What is Unpaid Time off in California?

Unpaid time off in California is mostly optional, but FMLA and CFRA protect eligible leave for family or health needs. See when employers may deny requests, what counts as illegal refusal, and potential remedies for workers and businesses.

By Brad Nakase, Attorney

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Table of Contents

1. Introduction

2. Can a California employer deny me unpaid leave of absence?

3. What Are the Lawful Reasons for Rejection?

4. What if your unpaid time off request is illegally denied?

5. Common California Unpaid Leave Conflicts

Introduction

In California, corporate policy and federal or state labor regulations typically influence time off policies, whether they are paid or unpaid. Unless certain rules apply, employers are not required by law to offer vacation or unpaid leave, even though vacation time is regarded as earned income once it has been accrued.

The question of whether an employer in California can refuse unpaid time off is often posed. An employer may deny the request for unpaid leave unless the request is covered by a protected leave law. For example, the federal FMLA or California Family Rights Act (CFRA).

If a protected employee is unlawfully denied leave in violation of these laws, an administrative complaint may be filed with the DFEH within 3 years. Employers may be subject to legal repercussions in these situations, such as compensation for emotional anguish, job reinstatement, lost earnings, and other damages.

The article delves deeper into California’s strong employment regulations, the potential consequences of refusing unpaid time, and the way companies can effectively manage the provisions of this federal legislation.

Can a California employer deny me unpaid leave of absence?

Because companies are under no legal obligation to grant such leave, they can also deny time off without pay. While they can offer paid time off, these days, paid time off is considered earned wages that accumulate as employees work.

Only when eligible employees ask for time off for reasons covered by the FMLA or CFRA are employers obligated to provide it. According to California law, companies are legally obligated to provide them with paid time off or sick leave in these situations.

More specifically, they might be the following:

An extreme medical condition that prevents the worker from performing their duties.
A severe medical condition that prevents workers from doing their jobs because of a sickness or accident related to their jobs.
Being responsible for a spouse, parent, or child who has a serious health issue.
Bonding of birth parents.
Foster placement, adoption, & bonding for non-birth (foster) parents
A qualifying situation occurs. A parent, spouse, or child is summoned to active service in the armed forces.

But in cases where the request is not covered by the enumerated reasons under the FMLA or CFRA, employers may also deny unpaid leave for work-related concerns, such as for a business need. Employees who offer inadequate notice, wish to take excessive time off, or lack good cause may also have their request denied by their employer.

If you’re wondering, “Can an employer deny unpaid time off?”, the denial is unlawful when it violates FMLA or CFRA protections.

What Are the Lawful Reasons for Rejection?

There are still legal circumstances in which an employer may refuse time off, even though California labor laws typically support employee rights.

1. Rejecting Unpaid Leave

Understanding “Can an employer deny unpaid time off?” requires examining various factors.

According to federal law in California, employers are prohibited from interfering with time off requests covered by the FMLA or the California Family Rights Act since doing so could result in fines. However, if the employee has provided little notice or is unable to give a good cause for their unpaid absence request, the employer may reject the demand.

2. Refusing Paid Leave

Employers have the right to reject requests from workers for accumulated compensated time off, but they must give a good cause or justification. Let’s say an employee has not scheduled their accrued vacation time in accordance with company policy. Like failing to get their manager or supervisor’s permission. Although the employee may be unhappy and irritated, the employer can refuse such a request.

Employers may also set a cap on the number of vacation days that workers can accrue, and they must reimburse any unused vacation time when an employee quits. The state’s labor commissioner ensures that vacation rules are equitable for all.

3. Rights and Responsibilities of the Employers

Paid time off (PTO) is not required by the State Labor Code. Most firms offer it as a bonus or perk.

When a PTO policy is implemented, employers are entitled to the following benefits:

Establishment and Enforcement of Policies: Employers are entitled to create company policies and other documents that give workers the information they need to understand the subtleties of the policies. Notice also needs to be given if (and under what conditions) the worker can take paid leave or paid time off. Mention the right to leave protections under the California Family Rights Act and other laws regulating sick leave apply.
Tracking All Paid and Unpaid Leave Requests: Employers should track all requests for paid and unpaid leave. This record could contain, among other things, the dates of the request, the reason for the request, and whether it was approved or denied.
Respect for Labor Laws: A knowledgeable employment attorney may assist in making sure that the business’s policy conforms with California law on family leave, sick leave, and other types of protected time off.
Communicating Policy & Labor Law: Companies are also permitted to communicate their unpaid leave policies to staff members, for example, by means of employee manuals or other written documents. Employees can better grasp their rights and obligations when it comes to time off requests thanks to this.

What if your unpaid time off request is illegally denied?

A common concern employees raise is: “Can an employer deny unpaid time off?”

The employer must ensure that the employee has no legal grounds to file claims that could result in a lawsuit and that the denial did not violate any labor laws (FMLA or CFRA).

If a worker is denied their requests against the relevant medical leave laws, that individual has the option of filing a complaint with the California Labor Commissioner’s Office or filing a lawsuit in civil court.

Some actions may be necessary if the employer breaches the Parent Leave Act or is accountable for refusing paid family leave.

Pay for any losses, injuries, or damages the worker sustained. If relevant, this covers both front & back pay for prospective wages lost.
Additionally, employers in California are required by law to compensate employees for humiliation, pain, suffering, and shame.
Punitive damages & legal fees have to be paid.
Provide managers, employees, & supervisors with sufficient training. How to handle internal complaints and the Fair Employment and Housing Act.

1. An Example of Labor Law Violations: Brock v. Amazon

California resident Scott Brock was fired from Amazon after being refused unpaid leave following the death of his parents.

Brock was fired for threatening a coworker and breaking Amazon’s workplace conduct standard, according to the employer. This is despite the fact that this was against both the CFRA & Assembly Bill 1949.

However, the complaint claims that Brock was entitled to a minimum of 1,250 hours of unpaid vacation in the twelve months before the disaster.

According to their attorney, Brock was requesting penalties for punitive damages, lost earnings, and mental distress totaling more than $500,000.

Amazon had previously dealt with incidents identical to this one. A Santa Ana lady had won $300k in court just two years prior when a jury determined that she had been subjected to unfair treatment in her Amazon HR position. The court awarded her $2.47 million in legal fees. She claimed that her superiors had denied her request for accommodations. She had morning sickness during pregnancy.

Working with a specialist has proven to be beneficial for many businesses in resolving disputes before they get to court.

Having said that, the average cost of defending an employment case in a settlement reached outside of court is about $75,000. However, if a courtroom is involved, the costs mount up to a mean of $125,000.

It is quite acceptable for a company to refuse vacation time in some situations. However, the employer may have issues other than legal action if they refuse leave if a family member is unwell or in other situations covered by the law.

Refusing medical leave could lower morale at work & make workers feel unsupported and underappreciated. It would lower productivity and drive. A military family’s denial or an employee’s declining health might also have a detrimental impact on employment retention. High employee turnover rates can lead to further issues and have a detrimental impact on the employer’s company efficiency, possibly affecting their bottom line.

That being said, a company may experience severe financial hardship due to excessive personnel turnover rates. Research estimates that recruiting a new employee may cost up to 1.4 times their salary nationwide.

In contrast, 8.9 million job vacancies and 3.4 million separations and departures occurred in January 2024 alone, according to the Bureau of Labor Statistics (California). This indicates a detrimental and expensive pattern in the California labor market, even while it is clear that not all of these resignations and separations were caused by the employer’s denial of unpaid leave.

2. Unpaid Leave: Benefits & Drawbacks

Managing unpaid time off is a challenging policy. Businesses that don’t have a 9-to-5 schedule (restaurants and hospitals) give their staff considerable leeway. Workers are free to take or decline shifts as needed. This allows them to take personal time. Employees must adhere to the same timetable in an office setting. Employers, therefore, take care to incorporate paid time off into their organizational rules.

However, what occurs when workers exhaust their paid time off? In that scenario, supervisors must allow for unpaid time off. And since it has advantages of its own, there is no danger in doing so. Let’s investigate them further.

Saves the business money that could be used for other initiatives or resources.
Aids in creating enduring & solid bonds with staff members.
Workers feel cared for when given flexibility. It reduces absenteeism & improves retention.
Workers come back to work with higher morale.

Unpaid time off also has some drawbacks.

Workers might abuse the policy.
Abuse of the policy can lower production and hurt the company’s bottom line.

There is a straightforward way for you to stop the misuse of unpaid time off.

Give your staff the following instructions:

There must be a compelling justification for taking an unpaid absence.
The manager has the last say on whether to grant the leave.
No worker will be given preference over another.

3. Situations in Which Unpaid Time Off Could Be Refused

Generally speaking, employers are free to deny demands for paid time off, even if workers have collected enough hours of paid time off to satisfy the request. But usually, the employer has to give a good explanation for the rejection. Employers are required to abide by these requests for unpaid leave made under the CFRA or the FMLA.

Employers may reject applications for unpaid time off in several circumstances, even when the relevant state legislation provides clear guidelines regarding managing paid versus unpaid time off:

Business requirements
Too little notice
Depending on how long and how often the leave is taken
The request is not in accordance with corporate policy
Absence of good causes
Taking excessive breaks
Staffing problems
Lack of eligibility for leave protected by the FMLA or CFRA
Performance issues

“Can an employer deny unpaid time off?” The answer may be yes in certain business-related circumstances.

Certain medical conditions may manifest with very little warning. The notification required for seeking CFRA or FMLA leave is fairly flexible, provided that the employee informs the company of their medical condition as soon as feasible. Employers are prohibited, for instance, from interfering with an employee’s ability to receive medical care or provide family member in-home care. Additionally, under CFRA and FMLA regulations, they cannot fire workers who request unpaid time off.

To find out more regarding this developing subject, it is also advised that labor regulations be actively studied and that seminars in California be attended. For instance, conferences are frequently held nationwide by The Labor Arbitration Institute. Try going to one of the conferences. If you want to keep up with labor and employment legislation, you should also pay more attention to the coming conferences of the California Employment Lawyers Association.

Common California Unpaid Leave Conflicts

An employer may be subject to fines and legal repercussions if they obstruct a worker’s application for unpaid leave pursuant to the FMLA or CFRA. Retaliation occurs when an employer terminates a worker who requests unpaid leave for a legitimate reason. In addition to legal repercussions, the employer may be held accountable for the worker’s lost wages and benefits.

In many instances, workers require additional time to treat their medical conditions than the 12 weeks allowed by the FMLA and CFRA. Anything more than an additional month is probably going to be an unreasonable hardship for the employer, even if most firms are ready to give an additional few days or weeks in these circumstances. To attempt to find a full-time replacement, the employer would probably have the right to fire the worker at this point.

Additionally, when an employee is on CFRA or FMLA leave, the business might need to find a replacement. In this case, the business has complied with FMLA as long as the worker is able to return to a position that is comparable to the one they held before their leave.

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1,762

What is Unpaid Time off in California?

Introduction

Can a California employer deny me unpaid leave of absence?

What Are the Lawful Reasons for Rejection?

What if your unpaid time off request is illegally denied?

Common California Unpaid Leave Conflicts

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