Does the FMLA provide job protection for people affected by domestic violence?

The Family and Medical Leave Act (FMLA) provides job protection for people affected by domestic violence in Tennessee. The FMLA allows for up to 12 work weeks of unpaid leave during any 12-month period for any of the following reasons: to care for a family member with a serious health condition, to deal with the death of a family member, to care for a newborn or adopted child, to deal with an employee’s own health condition, or to deal with a “qualifying exigency” related to a family member’s being deployed on active military duty. The FMLA allows for unpaid leave to allow an employee to deal with domestic violence or the consequences of domestic violence. Specifically, the FMLA allows for up to 12 work weeks of unpaid leave if an employee or a family member of the employee is a victim of “domestic or sexual violence” as defined by the Violence Against Women Act. During the leave, the employee’s employer must keep the employee’s job open and any health benefits the employee received prior to the leave must be maintained. It should be noted that this protection only applies to employers with fifty or more employees and the employee must have worked with the employer for at least twelve months.

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Does the FMLA provide job protection for people affected by domestic violence?

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