Canada Labour Code

Marginal note:Entitlement to leave

• 239.01 (1) Subject to subsection (2), every employee is entitled to and shall be granted a leave of absence from employment of up to 16 weeks — or, if another number of weeks is fixed by regulation, that number of weeks — if the employee is unable or unavailable to work for reasons related to the coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19).

• Marginal note:Notice to employer

  (2) An employee who intends to take a leave of absence under this Division must, as soon as possible, give written notice to the employer of the reasons for the leave and the length of the leave that they intend to take.

• Marginal note:Change in length of leave

  (3) An employee must, as soon as possible, give written notice to the employer of any change in the length of the leave of absence taken under this Division.

• Marginal note:Written declaration

  (4) The employer may require an employee to provide a written declaration in support of the reasons for the leave of absence taken under this Division and of any change in the length of that leave.

• Marginal note:Employment opportunities

  (5) An employee is entitled, on written request, to be informed in writing of every employment, promotion or training opportunity that arises during the period when the employee is on a leave of absence under this Division and for which the employee is qualified, and on receiving that request, the employer must provide the information to the employee.

• Marginal note:Prohibition

  (6) Subject to subsection (7), an employer is prohibited from dismissing, suspending, laying off, demoting or disciplining an employee because the employee intends to take or has taken a leave of absence under this Division or taking such an intention or absence into account in any decision to promote or train the employee.

• Marginal note:Exception

  (7) An employer may assign to a different position, with different terms and conditions of employment, any employee who, after a leave of absence under this Division, is unable to perform the work performed by the employee prior to the absence.

• Marginal note:Benefits continue

  (8) The pension, health and disability benefits and the seniority of an employee who is absent from work due to a leave of absence under this Division accumulate during the entire period of the leave.

• Marginal note:Contributions by employee

  (9) If contributions are required from an employee in order for the employee to be entitled to a benefit referred to in subsection (8), the employee is responsible for and must, within a reasonable time, pay those contributions for the period of any leave of absence under this Division unless, at the commencement of the absence or within a reasonable time after, the employee notifies the employer of the employee’s intention to discontinue contributions during that period.

• Marginal note:Contributions by employer

  (10) An employer who pays contributions in respect of a benefit referred to in subsection (8) must continue to pay those contributions during an employee’s leave of absence under this Division in at least the same proportion as if the employee were not absent, unless the employee does not pay the employee’s contributions, if any, within a reasonable time.

• Marginal note:Failure to pay contributions

  (11) For the purposes of calculating the pension, health and disability benefits of an employee in respect of whom contributions have not been paid as required by subsections (9) and (10), the benefits do not accumulate during the leave of absence under this Division and employment on the employee’s return to work is deemed to be continuous with employment before the employee’s absence.

• Marginal note:Deemed continuous employment

  (12) For the purposes of calculating benefits, other than benefits referred to in subsection (8), of an employee who is absent from work due to a leave of absence under this Division, employment on the employee’s return to work is to be deemed to be continuous with employment before the employee’s absence.

• Marginal note:Regulations

  (13) The Governor in Council may, by regulation,

  • (a) define terms for the purposes of this Division; and

  • (b) fix a number of weeks for the purpose of subsection (1).