Can my employer fire me just for asking for medical leave in California?

In most situations, no. Requesting protected medical leave under CFRA, FMLA, or California disability laws is considered protected activity. An employer may not lawfully terminate you simply because you asked for leave. However, the employer may still discipline or terminate an employee for legitimate, non-retaliatory reasons that are unrelated to the leave request. The key legal question is whether the request played a motivating role in the decision.

Does it matter if my leave had not yet been approved?

It can. Protection may attach as soon as you provide sufficient notice of a serious health condition or request protected leave. An employer cannot avoid liability by terminating an employee before formally approving the leave if the decision was motivated by the request itself. Courts focus on the employer’s knowledge and intent at the time of termination.

How close in time does the termination need to be to prove retaliation?

There is no fixed timeline. Courts often look at whether the termination occurred days or weeks after the leave request, but timing alone is rarely decisive. A close temporal connection can raise suspicion, especially when combined with other evidence such as sudden performance write-ups or inconsistent explanations.

Are medical leave protections stronger in California than under federal law?

Yes — and employers frequently do. However, courts examine whether the stated reason is supported by prior documentation and consistent treatment of other employees. If performance concerns only appear after a leave request, or if protected absences were counted against you, that may suggest the explanation is pretextual.

Can my employer say it was performance-based even if I had just requested leave?

Often, yes. California’s CFRA and disability accommodation laws may provide broader or overlapping protections beyond federal FMLA rights. In some cases, state law requires employers to consider additional leave as a reasonable accommodation, even after FMLA has been exhausted. The interaction between these laws is often central to evaluating whether a termination was lawful.

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We have been called “true believers” countless times by lawyers for corporate employers because they can see that we truly believe in the need to enforce the law and in our client’s cases. They can see how much it bothers us when employees needing accommodation for health conditions are treated as defective and not worthy of their jobs.

Here’s what so many California employers fail to acknowledge: California allows them to earn their corporate profits in California and on the backs of California employees. But by cashing in on California and its people, employers agree to comply with California’s laws protecting employees. Put simply, cashing in requires compliance. Employers who fire employees in violation of California’s protective laws are cashing in without compliance. We think the corrupt cash should go to compensate wrongfully fired employees.

Employers sued for cashing in without compliance often accuse the employees who sue them of “just trying to cash in.” The gaslighting is real.

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