A ready-to-adapt sick leave policy covering the paid allowance, notification rules, documentation, pay, and privacy. Use it to set clear, humane expectations for illness-related absence.
This policy explains how sick leave works at {{Company name}}: how much time is available, how to report an absence, and what documentation may be requested. It exists so that people can recover from illness without pressure to work, and so that teams can plan around absences with minimal disruption.
All employees are eligible for sick leave from their first day of work. Each employee receives {{Number of paid sick days per year}} paid sick days per calendar year, {{Accrual method, e.g. accrued monthly or granted up front}}. Sick leave covers your own illness, injury, or medical appointments that cannot be scheduled outside working hours, and caring for an immediate family member who is ill, up to {{Number of caregiver days per year}} days per year.
No documentation is required for absences of up to {{Number of consecutive days}} consecutive working days. For longer absences, {{Company name}} may request reasonable documentation, such as a medical certificate confirming that you were unfit to work and the expected duration. You are never required to disclose a diagnosis or other medical details.
Paid sick days are paid at your regular rate through normal payroll. If you exhaust the paid allowance, additional absence is handled case by case with {{HR contact}} and may be unpaid or drawn from another leave type where available.
If an illness lasts longer than {{Extended-leave threshold, e.g. ten working days}}, or short absences form a recurring pattern, {{HR contact}} will arrange a private conversation to discuss support: adjusted duties, a longer leave arrangement, or other accommodations. The purpose of that conversation is support, not discipline.
Sick leave is recorded in {{HR system name}} for payroll and planning. Health-related information is treated as confidential, stored separately from general personnel records, and shared only with the people who administer leave. Managers are told that an absence is sick leave — not the reason behind it.
Jurisdiction note
Paid sick-leave entitlements, accrual and carryover rules, limits on requesting medical certification, and interactions with protected medical or family leave vary significantly by jurisdiction. Have local counsel review the allowance, documentation, and pay provisions before adopting this policy.
Not legal advice
This template is provided for general informational purposes only and is not legal advice. Laws differ by jurisdiction and change over time — have a qualified professional review any document before you rely on it.
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