Vasquez

FACTS AND PROCEDURAL HISTORY

Vasquez was hired as a part-time bus driver by MTA in October of 2007. He became a member of the United Transportation Union. The terms and conditions of his employment were governed by the collective bargaining agreement between the union and MTA. Under the collective bargaining agreement, 6 separate incidents of absence in any 12-month period was considered excessive, and 8 separate absences over the same period was grounds for termination. If an employee worked for a period of 60 days without an absence, 1 absence would be removed from the employee’s record. When an employee

2 planned to be absent, he or she was required to call in before the shift and inform a window operator of the reason for the absence. Employees accumulated 12 weeks of leave under the Family Medical Leave Act (FMLA) (29 U.S.C. § 2601 et seq.) in each 12-month rolling period. If an absence was designated as FMLA leave, it was not a chargeable absence under the attendance policy. Leave could be designated as FMLA or CFRA retroactively. Vasquez suffered from several disabling conditions, including gout, avascular necrosis of the femur requiring hip surgery, and cataracts. He…