Fact Sheet #1 – Sick Leave

Sick Leave: An Important Support for Employees with Episodic Disabilities

By Wendy Porch, M. Ed.

Living with an episodic disability can mean having to take time off work. Determining how much time you are entitled to, however, can be a tricky business. This article will outline the basics in terms of sick leave in Canada. How much you are entitled to is dependent upon on a number of factors, such as whether or not you are entitled to unpaid and/or paid sick leave. There are other kinds of leave available as well, such as bereavement and compassionate care leave but this article only focusses on sick leave.

What is Sick Leave?

In simple terms, sick leave is time off work so that you can recover from illness. In Canada, the amount of time you are entitled to varies from province to province. There are two types of sick leave: unpaid leave – which everyone in your province or territory is entitled to as long as they meet the qualification requirements outlined below – and paid sick leave which varies from employer to employer.

Unpaid Sick Leave

Unpaid sick leave is generally outlined under provincial and territorial employment standards legislation. This legislation sets out the amount of unpaid sick leave that employees in those provinces are eligible to take, without penalty from their employer. The table below outlines the basics in Canada regarding unpaid sick leave. In many cases, there is a qualification period. This means that the employee must have worked for the same employer for a consecutive set period of time before they are eligible for unpaid sick leave. In most cases, unpaid sick leave entitlement cannot be carried over into another year. In many cases employers may be allowed to ask for documentation about the need for the leave if it starts to become more than a few days. These requirements are not outlined in the table below, so check the legislation itself for this information. The legislation is linked for each area below.

Paid Sick Leave

In addition to unpaid sick leave, some employees may have access to paid sick leave. This means that they can take time off and still be paid. Paid sick leave is normally set out in either a collective agreement (for unionized workplaces), your employment contract or in workplace policies. If you aren’t sure what kind of paid sick leave you are entitled to, ask your union steward, human resources representative or manager for details.

Additional Types of Leave

Under provincial and territorial legislation, employees are also eligible for a range of other unpaid leave types. These include bereavement leave, which is usually granted to an employee who has recently lost a close family member, and compassionate care leave, which allows employees to take time off work to care for a seriously ill family member. These types of leave are not covered in this article, but should you require more information it is recommended that you consult the employment standards legislation in your location, and/or with a local human resource professional.

Extended Sick Leave Combined with Income Supports

Other types of leave that combine extended time off with income supports include short-term disability (STD) and long term-disability (LTD) coverage and Employment Insurance Sickness Benefits. STD and LTD coverage vary from person to person according to an individual’s benefits package. Not everyone is eligible. EI Sickness Benefits are offered through Employment Insurance in Canada to people who have worked and paid into the program and who meet the eligibility requirements.

Resources:

• “Paid sick leave has its advantages” – article by HR InfoDesk:
  (To access this article, you will need to create a temporary login with HR InfoDesk – free trial)
• “Leaves of Absence from Work” – article by WorkersHelp.ca
• “Employment Insurance Sickness Benefits” – overview by the Government of Canada