Can an employer dictate the start/end time for Maternity Leave. My friend wants to start her maternity leave two weeks before her due date & was told by her supervisior that she must start six weeks before her due date. Is that allowable? Thank you.

I have a poor understanding of California laws, but this sounds bogus to me.

I see no legitimate reason for the employer to insist that the leave start six weeks out when the employee does not need the leave to start that early.

It's always a bad idea for an employer to decide they are medical experts. As you can see by the above CA case, just because an employer feels that a pregnant employee cannot safely work, they have no right to substitute their judgement.

I always defer to the doctor. That eliminates a lot of liability. As an aside, I require medical certification at the beginning of the pregnancy, any time the restrictions/conditions of employment change, at the beginning of the leave, and at 6 week postpartum visit.

I can say that I reserve the right to determine if we can reasonably accommodate work restrictions. For example, if one is released to sit down work only, I cannot accommodate that in our retail environment. But that is only a response to legitimate medical certification.

Although your friend's employer may think they are acting in your friend's best interest, I think their blanket statement is ill-advised, unwise, and could be actionable.

http://www.dfeh.ca.gov/announcements/pressReleases.aspx?pressReleaseId=3#viewPR

Sorry, here is the link.