I have been with this company less than 1 year and have just been placed on medical leave for approximately 1 1/2 months, by my doctor. I have disability insurance with my employer and have filed for that. My employer let me know in a round-a-bout way that she does not want me to return. If I will agree to quit, she will pay my health insurance and disability insurance until the end of the disability which will probably be end of February. Obviously this is to avoid paying unemployment if she fires me. My question is two-fold: Doesn't my disability insurance have to cover the current illness, even if I am no longer employed there or paying the premium? I know that they have to offer Cobra. It appears from reading the other threads on this issue that I have no other recourse since I have been there less than a year and they have less than 50 employees. Perhaps the law is different in Virginia?

You are right in your understanding that Virginia does not have any additional leaves beyond the federal FMLA. However, is your medical leave related to a disability? If so, does your employer have more than 15 employees?

The reason I ask is that it is against the law to take negative action against an employee because he/she has a disability. This is covered by the Americans with Disability Act (ADA).

If you do not have a disability, you don't have any other recourse.

Now, on the question of continuation of your disability insurance benefits, you would need to check with the insurer...perhaps it is in the employee benefit plan documentation.

Though you don't need to raise it with her, I'm not so sure that you would be refused unemployment at the end of your illness because your illness is out of your control. You should talk with the state of Virginia to confirm this as workers compensation is under state, rather than federal, law.

Best of luck getting it because since you do live in a right to work state they do not have to do more then what the federal government dictates in the law. Even then your employer can get out of paying your disability in Virginia by having you fired and lying about it. If you hink the court system in Virginia will side with you, think again because the state will side with your employer and leaving you with only one option and that is making it a federal case. Sorry to say that could take forever.