U.S. Department of Labor Investigation Results in Alabama Medical Services Company Paying Former Employee Lost Wages and Medical Costs

MOBILE, AL – After an investigation by the U.S. Department of Labor’s Wage and Hour Division (WHD), AltaPointe Health Systems Inc. – operating in the Mobile, Alabama, area as BayPointe Hospital, EastPointe Hospital, and CarePointe – will pay an employee $6,588 in lost wages and incurred medical expenses for violating the Family and Medical Leave Act (FMLA).

WHD investigators found AltaPointe Health Systems Inc. unlawfully terminated an employee when she returned to work after taking time off to seek medical care for an FMLA-covered health condition. In addition to paying the employee $1,859 in lost earnings, the company will reimburse the employee $4,729 for medical expenses that accumulated when she lost her health insurance coverage after being released from her job.

“The Family and Medical Leave Act allows for critically needed workplace flexibility precisely when employees need it the most,” said Wage and Hour Division District Director Kenneth Stripling, in Birmingham, Alabama. “The FMLA provides peace of mind to employees undergoing medical care and allows them to focus on their recovery; knowing their job will be there when they return. The Wage Hour Division is committed to enforcing the law and educating employers to ensure employees are not prevented from exercising their rights.”

The FMLA provides eligible employees up to 12 weeks of unpaid, job-protected leave due to their own or a family member’s serious health condition with continuation of health care coverage under the same terms and conditions as if the employee had not taken leave.

For more information about the FMLA and other laws enforced by the Wage and Hour Division, contact the toll-free helpline at 866-4US-WAGE (487-9243). Information is also available at https://www.dol.gov/whd.