Takeaway: The California Department of Fair Employment and Housing (DFEH), the agency that implements FEHA, has not issued regulations or guidelines detailing the precise amount of leave employers must give employees as a reasonable accommodation. Court decisions have held that each case should be considered on its specific facts.
An employer was not required to extend an employee's six-month leave of absence as a reasonable accommodation for her ankle injury, a California appellate court ruled. California's Fair Employment and Housing Act (FEHA) does not require an employer to hold a position open indefinitely, the court noted.
The employee worked as a dispatcher for the city of Sacramento from 1994 to 2014. Sometime before early 2014, she injured her right ankle. She continued to work until the pain in her ankle increased while she was required to use a foot pedal as part of her job. By early 2014, the pain also interfered with walking and driving.
The employee requested to work part time because of the pain, and the request was granted. However, she never actually started working part time. She had surgery in June 2014 and was granted a medical leave of absence from June 11, 2014, to July 2, 2014. The letter approving her medical leave of absence notified the employee that, if her leave exceeded six months, her position would be filled, and she would be put on a reinstatement list.
Over the next several months, the employee could not return to work and requested three...
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