heart and the potential need for additional surgery and 6 weeks of leave. At the time, Sarnowski had only recently returned to work after missing 6 weeks of work due to coronary bypass surgery. The plaintiff/employee argued that the defendant/employer interfered with his rights by terminating him after he notified his supervisor of the medical monitoring and the possibility of additional heart surgery.
In analyzing what constitutes sufficient legal notice under the FMLA, the Third Circuit emphasized that the regulations do not require an employee to submit formal written requests for leave. Furthermore, the Court found that verbal notification which raises an employer's awareness of a potential FMLA covered leave, without an employee expressly asserting its rights or making mention of the FMLA, is appropriate notice pursuant to FMLA regulations. The Third Circuit interpreted the regulations to imply that providing precise dates and duration of the leave are not necessary.
The Court’s decision in Sarnowski certainly invites employee abuse of the FMLA. Permitting employees to request leave even though they don't know if or when it may start burdens significantly an employer. In light of this decision, it is important for employers to train their human resources employees to recognize and respond to ambiguous employee statements about the potential need for leave.
