Post op healing - How long till I can return to work?

[al0vely 24]

Take the most time you possibly can - once you commit to going back you are stuck. I am taking 6 weeks because I have 13 weeks in my sick bank and will retire in 18 months which I must use or lose. I am at one week today and left my house for the first time today because I wasn’t supposed to drive for a week. I feel
like I could go back tomorrow if I had to and I am 60 years old.

[jlb8080 45]

@al0vely Oh that's so great!! I'm happy for you. I wish I could do the same but I am exceeding my PTO going this route. Thankfully I have some extra savings of it does take longer, but it is minimal. I do know my company will work with me and I have less than a week before Christmas so I'll have that break. So how has your recovery been? I am very interested in the first few days post-op

[RachaelEM 1]

Thanks everyone for the comments!

My problem is that the particular place of work I work at, we accumulate PTO pretty well BUT we have to use our PTO for holidays. And I just started in June so I don't have much PTO to play around with. With how things are going and I will have Thanksgiving, Christmas, and New Years day off, my PTO is being sucked dry! Plus I have my appointment next month for my regular doctor and psychologist/nutritionist.

I'm looking at hopefully having surgery in January at this point. I'm just not too sure. My problem is that I don't have much energy. I do suffer from depression but I feel my weight is a huge part of that. And ever since i'm started working back in June and I have such great insurance I've been leaving early from work some days when I'm not feeling well, which I also have to use my PTO for.

[S@ssen@ch 745]

@RachaelEM There are federal laws protecting your employment when you are sick/disabled. What you're talking about above is PTO (paid time) and we all need to get paid to keep a roof over our heads, etc. However, if you are sick and unable to return to work in the short amount of PTO that you have accrued, your company is obligated to hold your job for up to 12 weeks (heard of FMLA?). If, for some reason you don't qualify for FMLA (you said you started in June and I think you need to have been employed 6 months to qualify for FMLA), ADA laws offer some protection.

Make your plans and work within your PTO. However, know that if things don't go as planned, your employment is protected by federal employment laws. These laws do not require that your employer PAY you during these medical leaves, but they are required to hold your job.

Worst case scenario that I see: you don't get paid for a day or 2 and/or you don't have enough PTO to cover a holiday (you just wouldn't get paid for that holiday)

I am a disability management specialist and have a lot of experience in HR regarding these situations. My advice: check your company policy and be ABSOLUTELY clear on your rights. Have a plan and don't fret.

[JessLess 1,163]

One of my biggest concerns about my surgery was getting time off. I get 5 sick days a year. Shockingly, when I said I was having minor surgery, my manager and CEO (I work for a small start up) told me to take more if I needed it and were very nice about it. I took 5 days off, then worked from home the next week and returned to the office after two weeks. I was pretty out of it the first month, though, probably adjusting to the very low calorie diet and lack of coffee.< /p>

[lvidacovich 372]

43 minutes ago, MsMocie said:

Out of topic, what do you mean when you say you get 5 sick days?

In Norway you can use up to 10 single days, but no more than 3 in a row without having a doctor signing off. Over 3 days or over 10 days you need to go to a doctor to have medical leave. In theory you can be an employee in whatever company and be combined on medical leave with pay for 53 weeks.

Yeah, not here. Some places give sick days as part of time off. Some count it in a big group of just paid time off or PTO. My work gives no sick time. If I'm sick I don't get paid that day. Be thankful for your healthcare!

[lvidacovich 372]

On 11/21/2019 at 7:53 AM, S@ssen@ch said:

@RachaelEM There are federal laws protecting your employment when you are sick/disabled. What you're talking about above is PTO (paid time) and we all need to get paid to keep a roof over our heads, etc. However, if you are sick and unable to return to work in the short amount of PTO that you have accrued, your company is obligated to hold your job for up to 12 weeks (heard of FMLA?). If, for some reason you don't qualify for FMLA (you said you started in June and I think you need to have been employed 6 months to qualify for FMLA), ADA laws offer some protection.

Make your plans and work within your PTO. However, know that if things don't go as planned, your employment is protected by federal employment laws. These laws do not require that your employer PAY you during these medical leaves, but they are required to hold your job.

Worst case scenario that I see: you don't get paid for a day or 2 and/or you don't have enough PTO to cover a holiday (you just wouldn't get paid for that holiday)

I am a disability management specialist and have a lot of experience in HR regarding these situations. My advice: check your company policy and be ABSOLUTELY clear on your rights. Have a plan and don't fret.

Lots of good info here - work with your company but know their policy. If its not written out then its in your favor. Policy at my company was written out regarding FMLA and I didn't qualify because I hadn't worked here a year yet. However there was no policy stating I had to use all my PTO before taking unpaid time off for my surgery so that's what I did. I told HR and my manager about my surgery and when it was and how much time I needed. I took the week of surgery off (surgery was on a Tuesday) and worked from home the next week. Easily could have been back in the office. I am quite grateful they have been easy to work with on this.

[JessLess 1,163]

@Msmocha, I meant at my job vacation days are separate from sick days and I officially get five a year. It's really more of a guideline, if people are sick more than that, they are generally still paid and not required to come into the office. It's a small company, we don't even have an HR person right now.

I believe I could have taken more time off on temporary disability if necessary. Honestly, I have my HR info at home and I don't know the official policy off the top of my head.

In the U.S. you may have the ability to collect money when you can't work from your employer, if offered, under state law, and under federal law. Each person's situation is different.

In Massachusetts, under state law, starting 1/01/21 workers will be entitled to 20 weeks of paid medical leave in a benefit year if they have a serious health condition that incapacitates them from work. The weekly benefit amount is based on your salary and maxes out at $850 per week.

Edited November 22, 2019 by JessLess
Added

[JessLess 1,163]

As I'm sure you know, the U.S. is the only developed country without universal healthcare. It's scary sometimes.

https://www.economist.com/special-report/2018/04/26/america-is-a-health-care-outlier-in-the-developed-world