Very Important Question for Anyone... (PLEASE!!)

[doughboyee]

Thank you for the info.

 

[HOGFAN]

I dont know about illegal, but maybe poor taste. I know I felt kinda funny this summer when DS13 was on crutches(after being hit by a car), I was out for 3 weeks on emergency leave(paid) taking care of him, and we went ahead with a preplanned vacation. I didnt have to touch my vacation time.

 

[EthansMom]

You know all of those rides that say, "No one with back problems should ride this ride,"? He'd better hope that no one gets a picture of him riding any of those rides or he could get sued for fraud. Likewise, with heavy lifting around the house....

My thoughts are that WDW isn't going to help him recouperate his back injury and that he'd be much better to allow his back to heal properly before going.

 

[Charade]

A "friend" of a "friend" with 2 posts??? Hmm...

 

[Sherri]

If he is on disability he still has a right to live. There are many people who go to disney in wheelchairs and scooters. If he has a back injury he may not enjoy it as much since many rides he can't go on. That said, i'm sure the pools at the resort would be very thearaputic for his back. He may not be planning to go to the parks with his family, but hanging around the resort and swimming and taking it easy.
As long as he feels up to it thn I think its okay.

 

[barkley]

dh just finished up an flma leave during which he collected state disability insurance, and we had a prev. schedualed vacation planned in the middle of it, so i checked out the situation-

fmla leave alone does not preclude a person from traveling (vacation or other),

receipt of disability payments (state or workman's comp.) does not preclude a person from traveling.

the only issue that may arrise is if the injury is being compensated under workman's comp.-unless a doctor says it's fine for the person to do the travel/activities the workman's comp. insurer, if they become aware of it-may use it as a means to show the employee is (1) more physicaly fit than they are reporting (and possibly 'fit for duty') or (2) that the employee is engaging in non industrial activities that contribute to or worsen the injury.

the employee does best to discuss the situation with their doctor and get their approval. even with the doctor's approval-if the employee needs med. attention at the destination, with workman's comp. med coverage it may not be covered and can open a huge 'can of worms'.

if a trip to wdw will involve for the employee riding on any of the rides that have warnings about not being appropriate for those with back injuries, it could come up to haunt him. he may be portrayed as lying to his employer about 'having a back injury' or lying to wdw about being free of back injuries.
these types of action call into question the honesty of his statements for the entirety of the claim.

in our case the preplanned vacation had no potentialy negative impact on dh's med. problems, and both his treating doctors felt it would be beneficial to go.

 

[grinningghost]

DH has FMLA for me. I have MS.

He uses vacation time for our Disney trips. But I don't think it would be THAT terrible if he used FMLA, as even people with illnesses deserve a vacation, and realistically, I probably wouldn't do very well at WDW on my own - he is a big help.

But, in the end, people do abuse their FMLA rights and I guess there's a fine line between what is considered legitimate and what isn't.

 

[disykat]

Makes me wonder what kind of job he has that a WDW vacation is less strenuous than his job. Trapese artist?

I went on a preplanned beach weekend while recovering from surgery last year. We just rearranged our plans to be easier for me and I spent lots more time in the room than usual. There's no way I could have handled WDW before I was fit for work though.

 

[MUFFYCAT]

Ok. I'm wondering if it's ok to go on vacation while on FMLA/ collecting short-term disability. What are everyone's thoughts? A buddy of mine has a back injury but feels like he still wants to go to wdw with his family... I don't know if this is legal? Any thoughts would be appreciated!

I think it's alright. Going a few rides is not as strenous as working everyday. And besides who says he'd be doing that.

If he walks at home, why not at WDW?


flamsuit is on now

 

[Allison]

It doesn't matter if any of us think it is okay.

Please read the information from barkley. These are the kinds of issues that matter.

 

[disney junky]

DH has FMLA for me. I have MS.

He uses vacation time for our Disney trips. But I don't think it would be THAT terrible if he used FMLA, as even people with illnesses deserve a vacation, and realistically, I probably wouldn't do very well at WDW on my own - he is a big help.

But, in the end, people do abuse their FMLA rights and I guess there's a fine line between what is considered legitimate and what isn't.

I would just like to say kudos to you and your husband for doing the right thing. I also don't think it would be THAT terrible, but it's the abusers that really create issues for those who do the best they can under their circumstances.

 

[TheOtherVillainess]

Am I the only one who saw the OP's name and went "Flava Flave is that you?"

TOV

 

[lesroi]

DH has FMLA for me. I have MS.

He uses vacation time for our Disney trips. But I don't think it would be THAT terrible if he used FMLA, as even people with illnesses deserve a vacation, and realistically, I probably wouldn't do very well at WDW on my own - he is a big help.

But, in the end, people do abuse their FMLA rights and I guess there's a fine line between what is considered legitimate and what isn't.

It actually would be fraud if your DH used FMLA to take you on vacation. FMLA is for care of the injured/sick. A vacation is not a necessity. It might be something very nice to do, but it is not an FMLA-covered event.

To summarize FMLA:

Leave Entitlement
A covered employer must grant an eligible employee up to a total of 12 workweeks of unpaid leave in a 12 month period for one or more of the following reasons:

for the birth of a son or daughter, and to care for the newborn child;
for the placement with the employee of a child for adoption or foster care, and to care for the newly placed child;
to care for an immediate family member (spouse, child, or parent -- but not a parent "in-law") with a serious health condition; and
when the employee is unable to work because of a serious health condition.


The FMLA your DH likely uses is called "Intermittent leave."

Those rules are as follows:

Intermittent/Reduced Schedule Leave
The FMLA permits employees to take leave on an intermittent basis or to work a reduced schedule under certain circumstances. CFR Section 203)

Intermittent/reduced schedule leave may be taken when medically necessary to care for a seriously ill family member, or because of the employee's serious health condition.
Intermittent/reduced schedule leave may be taken to care for a newborn or newly placed adopted or foster care child only with the employer's approval.



As you can see, it does not mention, "taking the ill person on vacation." It is really meant to take the ill person to the Doctor or care for the ill person in your home. I cannot believe anyone would think it is perfectly OK to use it to go on vacation. But after 13 years in HR seeing people try to abuse it, I guess I shouldn't be surprised.


Tracy

 

[Sherri]

It actually would be fraud if your DH used FMLA to take you on vacation. FMLA is for care of the injured/sick. A vacation is not a necessity. It might be something very nice to do, but it is not an FMLA-covered event.

To summarize FMLA:

Leave Entitlement
A covered employer must grant an eligible employee up to a total of 12 workweeks of unpaid leave in a 12 month period for one or more of the following reasons:

for the birth of a son or daughter, and to care for the newborn child;
for the placement with the employee of a child for adoption or foster care, and to care for the newly placed child;
to care for an immediate family member (spouse, child, or parent -- but not a parent "in-law") with a serious health condition; and
when the employee is unable to work because of a serious health condition.


The FMLA your DH likely uses is called "Intermittent leave."

Those rules are as follows:

Intermittent/Reduced Schedule Leave
The FMLA permits employees to take leave on an intermittent basis or to work a reduced schedule under certain circumstances. CFR Section 203)

Intermittent/reduced schedule leave may be taken when medically necessary to care for a seriously ill family member, or because of the employee's serious health condition.
Intermittent/reduced schedule leave may be taken to care for a newborn or newly placed adopted or foster care child only with the employer's approval.



As you can see, it does not mention, "taking the ill person on vacation." It is really meant to take the ill person to the Doctor or care for the ill person in your home. I cannot believe anyone would think it is perfectly OK to use it to go on vacation. But after 13 years in HR seeing people try to abuse it, I guess I shouldn't be surprised.


Tracy

Am Ithe only one that doesn't think this is a big deal? It states that the leave is unpaid. If it is unpaid then who cares.
People take unpaid vacations where I work, and it doesn't bother any of us. If the employer is fine with it and the employee isn't asking for money, then who is it hurting?

 

[hornedfrog]

I would definitely check out the rules for the short-term disability because it would NOT be allowed on my company's policy (and I work for very big nation-wide company).

I have taken FMLA/short-term disability a couple of times for childbirth and a couple of other times for other things. The FMLA isn't such a big issue and a vacation would be allowed. However, going to Disney while receiving short-term disability payments would absolutely get you fired if they were to find out.

If you are receiving disability payments, it is because you are disabled. As such you cannot do many things. You cannot take classes (like college classes or certification classes). You cannot work any part-time or secondary jobs that you may have. You cannot work in any home-based business. You cannot go on vacations. If you must travel for any reason, you have to call the disability administration group and explain the situation to them and receive approval. They can and DO hire people to observe people who are short-term disability. I'm talking people staked out in front of your neighbor's house to see if you are out doing strenuous things when you are supposed to be bedridden, etc. Even if you went without approval and it came out a year from now that he went, he could still be fired. I cannot even remember the people I've known personally who have been fired for violating the terms of short-term disability.

There is a policy for every disability program. Your 'buddy' needs to get ahold of that or call the hotline and speak to someone about the rules regarding his.

 

[Allison]

They can and DO hire people to observe people who are short-term disability. I'm talking people staked out in front of your neighbor's house to see if you are out doing strenuous things when you are supposed to be bedridden, etc.

Absolutely. I know a company I worked for did that when they thought someone was taking advantage. It turns out they were.

 

[Allison]

Am Ithe only one that doesn't think this is a big deal? It states that the leave is unpaid. If it is unpaid then who cares.
People take unpaid vacations where I work, and it doesn't bother any of us. If the employer is fine with it and the employee isn't asking for money, then who is it hurting?

Employers do care and there can be consequences. There is a difference between taking unpaid vacations and formal/legal programs like FMLA and disability.

I don't know the specifics of this situation but if I were the person involved, I would be sure to find out the rules.

 

[LiLIrishChick63]

i went to the Renissance Festival when i was on disability from work for my knee. of course, i was wearing my knee brace and only did certain things

 

[lesroi]

Am Ithe only one that doesn't think this is a big deal? It states that the leave is unpaid. If it is unpaid then who cares.
People take unpaid vacations where I work, and it doesn't bother any of us. If the employer is fine with it and the employee isn't asking for money, then who is it hurting?

Unless you are a benefits professional, I guess it is really difficult to understand the difference. FMLA is a federally-mandated leave program designed to protect your job in the event of illness or injury. This is WORLDS apart from "unpaid vacations."

Have a look at what I posted and you will see the purpose of FMLA. Again, it is NOT to be used casually. It is to be used in legitimate medically-necessary situations.

Your thinking just solidifies it for me that there is rampant abuse of a system put in place to help people. I suppose that's the American way nowadays. It's really sad.

By the way, if the OP's "buddy" worked for my company and took a vacation to Disney World while on short-term disability, he would be fired immediately.

Short-term disability implies that you are "UNABLE TO PERFORM ONE OR MORE OF THE ACTIVITIES OF DAILY LIVING." That is a quote from a standard STD policy. These tasks include: eating, bathing, dressing, toileting, and transferring, etc. I would think that a person on STD would certainly not be wise to trot on down to Disney World on the company dime.

Tracy