Short answer: Possibly. The EEOC says unpaid leave beyond FMLA can be a required ADA reasonable accommodation unless it causes undue hardship; finishing FMLA does not by itself end the employer’s ADA duty.
The EEOC’s position is that compliance with the FMLA does not necessarily meet the employer’s ADA obligation, and that extra leave exceeding the FMLA is not, by itself, an undue hardship. Its example: an employee uses 12 weeks of FMLA and needs five more weeks; the employer must provide them unless it can show undue hardship.
Key points for employers with a maximum-leave or ‘no fault’ policy:
- The policy may have to bend as an accommodation; engage in the interactive process when the employee asks for more time.
- The employer may consider leave already taken (FMLA, workers’ comp, company leave) when weighing undue hardship.
- Indefinite leave, where the employee cannot say whether or when they will return, is an undue hardship and need not be granted.
- Form letters telling employees to return by a date or be fired should invite them to ask for more leave as an accommodation.
The ADA applies to employers with 15 or more employees. Health coverage during this extra leave is a separate question (see the related card).
Sources
EEOC, Employer-Provided Leave and the Americans with Disabilities Acteeoc.gov/laws/guidance/employer-provided-leave-and-americans-disabilities-actEEOC Enforcement Guidance on Reasonable Accommodation and Undue Hardshipeeoc.gov/laws/guidance/enforcement-guidance-reasonable-accommodation-and-undue-hardship-under-ada42 U.S.C. 12111, Cornell LIIlaw.cornell.edu/uscode/text/42/12111