Sick leave is time off for an employee’s own illness or medical care, and often for caring for a sick family member. There is no general federal requirement for private employers to pay for it, but many states and cities require paid sick leave, and the FMLA protects longer unpaid absences.
In shortSick leave is leave from work because the employee is ill, injured or getting medical care, and in many policies and laws, to care for a family member who is. The Department of Labor says there are currently no federal legal requirements for paid sick leave, while the FMLA requires unpaid, job-protected leave for a serious health condition for eligible employees of covered employers. Federal contractors have their own paid sick leave rule. Most of the paid sick leave rules that private employers deal with come from states and cities. These laws usually set how fast sick time accrues, how much can be used or carried over each year, what it can be used for, how much notice an employee must give, when an employer can ask for a doctor’s note, and how the balance must be shown to the employee. Many also protect employees from being penalized for using sick time, which matters for attendance point systems. An employer can combine sick leave and vacation into one PTO bank, but in places with a sick leave law, the combined policy has to give at least what the law requires for sick time. Sick leave is generally not paid out at termination unless state law or the policy says so.
Layers of sick leave
Where sick leave rules come from
Source
Paid?
What it covers
FMLA
No, unpaid
Serious health conditions, up to 12 weeks for eligible employees
State and city paid sick leave laws
Yes
Accrual, use, carryover, notice and documentation rules
Sick time used under a paid sick leave law should not be counted against the employee.
Worked example: a sick day and an attendance policy
A point system that missed the law
A call center in a city with a paid sick leave law gives employees an attendance point for every unscheduled absence. An agent with a sick time balance of 14 hours calls in sick for an 8-hour shift and gets a point.
Under the local law, she is allowed to use her accrued sick time for her own illness, and the employer cannot count protected sick time against her. The point is removed, the 8 hours are paid from her balance, and her balance drops to 6 hours.
The call center changes its point system so that absences covered by accrued sick time are logged as sick leave, not as unscheduled absences. Supervisors now see the reason code when they review attendance, and the policy itself says which absences earn points and which do not.
Mistakes that are specific to sick leave
Assuming federal law requires paid sick leave, or that no law does.
Giving attendance points for sick days that a state or city law protects.
Asking for a doctor’s note sooner than the local law allows.
Folding sick leave into PTO with fewer hours than the sick leave law requires.
Not showing the sick leave balance where the law requires it, such as on the pay stub.
Building a sick leave policy that fits the law
List every state and city where you have employees, and the sick leave law in each.
Set accrual, use and carryover at least at the level each law requires.
Write the notice and doctor’s note rules within each law’s limits.
Give sick time its own reason code and keep it out of attendance points.
Show balances where employees can see them, such as on the pay stub where the law requires it.
Multi-state employers often choose one policy that meets the most generous law they are subject to, so managers do not need different rules for different stores. Others keep a base policy with a state addendum for each location.
Second example: a doctor’s note rule
A retail chain’s policy asks for a doctor’s note for any sick day. In one city where it operates, the local law allows a note only after more than three consecutive days of absence.
A cashier there is out sick for two days and is asked for a note. HR corrects the request, and the chain adds a line to its policy for that city: a note can be requested only after the period the local law allows. Managers in that city see the rule in their policy summary.
Give sick time its own reason codeEven with a combined PTO bank, record sick days with their own reason. It is the only way to prove later that a protected absence was not counted against someone.
Questions people ask
Is sick leave required by law?
Not under general federal law for private employers. Many states and cities require paid sick leave, and the FMLA provides unpaid leave for serious health conditions.
How is paid sick leave accrued?
It depends on the law or policy, usually a set number of hours for each block of hours worked, with yearly limits.
Can my employer ask for a doctor’s note?
Often yes, but many sick leave laws limit when, for example only after a certain number of consecutive days.
Is unused sick leave paid out when I leave?
Usually not, unless state law or the company policy says it is.
Can sick leave be used to care for a family member?
Under many state and city laws, yes, for family members the law defines. The FMLA also covers care for certain family members with a serious health condition.
Do part-time employees accrue sick leave?
Under many state and city laws, yes, usually based on hours worked. Company policy can also include them.
Disclaimer: This explanation of sick leave is general information, not legal, payroll or tax advice; rules differ by state and city and change over time, and the examples are fictional.
