If an employee on Family and Medical Leave Act (FMLA) leave submits a letter signaling his intent to resign at the end of his leave, do you have to wait until the leave is over, or can you terminate the employee now?

Generally, you may terminate an employee at the time he tenders his un-qualified intent to resign. The FMLA entitles eligible employees of covered employers to take unpaid leave for certain family and medical reasons. Employers are also required to maintain group health insurance coverage for employees on federal FMLA leave under the same terms and conditions as if they had never taken leave.

Upon return from federal FMLA leave, an employee is generally entitled to be restored to his original job or to an equivalent position with equivalent pay, benefits, and other terms and conditions of employment. If he provides you with unequivocal notice of his intent not to return to work, however, your obligations under the FMLA are governed by 29 C.F.R. § 825.311(b), which states:

If an employee gives unequivocal notice of intent not to return to work, the employer’s obligations under FMLA to maintain health benefits (subject to COBRA requirements) and to restore the employee cease. However, these obligations continue if an employee indicates he or she may be unable to return to work but expresses a continuing desire to do so.

Under 29 C.F.R. § 825.311(b), once an employee expresses his unequivocal intent not to return to work, your job reinstatement and benefits continuation obligations immediately cease. That means you may—but are not required to—immediately move to terminate the employee.

If you choose to proceed with termination under these circumstances, you should be aware of the need to comply with your other obligations under state and federal law.

  • You should notify the employee of his rights under the FMLA before taking leave and should clearly set forth requirements for him to provide periodic reports of his status and intent to return to work during his leave.
  • If, during FMLA leave, he informs you he doesn’t intend to return to work, you should require him to submit either a letter of resignation or other formal documentation before initiating the termination of employment and benefits.
  • Before initiating termination proceedings, ensure that the termination is lawful under state-specific FMLA and fair employment laws governing your employment practices. You should also be mindful to avoid inadvertent discriminatory practices by terminating an employee and should consistently apply your policies across all categories and classes of employees.
  • You must notify the employee of his rights to continuing healthcare coverage under COBRA within 14 days of notifying him of his termination.

Although you generally have the right to terminate an employee who provides unequivocal notice of his intent not to return to work, that right is not absolute, and it may not represent employment best practices. For instance, you may not be allowed to immediately terminate an employee who has expressed her intent not to return to work due to an ongoing medical condition or other qualifying event under the FMLA. Nor may you terminate an employee for discriminatory reasons.

As a result, before terminating an employee who notifies you of his intent not to return to work, you should evaluate your business requirements, company culture, and employment priorities.