Medical Leave accommodation and additional information in a unionized environment

[vickyp]

#80193

Forum: Community

We receive medical notes for employees saying that they need to drop shifts for medical reasons.
The employee is often a full time (37.5 hours per week) employee which automatically accrues stat days and qualified them for benefits. If we get a medical note saying that they need to drop shifts, when can we ask for clarification for the request and can we drop them down to part-time status while they are on the reduced hours?

[vickyp]

#80194

Assuming that you’re subject to New Brunswick, as opposed to federal law: From our payroll expert, Alan McEwan:
So the short answer is that so long as the employee meets these conditions:

• The employee has at least 90 days of service, i.e. employment
• No more than 5 sick days taken as unpaid leave in any 12 month period
• There’s no provision in the collective agreement that overrides either the ESA provisions around sick leave or section 28 of the Act (which prohibits employer discrimination),

then the employer can’t change the person’s status from full time, i.e. with benefits, to part-time, i.e. without benefits or any other change in pay.
The employer is only able to ask for a note if the sick leave is 5 consecutive days

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