Is it legal for me to get fired for taking my son to the doctor if I have the doctor’s note?
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Is it legal for me to get fired for taking my son to the doctor if I have the doctor’s note?
I gave my employer the doctor’s note when I returned. I was only 2 weeks away from being there a year.
Asked on August 10, 2012 under Employment Labor Law, North Carolina
Answers:
SJZ, Member, New York Bar / FreeAdvice Contributing Attorney
Answered 12 years ago | Contributor
The law does not require employors to let their employees take time off from work for their, or their family's, medical needs, so long as Family and Medical Leave Act is not involved--which it would not be, for a single doctor's visit.
An employer is free to fire an employee who misses work for any reason, including her son's doctor's visit, if such employee did not have and use some form of paid time off, like sick days, which she had.
A doctor's note has no authority over the employer.
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