Comments on Faggots on the Third Floor: "Federal law is open to interpretation"

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2009-03-18T04:35:00.000-04:00

Re what Tanya said- it's true that a company can i...

2008-05-20T22:32:00.000-04:00

Re what Tanya said- it's true that a company can interpret a law if the interpretation is based on existing caselaw (ie caselaw that says such and such is not harassment, or that FMLA is not required for certain people) AND if the interpretation doesn't just ignore the langauge of the statute. In this case, the attorney blatently said that they are interpreting it in a way tht is contrary to what the statute itself says- that it applies to more than married couples. I see no harm in asking for a clarification of the details of that interpretation- for ex if they said "oh because florida case such and such said same-sex couples are not in loco parentis" then hey, maybe they are right. But I don't see the atty thing as a threat- it's realistic that you might want to seek someone's counsel. At a minimum I'd ask for a clarification of their policy, in writing... but then again, I'm all fired up about this and it may be more than you want to deal with.

Company fill in the blank has opted to take a diff...

2008-05-20T14:50:00.000-04:00

Company fill in the blank has opted to take a different interpretation of FMLA

Well, um, then you may have to "opt" to hire a lawyer to make sure that they stop interpreting things to their favor.

Is this shit even legal? I mean, I KNOW FLorida sucks donkey balls as far as our families are concerned, but the whole "in loco parentis" thing, and the fact that a lawyer BLATANTLY told you that they were willingly "interepreting" the law, well - it all just sounds VERY "UnKosher" to me!

I can't believe that HR person said that to you. H...

2008-05-20T13:11:00.000-04:00

I can't believe that HR person said that to you. How insensitive and asking for a discrimination lawsuit. I'm sorry all this is happening like this and making your life difficult.

Sorry to hear this. Don't you just love HR? They'...

2008-05-20T11:24:00.000-04:00

Sorry to hear this. Don't you just love HR? They're suppose to help the employee but all they seem to do is screw them over.

In response to Nicole asking about Sex Harrasment, actually yes. It does depend on how they interpert it. My SO filed a complaint with the state and they told him that the offending comment was an opinion!

As for an attorney, I've heard that you sould only tell someone that if you intend to follow through. Don't say it to try and use it as leverage. Once you do they may shut down completely(sounds like they already have) and only talk to you through the "attorney." Plus it may cost them more to fight it then grant the leave, but how much will it cost you? Some companies don't care about the cost if they want to be "right". We're looking for an attorney ourselves due to a termination.

I agree with what moms and two boys said. Mention ...

2008-05-20T09:14:00.000-04:00

I agree with what moms and two boys said. Mention getting an attorney and ask that they put their position and "excuse" for denial of your rights in writing.
A lawsuit will cost them more than allowing your leave will. Even if you are denied in courts to take it, it will still cost them more.
Keep everything documented, either by letters and emails printed out, or get a voice recorder to keep on you at work to record verbal comments made to you.
Discrimination is still discrimination, and is against the law. No matter how they want to interpret it.

Agreed- but of course you don't want to be a test ...

2008-05-20T08:59:00.000-04:00

Agreed- but of course you don't want to be a test case for FMLA in florida, but it's just too bad that this counsel thinks they can apply FMLA in the way they feel like it. There is some room for interpretation (of course) but they can't ignore the plain language of the statute. It's not like FMLA is OPTIONAL. Nor are they allowed to say they only apply it to married couples- that's not what the law mandates, and it's discriminatory (not against gays alone, but to families). And yes, frankly, I think she should give you the reasoning behind their "interpretation" regardless of whether she thinks she has to- I'm kind of an asshole, but I'd say "I'm going to see an attorney about this, and I want to make sure I fairly represent to her your position on FMLA before I do. Please put your interpretation of why the "in loco parentis" portion of FMLA does not apply to me in writing, so I can take it with me. My attorney would be particularly interested in any caselaw you have that states that you are free to disregard the in loco parentis portion of FMLA and any caselaw that supports applying it only to married couples."

Of course to you it may not be worth the hassle. But this is blatant noncompliance with the law. I am not 100% positive that if you sued that the court would say you are in loco parentis (it is Florida after all), BUT the company can't decide on its own to follow a law or not and to totally ignore provisions of it. Argh! I'm so angry.

I'm sorry, interpret? Are they allowed to interpr...

2008-05-20T00:12:00.000-04:00

I'm sorry, interpret? Are they allowed to interpret the sexual harassment laws? They cannot pick and choose which part of the law they wish to obey and which part they don't. If this was a child you were adopting internationally, they would wouldn't have a problem with it. The fact that you live in an alternative family doesn't make the language apply any less to your situation.
I'm sorry that you're going through this all! What a shame we still live in the type of US where this type of shit still happens.
Are you going to keep challenging it?