The termination of a night shift employee who went fishing and boating while on FMLA leave did not violate the FMLA, according to a decision last week by a California federal district court.
The plaintiff had been approved for FMLA intermittent leave. He called out on FMLA for his night shifts on October 19, 20 and 21. The employer had previously denied a request by the plaintiff to take vacation on those three dates.
During the day on October 21, during hours the plaintiff was not scheduled to work, the plaintiff went with co-workers on a pre-planned boating trip. A co-worker made a video at the outing and posted it on Facebook. In the video, according to the decision, the plaintiff said “I’m not out here.”
When the plaintiff’s employer learned of the video, it investigated and then terminated plaintiff for dishonesty for improper FMLA use. In granting summary judgment to the employer, the court rejected the plaintiff’s arguments that the termination violated the FMLA because fishing and boating activities were not inconsistent with his medical condition and the trip did not conflict with his work shifts. The court concluded that the employee did not produce any evidence to suggest that the employer’s termination decision was based on anything but the employee’s dishonesty.
By the way, this is not my first fish story. See here.