How To Obtain Paid And Unpaid Time Off From Work For Health Reasons

Sick leave is time off from work with full pay and a continuation of all benefits if you can't show up because of your health. Sick leave is voluntarily provided by just about all employers.

Since no federal or state law requires employers to provide sick leave, the amount of time allowed for sick leave varies from employer to employer.

When looking at a sick leave plan, look for:

• How many days are you given each year? Sick leave programs are generally for a very limited period of time, such as 7 to 10 days a year.
• Is there a requirement about whether sick days must be taken at one time?
  • Can you take them over time?
  • If you can spread them out, what kind of spread? For example, a certain number of days per month?
• Can you carryover unused sick days from one year to the next? If so, what is the maximum you can accumulate?
• What paperwork is required? Many employers will require a statement from a doctor if an absence exceeds three days. Others will want one regardless.
• Does sick leave time apply to partial days? For Example: You have to miss a half day or two hours of work for a doctor's appointment. Some employers make you count that time as sick leave. Others only count it as sick leave if it exceeds a half-day off.
• Is confirmation of your illness from a health care provider required? If so, is it required once, or each time you take sick leave?

Sick leave programs are designed and administered by the employer directly. Because no insurance company or third party administrator is involved, there is usually some flexibility that is not included in the literature. As time goes by, you will learn just where and how far that flexibility extends.

Sick leave is generally started by a phone call to the employer. There are generally no special claim forms involved. Still, if you do go to the doctor, get a note while you are there confirming the visit to the doctor "just in case."

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