Informing My Employer About Surgery

[BigGirlVee 57]

How much notice should I give to my employer that I will have to go on medical leave for surgery? I am scheduled for 6/1/12 and not sure if I should tell them this Friday (which would be two weeks notice) or wait until the last minute and tell them "hey, a spot opened up for me and I have to go in for surgery on June 1st".

Also, did any of you work up until your surgery date, or take off a day or two before your surgery to prep and stuff.

[Tibbie 55]

As an employer - as much advance notice as possible is always much appreciated. Gives me time to be able to move people around to make sure shifts are covered and that work loads are distributed.

I am working up to the day before surgery - surgery is on a Wednesday - will work through Tuesday - then back to work the following Monday

[vvzoo 3]

If you are using FMLA they require 30 days notice usually,, and I'd u can work on your liquid diet then working untill d day is fine.

As far as going right back to work, endless you sit most of the day and are able to nap at lunch, ,,, good luck. Even with the best surgery is uncomfortable to say the least. Remember , they're REMOVIng your stomach!!! T hat takes time to heal! Good luck in your journey

[cookies 56]

Yeah, I'd tell them ASAP. No idea why you would wait until the last minute. I would imagine you wouldn't like that if you were the one hearing that an employee was leaving for an extended period with virtually zero notice.

I am taking the day off before my surgery, but that's because I have my Mom coming in from out of town and I have to get my dog to the kennel, etc. I think I'll be taking two to three weeks off.

[BigGirlVee 57]

I'll be taking a medical leave of absence and the only reason I was thinking about telling them last minute is because I've been taking a lot of time off this month already because my 6 y/o little girl got pneumonia. So i'm honestly scared to tell them that i'm gonna need more time off; I have this crazy fear that maybe I'll get fired the day before my surgery and this whole thing will never happen. But, i'm sure you all are right and I wool tell them when I get to work tomorrow.

[Houston17 115]

I agree that you should go ahead and let them know. I would also recommend filing for FMLA for your protection due to the medical leave. Check with your HR dept. on the steps that you need to take for that. Good luck!

[BentleyJade 28]

I haven't even gotten approved yet and have already spoken with my FMLA coordinator. I've had intermittent (sp?) FMLA for all of my appointments to do with the surgery..so my supervisor knows what I've been doing and everything. My date is July 17th and my coordinator said it has to be filed 30 days prior atleast. Not sure how your job does medical leave though. Just thought id put my info out there for you good luck!

[Misstxdiva 73]

How much notice should I give to my employer that I will have to go on medical leave for surgery? I am scheduled for 6/1/12 and not sure if I should tell them this Friday (which would be two weeks notice) or wait until the last minute and tell them "hey' date=' a spot opened up for me and I have to go in for surgery on June 1st".

Also, did any of you work up until your surgery date, or take off a day or two before your surgery to prep and stuff.[/quote']

I'd tell them ASAP the sooner the better plus it's more courteous. That way they can plan to have people cover while you are out. I flat out told my boss I was having surgery as soon as I started my journey. I told him it would help me get better and not miss as much work anymore. He told me what I needed to do to get things in order. I only been there for 8 months so no FMLA but did qualify for disability. Worked up to day before surgery and returned 2 weeks later.

Sent from my iPhone using VST

[Tibbie 55]

Not everyone gets FMLA - first of all - you have to be at your workplace for a year - you have to have over 50 employees, give 30 days advanced notice - etc. Many people think that FMLA is available to everyone - but its not. Just wanted to toss this out there FYI

[DesertRat 32]

My employer was informed at the very beginning of the process. I realized that there were going to be a lot of doctor visits so I let them know up front what was going on, what the visits were for and that it didn't mean that I was going to be missing a lot of work from then on. So far, so good.

[Wheetsin 714]

I told my employer the day after I was scheduled. This gave them about 6 weeks of notice. It was nice since during those 6 weeks I could take care of all my pre-op appts without anyone thinking I was "sick" (interviewing)!

Good note on the FMLA Tibbie, lots of people do think it's a "right" for all workers. A lot of people also get FMLA and STD confused. FMLA is all about protecting the job. It does nothing to keep your paycheck coming in. STD keeps your pay (usually just a portion of it) coming, but does nothing to protect your job. STD is not government-mandated nor automatic, unless your employer gives it to you as a company-paid benefit. Can't tell you how many people I see with FMLA approved, thinking the time is also paid (without them using their PTO or other pay benefits).

I'm lucky in that my employer automatically initiates FMLA when an STD claim is received. I actually forgot to give 30 days notice of FMLA, but had setup the STD so I was OK. To all - make sure you read your employer's policy on medical leave, jut to ensure you're covered as much as possible.

[suzcomptime 17]

I'll be taking a medical leave of absence and the only reason I was thinking about telling them last minute is because I've been taking a lot of time off this month already because my 6 y/o little girl got pneumonia. So i'm honestly scared to tell them that i'm gonna need more time off; I have this crazy fear that maybe I'll get fired the day before my surgery and this whole thing will never happen. But, i'm sure you all are right and I wool tell them when I get to work tomorrow.

If you are eligible for FMLA than they cannot fire you for taking FMLA time off, that's the whole point of FMLA.

If you don't meet all of the federal FMLA guidelines, some states also have their own FMLA with different guidelines and benefits (# of days allowed to take, etc). This protects you and your job.

[Tibbie 55]

Correct - they can not fire you - but there is no guarentee your SPECIFIC job will be available when you get back. They just have to PROVIDE you with a job when you come back

[suzcomptime 17]

Correct - they can not fire you - but there is no guarentee your SPECIFIC job will be available when you get back. They just have to PROVIDE you with a job when you come back

If it isn't the same job you had when you took leave than it does has to be an equivalent position with equivalent pay and benefits. Looks like there are other people on here that deal with H/R

Either way OP, let them know as soon as possible, they will appreciate that much more than a last minute notice.

[Tibbie 55]

LOL - correct again Suz LOL - yeah - I'm a VP that handles all the H/R as well as everything else on the admin side. I just got done going through this with a former employee who left for two months because her daughter was sick. Although our full intention was to keep her on with us - we did hire another person (we are a smaller business and could not be without that position for two months) to work the job along with her once she got back. She got back and went back to her old ways on her very first day back. Unfortunatly - good worker over-all - but her disposition was not a pretty one and was constantly causing trouble. We had to let her go as opposed to letting her bad-mouth, etc. to all our new employees. She was very angry because thought she was on FMLA - she learned very quickly that FMLA does not apply to us, under 50 employees, not to mention - she had not been with us for a year - nor were we given the 30 day notice, etc. Needless to say - she pretty much hates me now - but it is what it is I like for EVERYONE to be informed - and much of the time all you have to do is read your employee hand book to know what does and does not apply to you - or speak to someone in H/R - if there is no H/R department - generally it's either the Office Manager or the owner that you will deal with regarding these issues