At Greenberg Gross LLP, our New Jersey FMLA lawyers represent employees whose protected family or medical leave has been denied or interfered with or who have faced retaliation for taking leave. Our attorneys examine leave requests, medical certifications, attendance records, Human Resources communications, and employment decisions to determine whether an employer violated federal or New Jersey law.
Leave rights can involve overlapping federal and state protections. Understanding which law applies—and whether it protects your job, replaces income, or both—is often the first step.
If your employer denied protected leave, counted leave against you, or took adverse action after you requested or used leave, call (973) 833-1933 for a free, confidential consultation.
Table of Contents
- Table of Contents
- Why Choose Greenberg Gross for a New Jersey FMLA Case?
- What Is FMLA Leave in New Jersey?
- Who Is Eligible for FMLA Leave?
- How Is the New Jersey Family Leave Act Different From FMLA?
- How Do FMLA, NJFLA, TDI, and FLI Work Together?
- Can You Take FMLA Leave Intermittently?
- What Notice and Medical Certification Can an Employer Require?
- The Leave Paperwork May Say One Thing, While the Attendance Record Says Another
- Can You Be Fired While on FMLA Leave?
- What Happens When You Return From FMLA Leave?
- What If You Still Cannot Return When FMLA Leave Ends?
- What Are FMLA Interference and Retaliation?
- How Can Our New Jersey FMLA Lawyers Investigate a Leave Violation?
- How Long Do You Have to Bring an FMLA Claim?
- What Remedies May Be Available for an FMLA Violation?
- Frequently Asked Questions About FMLA Rights in New Jersey
- Talk to the New Jersey FMLA Lawyers at Greenberg Gross to Learn More
Why Choose Greenberg Gross for a New Jersey FMLA Case?
A leave dispute may begin with forms, medical certifications, attendance codes, and Human Resources notices. When protected leave affects an employee's career, however, those records can become critical evidence in employment litigation.
Greenberg Gross is a trial firm built for high-stakes cases. Our attorneys thoroughly prepare every case as though it will go to trial, examining how an employer handled the leave and whether its employment decisions are supported by the evidence.
At Greenberg Gross, our attorneys have earned recognition from Super Lawyers, Martindale-Hubbell's AV Preeminent rating, the American Board of Trial Advocates (ABOTA), and the Daily Journal, including Top 100, Top Plaintiff, and Top Labor & Employment recognition.
What Is FMLA Leave in New Jersey?
The federal Family and Medical Leave Act (FMLA) provides eligible employees of covered employers with unpaid, job-protected leave for specified family and medical reasons. An eligible employee can generally take up to 12 workweeks during a 12-month period while maintaining group health benefits under applicable FMLA requirements.
Qualifying reasons include an employee's own serious health condition, caring for a spouse, child, or parent with a serious health condition, bonding after a birth or placement for adoption or foster care, and certain military-related circumstances.
Eligible employees caring for a covered servicemember with a serious injury or illness can generally receive up to 26 workweeks of military caregiver leave during a single 12-month period.
FMLA leave is generally unpaid, although qualifying paid leave or benefits may run concurrently with it.
Greenberg Gross LLP is ready to stand by your side
Who Is Eligible for FMLA Leave?
For employees of private employers, FMLA eligibility generally requires the employee to:
- Have worked for the employer for at least 12 months
- Have completed at least 1,250 hours of service during the preceding 12 months
- Work at a location where the employer has at least 50 employees within 75 miles
Private-sector employers generally become covered by the FMLA when they employ at least 50 employees for 20 or more workweeks in the current or preceding calendar year. Public agencies and public and private elementary and secondary schools follow different coverage rules.
The 12 months of employment generally do not need to be consecutive, and special rules can affect eligibility calculations in some circumstances.
How Is the New Jersey Family Leave Act Different From FMLA?
The New Jersey Family Leave Act (NJFLA) overlaps with the FMLA but does not protect exactly the same leave. One important difference involves the employee's own health.
The federal FMLA can protect leave for an employee's serious health condition. NJFLA focuses on qualifying family-care and bonding leave and does not provide NJFLA leave for the employee's own health condition.
New Jersey significantly expanded NJFLA coverage effective July 17, 2026. Under current rules, eligible employees generally can receive up to 12 weeks of job-protected NJFLA leave during a 24-month period. Eligibility now generally extends to employees who have worked for an employer for at least three months and at least 250 hours during the preceding 12 months when the employer has at least 15 employees worldwide.
Those requirements are broader than federal FMLA eligibility. An employee who does not qualify for federal FMLA protection may therefore still have rights under New Jersey law.
How Do FMLA, NJFLA, TDI, and FLI Work Together?
New Jersey employees often need to answer three separate questions:
- Why do I need to take leave?
- Is my job protected?
- Will I receive income while I am out?
Different laws and programs address those questions.
| Law or Program | Primary Purpose | Own Health Condition? | Family Care/Bonding? |
|---|---|---|---|
| FMLA | Federal job-protected leave | Yes | Yes |
| NJFLA | New Jersey job-protected family leave | No | Yes |
| Temporary Disability Insurance (TDI) | Benefits for qualifying employee disability; current NJ law can also provide job protection in certain circumstances | Yes | No |
| Family Leave Insurance (FLI) | Benefits for qualifying family leave; current NJ law can also provide job protection in certain circumstances | No | Yes |
New Jersey made an important change effective July 17, 2026. Employees receiving qualifying TDI or FLI benefits through the state, or an approved private plan, can now have separate reinstatement protection when their leave is not already protected by NJFLA or FMLA.
When that protection applies, New Jersey law can require reinstatement to the same job or one with the same pay, benefits, seniority, and other terms and conditions of employment. The interaction among these laws means an employee should not assume that failing to qualify under one program ends the analysis.
Can You Take FMLA Leave Intermittently?
Yes, in qualifying circumstances. FMLA leave can be taken intermittently or through a reduced work schedule when medically necessary because of the employee's or a qualifying family member's serious health condition.
For example, an employee who needs recurring medical treatment may require several hours or days away from work rather than one continuous absence. Qualifying FMLA leave can protect those intermittent absences. Different rules apply to some forms of bonding leave, so employees should not assume every qualifying reason permits intermittent leave on identical terms.
What Notice and Medical Certification Can an Employer Require?
Employees do not necessarily need to say “FMLA” when first requesting leave. They must provide sufficient information for the employer to determine whether the absence may qualify for protection.
Employers may require appropriate medical certification for leave due to a serious health condition. The FMLA regulates the certification process, including what information can be requested and how employees are given an opportunity to provide required documentation.
Disputes can arise when an employer treats a potentially qualifying absence as ordinary attendance misconduct without properly considering whether the employee was seeking protected leave.
The Leave Paperwork May Say One Thing, While the Attendance Record Says Another
An important FMLA problem can arise even after the employer approves the leave. An employee may receive paperwork confirming FMLA protection, yet those absences later appear as attendance occurrences, productivity problems, or evidence of unreliability.
Our attorneys may compare FMLA records with:
- Attendance points and absence records
- Performance evaluations and productivity calculations
- Disciplinary and termination documents
- Promotion, compensation, or bonus decisions
- Communications among supervisors and Human Resources
Consider an employee who receives approved intermittent FMLA leave for recurring medical treatment. Months later, the employer cites “excessive absenteeism” to deny a promotion or terminate the employee. The question becomes whether protected absences contributed directly or indirectly to that decision.
Employers cannot lawfully use protected FMLA leave as a negative factor in employment decisions or improperly count protected absences under attendance policies. That does not prevent an employer from addressing genuinely unprotected absences or legitimate performance issues.
Approving leave on paper does not necessarily mean the employer respected the employee's FMLA rights in practice.
Can You Be Fired While on FMLA Leave?
FMLA leave does not provide absolute protection against every employment action. An employer can make a legitimate decision unrelated to protected leave, such as a genuine reduction in force that would have affected the employee regardless of the absence. However, an employer cannot lawfully terminate an employee for exercising protected FMLA rights.
When the reasons are disputed, our attorneys can examine when the decision was made, who participated, what reasons were documented, and whether contemporaneous records support the employer's explanation.
What Happens When You Return From FMLA Leave?
An employee returning from qualifying FMLA leave generally has a right to return to the same position or an equivalent one with equivalent pay, benefits, and other terms and conditions of employment.
Problems can arise when an employee technically returns but loses important responsibilities, receives an inferior schedule, suffers a reduction in status, or is placed in a materially different role. The substance of reinstatement matters, not simply whether the employer put the employee back on the payroll.
We can help determine the details of your case
What If You Still Cannot Return When FMLA Leave Ends?
Exhausting FMLA leave does not necessarily end an employee's workplace protections. An employee with a qualifying disability may have additional rights under the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) or New Jersey Law Against Discrimination (NJLAD). Depending on the circumstances, additional unpaid leave or another workplace modification may need to be considered as a reasonable accommodation.
Employers should not automatically treat the expiration of FMLA leave as the end of every disability-related obligation. For more information about additional workplace protections, reach out to our New Jersey Employment Lawyers.
What Are FMLA Interference and Retaliation?
FMLA interference involves improperly preventing, restricting, or denying an employee's exercise of FMLA rights. This can include improperly refusing qualifying leave or discouraging an employee from using it.
FMLA retaliation concerns adverse treatment for exercising or attempting to exercise protected rights. Depending on the circumstances, retaliation can involve discipline, demotion, termination, or another adverse employment action.
An FMLA dispute can potentially involve both theories.
How Can Our New Jersey FMLA Lawyers Investigate a Leave Violation?
Our attorneys can reconstruct how the employer handled the leave from the initial request through the employment decision being challenged.
That may require comparing medical certifications and FMLA notices with attendance data, performance records, disciplinary documents, and communications among supervisors and Human Resources. A chronology can reveal whether problems appeared only after the employee requested leave or whether approved absences later influenced employment decisions.
When litigation becomes necessary, discovery can provide additional internal records and testimony that were unavailable to the employee. Our New Jersey employment litigation lawyers can explain more and answer your unique questions during an initial consultation.
How Long Do You Have to Bring an FMLA Claim?
Under federal law, an FMLA lawsuit generally must be filed within two years of the alleged violation. For a willful violation, the applicable period generally can extend to three years.
New Jersey claims arising from the same circumstances may follow different procedures and deadlines. Employees should also not assume that an internal Human Resources complaint or discussions with an employer pause the applicable filing period.
What Remedies May Be Available for an FMLA Violation?
Depending on the violation and resulting losses, FMLA remedies may include lost wages, employment benefits, or other compensation denied due to the violation. Equitable remedies such as reinstatement or promotion can also be available, along with liquidated damages in qualifying cases and attorneys' fees and costs where authorized.
Additional remedies may be available when the conduct also violates New Jersey employment law.
Frequently Asked Questions About FMLA Rights in New Jersey
Can FMLA cover leave for a mental health condition?
Yes, when a mental health condition qualifies as a serious health condition under the FMLA, and the other requirements are satisfied. FMLA protection is not limited to physical health conditions.
Can remote employees qualify for FMLA?
Potentially. Remote work does not automatically make an employee ineligible. The FMLA has specific rules for determining the worksite of employees who work from home.
Can my employer contact my doctor about FMLA leave?
Employers have limited rights to seek clarification or authentication of a medical certification. FMLA rules govern who may make that contact and what information can be requested, and an employee's direct supervisor generally may not contact the health care provider for this purpose.
Can my employer require me to use paid time off during FMLA leave?
Potentially. FMLA leave is generally unpaid, but qualifying employer-provided paid leave can run concurrently with FMLA leave under applicable rules.
Can spouses who work for the same employer each receive 12 weeks of FMLA leave?
It depends on the reason for leave. The FMLA can limit spouses working for the same employer to a combined amount of leave for certain qualifying reasons, but that limitation does not apply equally to all types of FMLA leave.
Talk to the New Jersey FMLA Lawyers at Greenberg Gross to Learn More
Protected family or medical leave should not be grounds for derailing an employee's career. When an employer denies qualifying leave, counts protected absences against an employee, refuses proper reinstatement, or retaliates after leave, the employment record can help establish what occurred.
The New Jersey FMLA lawyers at Greenberg Gross LLP identify the federal and state protections that apply, investigate potential violations, and pursue appropriate legal remedies.
Call Greenberg Gross LLP at (973) 833-1933 or contact us online for a free, confidential consultation. Our team is available 24/7.