Can my boss require me to come back to work after a high-risk pregnancy appointment?
I requested time off work for August 20 because I have my first high-risk maternal appointment at 10:30 AM. I was told the appointment could take several hours because they’ll be doing multiple tests before I meet with the provider to go over the results.
I initially told my employer that if the appointment finished within a reasonable timeframe, I would return to work afterward. However, there are some additional circumstances that make this difficult.
The appointment is about an hour away from my job. My husband is going with me, so after the appointment I would need to drive an hour home to drop him off and then drive another hour back to work. Depending on how long the appointment takes, I could potentially end up driving several hours just to be at work for maybe an hour or so.
My boss responded to my request by saying, “Hey Christina, You'll be expected to be in after the appointment.”
I understand that if I’m able to return, they may expect me to, but I’m wondering how reasonable this is given the circumstances. This is a pregnancy-related high-risk medical appointment, and I’m not trying to avoid work. I’m trying to figure out whether it makes sense to make the additional two hours of driving when I may only have an hour of work left.
Can my employer require me to come in for that short amount of time, or could I request the rest of the day off as a reasonable accommodation for the pregnancy-related appointment?
I’m in Florida, if that matters.