What is sick leave?
Sick leave is a form of protected leave (either paid or unpaid) and is intended to protect your job and/or income when or if you are incapable of performing your duties due to non-occupational illness or injury.
Sick Leave Entitlements
The following table outlines sick leave entitlements for each province and territory as well as a link to the employment standards:
Jurisdiction
Provisions
Employment Standards
National
5 days of leave in a calendar year for sick leave or related to the health or care of a family member.
After 3 consecutive months with the employer, the employee is entitled to the first 3 days of leave at their regular rate of pay.
See sections 206.6 (1) and (2) of the Canada Labour Code for more information.
Alberta
5 unpaid days of leave in a calendar year for sick leave or family care responsibilities after 90 days of employment with the same employer.
See the Alberta Employment Standards Rules for more information.
British Columbia
3 days of unpaid sick leave in addition to 5 paid days for personal illness or injury after 90 days of employment with the same employer.
See the British Columbia Employment Standards Act for more information.
Manitoba
3 unpaid days of leave in a year for sick leave or for family care responsibilities after 30 days of employment with the employer.
See section 59.3(1) of the Manitoba Employment Standards Code for more information.
New Brunswick
5 unpaid days of leave in a calendar year for sick leave after 90 days of employment and 3 unpaid days of leave in a calendar year for family care responsibility leave.
See sections 44.021(1) and 44.022(1) of the New Brunswick Employment Standards Act for more information.
Newfoundland & Labrador
7 unpaid days of leave for sick leave or family responsibility leave in a year after 30 continuous days of employment with the same employer.
See section 43.11 (1) of the Newfoundland & Labrador Labour Standards Act for more information.
Northwest Territories
5 unpaid days during each 12-month period for sick leave after 30 consecutive days of employment with the employer.
See section 29. (1) through (3) of the Northwest Territories Employment Standards Act for more information.
Nova Scotia
3 unpaid days of leave in a year for leave due to the sickness of a child, parent or family member; or for medical, dental or other similar appointments during working hours.
See the Guide to the Nova Scotia Labour Standards Code for more information.
Nunavut
Unclear
Ontario
3 unpaid days of leave in a calendar year for a personal illness, injury or medical emergency after two consecutive weeks of employment with the same employer; 3 unpaid days of leave for illness, injury or medical emergency of a family member after two consecutive weeks with the same employer; and, 8 weeks of unpaid leave to provide care or support to a family member that has a serious medical condition.
See section 50 of the Ontario Employment Standards Act for more information.
Prince Edward Island
3 unpaid days of leave in a calendar year for sick leave after 3 months of continuous employment; 1 paid day of leave in a calendar year, in addition to any unpaid leave that the worker is entitled to, after five continuous years of employment; and, 3 unpaid days of leave in a calendar year for family care responsibility leave after six continuous months with the same employer.
See section 22.2 of the Prince Edward Island Employment Standards Act for more information.
Québec
2 paid days of leave to take care of a relative or person with whom they act as an informal caregiver or in the case of sickness after 3 months of employment; 10 days per year to fulfil obligations relating to the care, health or education of the employee’s child or the child of the employee’s spouse, or because of the state of health of a relative or a person for whom the employee acts as a caregiver and the first 2 days shall be paid according to a formula, and after 3 months of continuous employment.
See the Québec Labour Standards for more information.
Saskatchewan
0 days of paid leave and 12 days of unpaid sick leave or for the care of family members.
See the Saskatchewan Employment Standards for more information.
Yukon
1 unpaid day of sick leave every month the employee has been employed by that employer, less the number of days on which the employee has previously been absent due to illness or injury, up to a maximum of 12 days.
See Section 59(2) of the Yukon Employment Standards Act for more information.
COVID-19 Sick Leave Entitlements
New legislation and guidelines around sick leave have come into effect in some provinces. The following table outlines the most recent updates regarding sick leave as well as any provisions for COVID-19:
Jurisdiction
Provisions
Notes
Effective Date
10 days paid sick leave
- The Government of Canada amended the Canada Labour Code to provide up to 10 days of paid sick leave to all federal employees.
December 17, 2021
14 days unpaid sick leave
- No requirement of a specific term of employment or doctor's note.
- Applies to part-time and full-time workers but does not apply to the self-employed or contractors.
- Employers are not required to pay for sick time or time where an employee did not work or earn wages.
- Employees can request to use their available vacation pay or banked overtime.
- Employees can access this leave more than once, if necessary.
March 5, 2020
5 days paid sick leave
- Applies to full-time and part-time employees who have worked for their employer for at least 90 days.
- This sick leave includes reasons unrelated to COVID-19.
- It is in addition to the existing 3 days of unpaid sick leave available to employees.
January 1, 2022
5 days paid sick leave
- Manitoba Pandemic Sick Leave program provides employers with up to $600 per employee for up to five days of COVID-19-related sick leave.
- Employees must be resident in Manitoba and work and receive wages in Manitoba on a full or part-time basis.
- Employers can submit applications until April 15, 2022.
- Eligible sick leave related to COVID-19 includes testing, vaccinations and side effects, self-isolation due to COVID-19 symptoms, or care for a loved one in any of the previously mentioned circumstances.
May 7, 2021 - March 31, 2022
Unpaid sick leave
- All employees are entitled to an unpaid leave of absence related to COVID-19.
- Eligible employees are those under medical investigation, supervision or treatment related to COVID-19, acting in accordance with a public health measure, under quarantine or isolation, providing care or support to someone in a close family relationship, or are directly affected by COVID travel restrictions.
April 17, 2020
Unpaid sick leave
- The Newfoundland and Labrador Communicable Disease Emergency Leave provides workers with unpaid time off for reasons related to COVID-19.
- Employees are eligible if they are unable to perform their duties due to a public health order, medical illness, isolation, quarantine, family responsibility, and are affected by travel restrictions.
Unpaid sick leave
- Emergency Leave allows workers to access unpaid leave when they are unable to perform their duties because of an emergency, including COVID-19.
- The changes are retroactive to March 18, 2020.
July 1, 2021 (retroactive to March 18, 2020)
4 days paid sick leave
- Up to four paid sick days for individuals who cannot work remotely and miss less than 50% of their scheduled work time in a one-week period because of COVID-19.
- Employees can access this paid leave to get tested, vaccinated, self-isolate, or care for a family member.
December 20, 2021 - May 7, 2022
Nunavut
Unclear
Unclear
3 days paid sick leave
- Employers are required to provide eligible employees with up to three days of paid infectious disease emergency leave because of certain reasons related to COVID-19.
- Employees can access this paid leave to get tested, vaccinated, self-isolate, or care for a family member.
- Eligible employers who apply are entitled to be reimbursed the amount of infectious disease emergency leave pay that they paid to their employees, up to $200 per employee per day taken.
- Ontario’s Employment Standards Act, 2000 also provides for an unpaid infectious disease emergency leave with no specified duration.
April 29, 2021 - March 31, 2023
3 days paid sick leave
- COVID-19 Special Leave Fund is a temporary support only available to workers who do not qualify for the federal programs or do not have access to paid sick leave.
- The fund provides up to three days of wage supports for workers and self-employed people who are unable to work due to illness, COVID-19 testing or are required to self-isolate; have children under the age of 12 or family members in need of supervised care; do not qualify for the Canada Recovery Sickness Benefit or the Canada Recovery Caregiving Benefit; and do not have access to paid sick leave or the ability to work from home.
- The program continues to be available while the province remains under a public health emergency.
March 1, 2021 - March 31, 2023
2 days paid sick leave
- Employees who have three months of continuous employment can receive up to two paid sick days a year to take care of a relative or person for whom they act as an informal caregiver or in the case of sickness, including reasons unrelated to COVID-19.
- A worker may be absent for an extended period owing to an illness (including but not limited to COVID-19) for up 26 weeks without pay over a 12-month period.
Saskatchewan
12 days unpaid sick leave
- No paid sick leave
- On November 15, 2021, the Saskatchewan NDP introduced Private Member’s Bill 6062 to amend The Saskatchewan Employment Act to provide for paid sick leave.
- If the legislation passes, it will require employers to provide employees with 10 days of paid leave in a 52-week period or 14 days of paid leave in a 52-week period during a state of emergency related to a communicable disease.
10 days paid sick leave
- The Paid Sick Leave Rebate gives employers reimbursement for up to 10 days’ wages paid to full-time or part-time workers who were unable to work because they were sick with COVID-19 or were self-isolating or caring for other household members.
- Self-employed individuals are also eligible for the rebate. The program runs between April 1, 2021 to September 30, 2022.
- The government also introduced a new 14-day unpaid leave.
- Under the new regulation, an employee is entitled to a leave without pay for a period of up to 14 days when employees or someone in their care are ordered to follow a health protection measure.
- This unpaid leave complements the Yukon government’s program supporting employers who wish to offer the 10-day COVID-19 related paid sick leave.
April 1, 2021 -March 31, 2023 (Paid Sick Leave Rebate)
Disclaimer: The information provided in this guide is for informational purposes only. It is not professional financial or legal advice nor is it intended to be a substitute therefore. Where there are discrepancies between the guide and information provided by the federal government, provincial government, or the Canadian Revenue Agency (CRA) or Revenu Québec, defer to the guidelines provided by the governing agencies.