Can I take time off work for emergencies other than sickness?
Ontario's (ESA) says that some workers can take time off for certain kinds of emergencies and keep their job.
The time off is called a leave of absence or a leave.
Types of leaves
This question covers:
- bereavement leave
- domestic or sexual violence leave
- child death leave
- crime-related child disappearance leave
- organ donor leave
- reservist leave
You may also be able to take a leave for other reasons, including if you're:
Getting paid
The ESA says that your employer must pay you for the first 5 days of domestic or sexual violence leave each year. Step 3 explains the rules about getting paid for domestic or sexual violence leave.
For all the other leaves, your employer does not have to pay you.
But you might have the right to get paid if:
- you're in a union
- you have a workplace policy or employment contract that gives you this right
You might also be able to get money from programs that help people on one of these leaves.
Getting benefits
While you're on a leave of absence, your employer must give you the same benefits that you got when you were working, such as:
- pension plans
- life insurance plans
- health and dental plans
Going back to work
When your leave of absence ends, your employer must give you your job back or give you a job that's like your old one. But you can still lose your job for reasons that are not related to your leave. For example, this could happen if your employer goes out of business.
Your pay
When you return to your job, your employer must pay you the same amount that you earned before.
Or, if your pay would have gone up if you had worked instead of taking a leave, your employer must pay you that amount.