I have been working for this temp agency in St. Louis for 2 years where I have been a department lead for a year and a half. I was recently out for a month for cancer surgery and had to take chemotherapy thereafter. The site that I was working at started working overtime on weekends and since I was taking my treatments on the weekends I could not work. With all the medications that I was on sometimes had me where I would miss a day maybe 2 days every other week. My illness never had an affect on my job performance. So now one of the supervisors has come to me telling me that I need to step down as a lead because of me being sick and that they need someone who was more flexible on weekends. I had recently started working on the weekends just to accomodate their wishes and this is the thanks that I get. So I am wondering if this is fair can they actually do this because of an illness although it is not affecting my work performance.

I have been working for this temp agency in St. Louis for 2 years where I have been a department lead for a year and a half. I was recently out for a month for cancer surgery and had to take chemotherapy thereafter. The site that I was working at started working overtime on weekends and since I was taking my treatments on the weekends I could not work. With all the medications that I was on sometimes had me where I would miss a day maybe 2 days every other week. My illness never had an affect on my job performance. So now one of the supervisors has come to me telling me that I need to step down as a lead because of me being sick and that they need someone who was more flexible on weekends. I had recently started working on the weekends just to accomodate their wishes and this is the thanks that I get. So I am wondering if this is fair can they actually do this because of an illness although it is not affecting my work performance.
I am afraid that they can. They could actually let you go since it is not an on the job injury that is causing you to be absent. I am so sorry, and I know that this is hard on you, but they are within thier legal rights to do so. Good luck to you, please keep in touch to let us know how you are doing!

I'm wondering if you'd qualify for FMLA (Overview (http://www.dol.gov/dol/topic/benefits-leave/fmla.htm)).

Am I correct in assuming that you are a permanent employee of the temp agency?

For FMLA, the following criteria must exist in order to qualify:

(1) you have worked for the employer at least 12 months,
(2) you worked at least 1,250 hours over the past 12 months,
(3) and work at a location where the company employs 50 or more employees within 75 miles.

FMLA is a form of job protection and allows upto 12 weeks unpaid leave.

Please let us know if you meet these qualifications.

Sorry poster, Robb is right, and I should have mentioned that! :(

Yes, we do need the answers to robb71's questions.

However, you state that the situation is not affecting your husband's performance. I beg to disagree. If he is missing 1-2 days every couple of weeks, then his performance (by virtue of the fact that he is not working) IS affected.