The Sixth Circuit discusses intermittent FMLA leave in Davis v. Michigan Bell Telephone Company, No. 07-1512 (6th Cir. Sep. 29, 2008).

Sixth Circuit holds that intermittent FMLA leave begins on the first occurrence of injury and extends to every other absence caused by that condition within a twelve month period. In this case, the company’s FMLA period ran on a calendar year, and therefore certification for intermittent leave which began in September 2004 covered only absences during 2004.  

Davis, an employee of Michigan Bell, was diagnosed with depression in 1999. She was denied requests for leave under the Family and Medical Leave Act (“FMLA”) by Michigan Bell until she met the 1,250 hour eligibility mark on September 24, 2004. Once Davis provided medical certification of her depression, Michigan Bell approved her intermittent FMLA leave.

On December 13, 2004, Davis began an FMLA absence that continued into 2005. Davis was returned to work by her therapist on January 3, 2005, but did not return until January 15. On January 12, Michigan Bell notified Davis that her absences after January 2 were unexcused, and notified her that if she did not return to work by January 13, she would be considered to have resigned. On January 13, when Davis did not return, she was suspended pending dismissal.

Subsequently, Michigan Bell discovered that Davis was not eligible for FMLA leave in 2005 because she had not worked 1,250 hours in the twelve months prior to her January 2005 absences. Michigan Bell, therefore, denied Davis’s requests for FMLA leave for her January absences. She was discharged and filed suit alleging violation of her rights under the FMLA.

Davis argued that she was eligible for FMLA in January 2005 because the January absences were one continuous part of the intermittent leave for depression that began the previous year. The Sixth Circuit disagreed finding such an interpretation contrary to the FMLA, which is not intended to “unduly infringe on employers’ needs to operate their businesses efficiently and profitably.”

The Court held that for intermittent FMLA leave, the leave begins on the first occurrence of injury and extends to every other absence caused by that condition within a twelve month period. In this case, Michigan Bell measured its twelve-month FMLA period according to the calendar year. Therefore, the Sixth Circuit found that Davis’s intermittent leave for depression began on September 24, 2004 and covered every occurrence of depression that occurred until the new calendar/FMLA year began. Although the January leave was one period of absence continued from the previous year, the Sixth Circuit held that the intermittent leave period does not carry over into the new year. Rather, the January 3 leave constituted the first occurrence of depression in the new year. For that new year, however, Davis was not eligible for FMLA leave. As such, the Court dismissed her FMLA interference claim.

Davis also claimed that Michigan Bell should be equitably estopped from denying her FMLA eligibility because it failed to provide her notice of ineligibility. The Sixth Circuit rejected this argument because Michigan Bell had made no material misrepresentations to Davis regarding her eligibility on which she relied.

Posted by:

Categories: FMLA