Georgia parent fired for taking time off after child’s birth awarded more than $67,000 in FMLA case

A parent in Georgia was wrongfully terminated from his job for taking time off from work to care for his newborn baby and spouse, federal officials say.

The firing of the employee violated the Family and Medical Leave Act, the U.S. Department of Labor said in a news release. As a result, the employer, U.S. Logistics Solutions Inc., has been ordered to pay the former employee over $67,000.

“Employers cannot deprive an employee eligible for Family and Medical Leave of their legal rights, and force them to make the hard choice between keeping their jobs and caring for themselves or their families,” Wage and Hour Division District Director Steven Salazar said in a statement.

What happened?

A federal investigation found U.S. Logistics Solutions Inc. withheld parental leave from a dock supervisor at a distribution center in Covington, Georgia, despite being aware of the birth of the employee’s child. 

The company then summoned the employee to a meeting 42 days after the child was born, to discuss “denial for care of his spouse and allege payroll theft.”

At the meeting, the employee was terminated. 

A week later, U.S. Logistics Solutions notified it canceled the employee’s Family and Medical Leave Act request before the child was born, but had failed to inform the employee before terminating him, officials said. 

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