Can I take time off work if a family member is sick or injured?
Ontario's says that some workers can take time off to care for a family member who's sick or injured and keep their job.
The time off is called a leave of absence or a leave.
Types of leaves
This question covers:
- family responsibility leave
- infectious disease emergency leave
- family caregiver leave
- family medical leave
- critical illness leave
To be able to take one of these leaves, the Employment Standards Act must apply to your job. You may also be able to take a leave for other reasons, including:
- you're sick or injured
- someone in your family has died
- you or your child has experienced domestic or sexual violence
- you have another kind of personal emergency
Getting paid
Your employer does not have to pay you while you're on one of these leaves.
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. For example, you might be able to get special benefits from Employment Insurance (EI) if you take time off to care for someone who's sick.
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 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.