Can I be terminated due to change in union contract.

[Lbake101]

Pennsylvania.
I was on FLMA leave for the birth of my child. I was also approved an SPF and ESPF leave w/o pay w/o benifits until June 2015. The new union contract signed in November, retroactive July 1st removed SPF and ESPF leave. My employer has given me the choices to return to work, retire or resign. If I do not Act by dec 21 st I will be terminated. Can I really be fired. Not ready to return to work. what rights do I have. I am 33 yrs old and I work for the wonderful commonwealth of pa, doc. Thank you

 

[cbg]

I cannot address what's in your union contract. As far as the law is concerned, you are entitled to up to 12 weeks of protected leave and if you are unable to return to work on day 1 of week 13, yes, you can be fired. That is Federal law and PA has no provisions that override it. If your union contract does (and I have no way of knowing if it does or not) then that is for your union to address.

 

[commentator]

Have you been off 12 weeks? If so, then they're within their legal rights to terminate you if you do not choose to return. That's why I suspect they're giving you the ultimatum at this time. And the union would be your only recourse, if you were to be terminated this way, and it would be a long and drawn out process even if they were to go to bat for you and demand your reinstatement.

It sounds like the union made some significant concessions that might have affected you. As it has been said, there is nothing in employment law that says you have to be given anything but FMLA. As for qualifying for what you were eligible for when the contract was in effect saying you would get this much and this type of leave, you can certainly ask your union representative. But especially since they made it retroactive back to the July 1 date, which was probably before you went on your leave, I'd worry.

Are you medically not ready to return? Is there some issue other than your just not wanting to return? If you work for the state, they've probably done their homework as far as what they can and cannot do to you, most state government HR's are quite well versed on these issues. Depending on how long you've worked with them, and given the lack of rights you might have in this case, I'd think long and hard about going back to work if it is at all possible if I ever wanted to go back.