Can we lay off an employee who has been out on disability for almost a year?

A commonly held misconception is that an employer can’t lay off an employee because they are on disability.

For absolute job protection, the employee needs to be on a protected leave, such as pregnancy disability leave, and the federal and state family leaves, such as the Family and Medical Leave Act and the California Family Rights Act.

When the employee isn’t subject to those leaves, granting extra time off is something the employer needs to consider. An employer should not have a knee-jerk reaction to terminate employment when the employee needs extra time due to a disability.