Your initial assessment is generally correct. In jurisdictions such as Alberta, British Columbia, New Brunswick, Nova Scotia, Ontario, and Saskatchewan, statutory sick or illness leaves are primarily job-protected leave entitlements, while your organization’s 80-hour paid sick leave policy is a separate employer-provided benefit. In practice, when an employee takes time off due to illness, the absence should typically count against both the employer-paid sick leave bank and the applicable statutory leave entitlement at the same time, provided the reason for the absence qualifies under the provincial legislation.

This means that an employee who is absent due to a qualifying illness would generally receive pay from Harbor’s 80-hour sick leave bank first, while the corresponding statutory sick leave entitlement is tracked concurrently. The statutory leave is not normally deferred until after the paid bank is exhausted. Doing so could inadvertently provide employees with a longer period of protected leave than intended by the legislation and complicate compliance tracking.

Once the employee has exhausted their 80 hours of paid sick leave, any additional absence may become unpaid. However, the employee may still be entitled to job protection if they have remaining statutory sick leave entitlement available under their province’s employment standards legislation. Depending on the circumstances, they may also qualify for other protected leaves, such as long-term illness, critical illness, or disability-related accommodations under human rights legislation.

For Workday configuration purposes, many employers establish a paid sick leave plan that runs concurrently with statutory sick leave. The system deducts hours from the paid sick bank while simultaneously recording usage against the applicable provincial statutory leave. This approach helps ensure employees receive their paid entitlement first, maintains compliance with provincial job-protection requirements, and provides accurate reporting when paid time is exhausted but protected leave rights continue.

I hope this helps, let me know if you have any other questions!
-HRInsider Staff