Torstrup-Lanham v. Government Employees Insurance

**What Happened** An employee sued Government Employees Insurance Company (GEICO) for wrongful termination, claiming the company fired them for taking protected family sick leave under California law. The employee argued that GEICO should have counted their vacation time, floating holidays, and personal leave as "sick leave" when calculating whether they met the company's attendance requirements. GEICO had a policy requiring employees to maintain a 97% dependability rating. **What the Court Decided** The Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals ruled in favor of GEICO. The court found that vacation days, floating holidays, and personal leave cannot be counted as "sick leave" under California's family sick leave laws. Even if GEICO had miscalculated the employee's protected sick time, it wouldn't have mattered because the employee's attendance rating still would have fallen below the required 97% threshold. **Why This Matters for Workers** This ruling clarifies that only actual sick leave counts toward California's protected family sick leave laws – not other types of time off like vacation or personal days. Workers should understand that employers can maintain strict attendance policies, and taking protected sick leave doesn't guarantee job protection if other attendance issues exist. Employees should carefully track their sick leave usage separately from other time off.