Leave of Absence & Disability

California’s leave and disability framework covers far more employees than federal FMLA and ADA. CFRA applies at 5+ employees (Cal. Gov. Code §12945.2), FEHA disability accommodation requires a timely, good-faith interactive process (Cal. Gov. Code §12940(m)(1), (n)), and Pregnancy Disability Leave provides up to four additional months (Cal. Gov. Code §§12945, 12945.2(n), (p)).

Michael Trust founded Michael Trust Law, APC after more than 35 years in HR leadership across entertainment, healthcare, higher education, finance, banking, solar energy, and other industries, including managing approximately 35,000 disability and leave-of-absence cases. He holds the SPHR, PHRca, and SHRM-SCP credentials. The PHRca is a California-specific HR credential focused on California employment law and HR practice. According to HRCI's published pass-rate statistics at https://www.hrci.org/pass-rates, the PHRca has the lowest pass rate of all HRCI credentials — 47% as of December 31, 2025, compared with 71–84% for HRCI's other certifications — and only 293 candidates worldwide tested for it in 2025. That HR-systems background helps identify HR process issues early, which can shape legal analysis on both sides. This HR background often proves relevant to CFRA, PDL, and FEHA accommodation coordination, which is among the most failure-prone areas of California HR administration.

Leaves and Disability

California Leave of Absence and Disability - Employee Rights

California's leave and disability framework is broader than federal law in nearly every respect. Where federal FMLA covers employers with 50 or more employees, California's CFRA covers employers with 5 or more (Cal. Gov. Code §12945.2). Where federal ADA defines disability narrowly, California's FEHA defines disability more inclusively and triggers a duty to engage in a timely, good-faith interactive process in response to a request for accommodation (Cal. Gov. Code §12940(m)(1), (n)).

What California Law Requires

Eligible employees may take up to 12 weeks of CFRA leave for their own serious health condition, to care for a family member with a serious health condition, or for baby bonding (Cal. Gov. Code §12945.2). Pregnancy Disability Leave provides up to four months of additional protected leave for pregnancy-related disability (Cal. Gov. Code §§12945, 12945.2(n), (p)). FEHA also requires reasonable accommodation, including leave as a form of accommodation when the leave is finite and likely to enable a return to work. Whether a particular leave is protected, and which protections apply, turns on employer size, length of service, the nature of the condition, and the documentation provided — all fact-specific. The California Legislature has expressly declared that FEHA's disability protections are independent of and broader than those provided under the federal ADA (Cal. Gov. Code §12926.1(a), (c)).

Kin Care: Using Sick Leave for Family

California’s Kin Care law lets you use part of your own accrued paid sick leave to care for a family member, not just yourself. You, not your employer, decide whether an absence counts as kin care or as your own sick time. Your employer must let you use, in a calendar year, at least as much of your accrued and available sick leave for kin care as you would accrue in six months at your current rate. An employer that denies this option, or disciplines you for using it, can face a Labor Commissioner claim.

Cal. Lab. Code §233.

Other California Leaves and Time Off

California gives you time off for many reasons beyond the family and medical leave laws. Some of these leaves apply to every employer, whatever its size, and others start at five, 15, 16, 25, or 50 employees. The table shows which ones reach your job.

California leave laws by employer size.
LeaveIf your employer hasWhat you can take
BereavementFive or more employeesUp to five days after a family member dies. You must have worked there at least 30 days. The leave may be unpaid, but you may use vacation, personal leave, or sick leave. It is separate from the California Family Rights Act (CFRA), the federal Family and Medical Leave Act (FMLA), and pregnancy disability leave, unless the same absence is also for a condition those laws cover.
Reproductive lossFive or more employeesUp to five days after a miscarriage, stillbirth, failed adoption, failed surrogacy, or unsuccessful fertility treatment, and up to 20 days in 12 months. You must have worked there at least 30 days. The same pay rules apply as for bereavement. It is separate from CFRA. It can overlap with FMLA and pregnancy disability leave when the loss also involves a condition those laws cover, such as a pregnancy-related condition or a serious health condition.
School and child care25 or more employees at your locationUp to 40 hours a year, and no more than eight hours in a month, for school and child care activities and emergencies. You use vacation, personal leave, or unpaid time.
Jury duty, witness subpoenas, and court time for crime victimsAny number of employeesTime off to serve on a jury, answer a subpoena, or get a protective order. Since January 1, 2026, victims and their family members may also attend court hearings about the crime. You may use sick leave, vacation, or personal leave.
Crime victim and family leave, and safety changes25 or more employees for leave; any number for safety changesTime off for medical care, counseling, safety planning, moving, and legal help after a crime or violence, plus reasonable safety changes at work. Your employer may cap total leave at 12 weeks. The leave runs at the same time as FMLA and CFRA if you qualify for them.
VotingAny number of employeesUp to two hours of paid time off to vote in a statewide election if you do not have enough time outside of work. Give your employer two working days’ notice. Your employer must post the voting notice at least 10 days before every statewide election.
Volunteer firefighter, reserve peace officer, and emergency rescue dutyEmergency duty: any number of employees. Training time: 50 or more employeesYour employer may not fire you or discriminate against you for taking time off to perform emergency duty. The statute sets no time limit and no advance-notice rule, and the time off is unpaid. If you are a health care provider designated as emergency rescue personnel, you must tell your employer when you are designated and when you are deployed. A public safety agency or emergency medical services provider is exempt if it determines your absence will hurt the availability of those services. If your employer has 50 or more employees, you may also take up to 14 days a year for training.
Military spouse25 or more employeesUp to 10 unpaid days when your spouse is on leave from deployment. You must work an average of 20 or more hours a week and give notice within two business days after you learn of the leave. The leave is separate from other leave you have earned.
Organ and bone marrow donation15 or more employeesPaid leave of up to 30 business days for organ donation or five business days for bone marrow donation, plus up to 30 more unpaid business days for organ donation. Your employer must keep paying for your health coverage during the paid leave. You must have worked there at least 90 days. The leave cannot run at the same time as FMLA or CFRA.
Civil Air PatrolMore than 15 employees (16 or more)Unpaid time, at least 10 days a year, to respond to Civil Air Patrol emergency missions. You must have worked there at least 90 days.
Alcohol and drug rehabilitation25 or more employees (private employers)Reasonable accommodation if you choose to enter a treatment program, unless it creates an undue hardship for your employer. This is an accommodation, not a set amount of leave.

Most of these leaves are separate from pregnancy disability leave, FMLA, and CFRA. They overlap with those laws only when the same absence is also for a condition those laws cover.

When to Contact Us

Most leave and accommodation problems are caused by process failures — denied requests, missed interactive-process meetings, terminations during or shortly after leave. If any of this describes your situation, a 30-minute conversation can tell you whether what happened fits a pattern California law recognizes.

If something at your job is not right and it has affected you, contact Michael Trust Law, APC. That includes a termination, a performance improvement plan, discipline, retaliation, discrimination, or harassment, whether you still work there or not. Deadlines to act can be short, so please call or email promptly. A no-charge consultation is a first conversation about your own situation, and we will tell you whether and how we can help.

No attorney-client relationship exists until a fee agreement is fully executed by all parties. See Disclaimers.

Cal. Gov. Code §12945.2 (CFRA); Cal. Gov. Code §§12945, 12945.2(n), (p) (PDL); Cal. Gov. Code §12940(m)-(n) (FEHA accommodation and interactive process); Cal. Gov. Code §12926.1(a), (c)
; Cal. Gov’t Code §§ 12945.6 (opens in a new tab), 12945.7 (opens in a new tab), 12945.8 (opens in a new tab); Cal. Lab. Code §§ 230.3 (opens in a new tab), 230.4 (opens in a new tab), 230.8 (opens in a new tab), 1025 (opens in a new tab), 1501 (opens in a new tab), 1503 (opens in a new tab), 1509 (opens in a new tab), 1510 (opens in a new tab); Cal. Elec. Code §§ 14000 (opens in a new tab), 14001 (opens in a new tab); Cal. Mil. & Vet. Code § 395.10 (opens in a new tab); Cal. Unemp. Ins. Code §§ 2653 (opens in a new tab), 3301 (opens in a new tab); 2026 Cal. Stat. ch. 679 (SB 1149).

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Frequently Asked Questions

Probably not, depending on the employer's size and your eligibility. The California Family Rights Act (Cal. Gov. Code §12945.2) generally requires covered employers to restore an eligible employee to the same or comparable position after a protected leave. Adverse action because an employee requested or used a protected leave can also support a FEHA retaliation claim. Talk to counsel before signing any agreement or accepting a final paycheck.

Not necessarily. FEHA's reasonable-accommodation obligation operates independently of FMLA. The California Legislature has expressly declared that FEHA's disability protections are independent of and broader than the federal ADA (Cal. Gov. Code §12926.1(a), (c)), and a finite extension of leave can itself be a reasonable accommodation under FEHA if it would enable the employee to return to essential job functions. The interactive process should not stop at FMLA exhaustion.

California Pregnancy Disability Leave (Cal. Gov. Code §12945) gives an employee disabled by pregnancy the right to take leave when needed, to ask for reasonable accommodation or a temporary transfer, and to be free from employer interference with those rights. The Civil Rights Council’s regulations also make it unlawful for an employer to require an employee to take a leave of absence because of pregnancy when the employee has not requested leave, unless a permissible defense applies (Cal. Code Regs., tit. 2, §11039(a)(1)(H)). PDL is also independent of CFRA, meaning a covered employee may be entitled to both, in sequence. Document the conversation and the medical guidance you have received before deciding what to do.

FEHA claims generally require an administrative exhaustion step through the California Civil Rights Department, and statutory deadlines apply both to the administrative filing and any subsequent civil action. Deadlines can vary depending on the specific claim and circumstances, so the practical answer is to consult counsel promptly after the denial — waiting can foreclose options that are available early.

Yes, if your employer has five or more employees and you have worked there for at least 30 days. You can take up to five days of bereavement leave after a family member dies, and up to five days of reproductive loss leave after a miscarriage, stillbirth, failed adoption, failed surrogacy, or unsuccessful fertility treatment. If you have more than one loss in 12 months, you can take up to 20 days in all, and you can take the days on separate dates.

Pay depends on your employer’s policy. If there is no policy, the leave may be unpaid, though you may use vacation, personal leave, or sick leave, and if the policy gives fewer than five days, you still get five in total.

On January 1, 2027, bereavement leave grows to cover the death of a “designated person,” meaning a person related to you by blood or by a bond like family, whom you name when you ask for the leave. Your employer may limit you to one designated person in any 12 months.

You must finish bereavement leave within three months of the death and reproductive loss leave within three months of the loss. If you take other leave around the loss, such as pregnancy disability leave, you have three months from the end of that leave. Bereavement leave is separate from CFRA, FMLA, and pregnancy disability leave unless the same absence is also for a condition those laws cover. Reproductive loss leave is separate from CFRA but can overlap with FMLA and pregnancy disability leave when the loss involves a condition those laws cover.

Your employer may ask for proof of a death within 30 days after your leave starts, such as a death certificate, an obituary, or a letter from a funeral home, and your employer must keep your request private. Your employer cannot refuse the leave, get in the way of it, or punish you for taking it. Cal. Gov’t Code §§ 12945.6 (opens in a new tab), 12945.7 (opens in a new tab).

If something at your job is not right and it has affected you, contact Michael Trust Law, APC for help with resolving it.

No. Paid Family Leave (PFL) pays you money while you are off work, but it does not give you the right to take time off and it does not protect your job. Those rights come from other laws, such as the federal Family and Medical Leave Act (FMLA), the California Family Rights Act (CFRA), or pregnancy disability leave (PDL), or from your employer’s policy.

PFL pays for up to eight weeks of benefits in 12 months when you take time off to care for a seriously ill child, spouse, parent, grandparent, grandchild, sibling, or domestic partner. It also pays when you bond with a new child within a year of the birth, adoption, or foster placement, or when a spouse, domestic partner, child, or parent is called to active military duty. No later than July 1, 2028, PFL will also cover care for a “designated person.”

Your weekly benefit is a percentage of the wages you earned in your highest-paid quarter, with a $50 weekly minimum and a state maximum. File your claim within 41 days after the first day you claim benefits, though the state can extend that deadline for good cause.

Cal. Unemp. Ins. Code § 3301 (opens in a new tab).

If something at your job is not right and it has affected you, such as a change to your job while you were on leave, contact Michael Trust Law, APC for help with resolving it.

Often yes, because State Disability Insurance (SDI) pays you part of your wages for up to 52 weeks when you cannot work because of your own illness, injury, pregnancy, or childbirth. Depending on your income, it usually replaces about 70 to 90 percent of your wages, up to a weekly cap that the state sets, and work injuries go through workers’ compensation instead.

Employee paycheck deductions for SDI pay for both SDI and PFL. Like PFL, SDI pays you money, but it does not, by itself, protect your job. Cal. Unemp. Ins. Code § 2653 (opens in a new tab).

If something at your job is not right and it has affected you, such as being pushed out while you are on disability, contact Michael Trust Law, APC for help with resolving it.

Michael Trust Law, APC stands with employees denied lawful leave or accommodations. We fight to restore fairness, recover damages, and hold employers accountable under California law.

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