FMLA Reinstatement in Wisconsin

An employee who returns to work from FMLA leave is entitled to be returned to the same position, or to an equivalent position with equivalent benefits, pay, and other terms and conditions of employment. An employee’s taking of FMLA leave cannot result in the loss of any benefit that accrued prior to the start of the FMLA leave.

An employee is entitled to this reinstatement even if the employee has been replaced or his or her position has been restructured to accommodate the employee’s absence.

However, an employee has no greater right to reinstatement or to other benefits and conditions of employment than if the employee had been continuously employed during the FMLA leave period. An employer must be able to show that an employee would not otherwise have been employed at the time reinstatement is requested in order to deny restoration to employment.

 

Fitness For Duty Certification

Before an employee returns to work and pursuant to a uniformly applied policy, the employer may also require that an employee present a certification of fitness to return to work when the absence was caused by the employee’s serious health condition.

An employer can legally delay an employee’s FMLA reinstatement until an employee submits a fitness-for-duty certification. An employee who does not provide a fitness-for-duty certification or request additional FMLA leave is no longer entitled to reinstatement under the FMLA.