BC employers should be aware of new rules regarding employee sick notes that have come into effect in BC as part of the BC Employment Standards Act. 

Under BC law, employees can take up to 5 paid days and 3 unpaid days of job-protected leave per calendar year for sick/illness days (after working for an employer for 90 days). 

Previously, the law allowed employers to request “reasonably sufficient proof” that an employee is sick.  Under the new employment standards regulations, employers now can’t request a doctor's/sick note and employees are not required to provide one, for a worker’s first two health-related, short-term absences of five consecutive days or fewer in a calendar year.   

In short, you can only ask for a doctor's note if an employee's time off sick is longer than 5 days or they've already have 2 short-term sick leaves in a year. 

For more information on BC's Employment Standards Act, consult the provincial website here >