Recently proposed amendments to British Columbia's Employment Standards Act may eliminate, or significantly alter, the right of employers to require their employees to produce medical notes for short-term, health-related leaves in British Columbia.
Employers commonly request medical documentation when employees take short-term leaves due to illness or injury ("health-related leaves"). As we discussed in a previous post, provincially-regulated employers in British Columbia must provide eligible employees with five days of paid leave and three days of unpaid leave, annually, for absences related to health, illness or injury.1 If requested by an employer, employees currently must provide reasonable proof of entitlement to such leaves, typically in the form of a medical note.2
On April 15, 2025, the Ministry of Labour introduced Bill 11, the Employment Standards Amendment Act, 2025, which may change an employer's right to request medical notes. If enacted, Bill 11 will prohibit employers from requesting, and relieve employees from having to provide, medical notes (in certain, yet-to-be-determined "specified circumstances") in connection with short-term leaves for health, illness, or injury of an employee or prescribed individuals. Under Bill 11, the specifics regarding the "specified circumstances" and "prescribed individuals" covered by this prohibition will be established in the future through new regulations.
If enacted as it currently reads, Bill 11 will mark a significant shift in the management of employee health-related leaves, and will necessitate amendments to employers' policies and practices relating to attendance and leaves.
Although Bill 11 has only progressed through its first reading, the BC government anticipates that the amendment and its related regulations will come into effect by the fall of 2025.3 We will continue to provide timely information on this and other legislative developments that could impact workplace practices. If enacted, this would bring BC's regime closer to other Canadian jurisdictions, such as, for example, federally regulated employees governed by the Canada Labour Code or employees in Québec who already have similar types of protections.
For any inquiries regarding how these potential legislative changes may affect your workplace, please reach out to a member of our Labour & Employment team.
Footnotes
1. Employment Standards Act, RSBC 1996, c 113, s. 49.1; Employment Standards Regulation, BC Reg 396/95, s. 45.031.
2. Employment Standards Act, RSBC 1996, c 113, s. 49.1(2).
3. Ministry of Labour, BC Government News Release, April 15, 2025.
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