Disability, Illness & Medical Leave

Written By louise lu

Taking an extended period off work due to illness, injury, or disability can be incredibly stressful and emotional. Employees worry about job security, whether they are going to be fired, and how they will make an income while they are away from work. However, it is important to know that your employer must accommodate your condition and cannot take action against you because of it. In addition, there are a number of options available to you to ensure your financial well-being.


At Rousseau Mazzuca LLP in Toronto, our knowledgeable employment lawyers provide exceptional legal advice and help you to understand and navigate all of your options when you are sick, injured, or disabled. We can assist you in ensuring your rights are protected. We are empathetic and compassionate, but will assertively fight for you when necessary. Our goal is to empower our clients by helping them to fully understand their legal rights. We can assist with common questions such as:

  • Do I need a doctor’s note?

  • How much information about my illness, injury, disability, or condition do I need to share with my employer?

  • Can my employer contact my doctor directly to ask questions about me?

  • What if my employer does not believe that I am sick or injured?

  • Can I get fired for asking for an extended leave?

  • How much time can I take off? What if my benefits plan does not have short or long-term disability benefits or if I don’t have a benefits plan?

  • Once I am ready to return, what does my employer need to do to help me transition back to work?

ACCOMMODATION
Legally, your employer has the duty to accommodate your illness, injury, or disability to the point of “undue hardship”. This means that an employer cannot fire you as long as you can do the core duties of your job, or another available job. This is a hard test to meet.


If you are terminated while you are on leave, or injured, ill, or disabled, you have a number of options available, including filing a human rights complaint or suing. If your employer is not accommodating you, or has terminated you, you should contact a lawyer as soon as possible to discuss possibilities for moving forward and ensuring your rights and interests are protected.

MEDICAL LEAVE
Ontario’s Employment Standards Act provides employees with a number of unpaid, job-protected leaves, including personal emergency leave, which is an unpaid, job-protected leave of up to 10 days each year to be used in the case of personal illness, injury, or medical emergency.


In addition to this, your employment contract, collective agreement, or benefit plan may provide for additional sickness leaves or other leaves of absence, including short-term and long-term disability leaves. Above and beyond these protections, employers also need to accommodate disability-related absences as part of their obligations under human rights laws.

louise lu
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