Protected Leave And Sick Leave: What Counts As "reasonably Sufficient Proof"?

The B.C. government has made amendments to the Employment Standards Act (the "Act") which received assent on March 23, 2020. Further amendments were announced on May 4, 2020. Perhaps the greyest area here is the proof employers may be able to require from employees when they claim leave due to COVID-19 related situations. We address that issue at the conclusion of this post with some options.

The amendments address:

• Extending the definition of "temporary lay off" from 13 weeks to 16 weeks.
• At Section 49.1, adding the right for employees (who have greater than 90 days of employment with one employer) to have up to 3 days of unpaid sick leave.
• At Section 52.12, the addition of a COVID-19 related leave.