PeopleMuster

Sick leave policy template

A sick leave policy tells people what to do on the morning they wake up ill: who to tell, by when, and what happens to their pay. The template below covers sickness only, in ten short sections, so it can sit beside your main leave policy without repeating it.

Adopt it when sick days are handled case by case and managers answer the same questions differently. Review it once a year alongside your leave quotas. Where local rules set a higher minimum for sick pay or notice than the figures you choose, the higher figure applies, so check them before you publish.

[COMPANY NAME]
SICK LEAVE POLICY

Version: [POLICY VERSION]    Effective from: [EFFECTIVE DATE]
Owner: [POLICY OWNER]


1. PURPOSE
This policy explains how to report sickness, how much paid sick leave you have, and how we support you when you come back.

2. WHO IT COVERS
All employees of [COMPANY NAME], full-time and part-time, from their first day. [CONTRACTOR RULE]

3. SICK LEAVE ALLOWANCE
You have [SICK DAYS PER YEAR] days of paid sick leave in each leave year, which runs from [LEAVE YEAR START]. Part-time employees receive the same allowance in proportion to their working days. Unused sick days [CARRY-OVER RULE].

4. REPORTING SICKNESS
Tell [REPORT TO] as early as you can, and no later than [REPORTING DEADLINE] on your first day of absence. Call or message directly; an email to a shared inbox is not enough on its own. Say roughly how long you expect to be away and whether any work needs covering today.

5. STAYING IN TOUCH
If you're off for more than [CHECK-IN DAYS] days, your manager will check in with you every [CHECK-IN FREQUENCY]. The call is to see how you are and plan your return, not to ask you to work.

6. EVIDENCE
You don't need a note for absences of up to [SELF-CERT DAYS] days in a row. For a longer absence, send a note from a doctor or other health professional to [EVIDENCE CONTACT] by [EVIDENCE DEADLINE].

7. PAY DURING SICK LEAVE
Days within your allowance are paid at your normal rate. Once the allowance is used, further sick days are [BEYOND ALLOWANCE RULE]. Sickness during booked annual leave [ANNUAL LEAVE RULE].

8. RETURNING TO WORK
After every absence, your manager will hold a short return-to-work conversation on your first day back. For a longer absence, we'll agree any changes that help you return, such as [ADJUSTMENT EXAMPLES], for a set period.

9. REPEATED OR LONG-TERM ABSENCE
If you have [TRIGGER SPELLS] or more separate absences in [TRIGGER PERIOD] months, or one absence longer than [LONG-TERM DAYS] days, [POLICY OWNER] will meet you to talk about support. This meeting is about your health and your work, and you may bring a colleague.

10. RECORDS AND PRIVACY
We record the dates of each absence and the short reason you give. Medical notes are kept by [RECORD KEEPER] only, apart from your general employee file, and are shared with your manager only as far as they need to plan work.

Questions about this policy go to [POLICY OWNER] at [CONTACT EMAIL].

What to put in each blank

[SICK DAYS PER YEAR]
Choose a number of days, such as 5 or 10, and use the same figure as the sick leave type in your leave records.
[REPORTING DEADLINE]
Set a clock time tied to the start of the working day, such as one hour after start. A time people can remember gets followed.
[SELF-CERT DAYS]
Pick how many days in a row someone can be off without a note, often two or three. Too short a limit fills clinics with people who have a cold.
[CARRY-OVER RULE]
Say plainly whether unused sick days roll into next year, for example 'do not carry over' or 'carry over up to 5 days'.
[BEYOND ALLOWANCE RULE]
State what happens once paid sick days run out, such as 'taken from annual leave if you choose, or unpaid'.
[ANNUAL LEAVE RULE]
Decide whether a sick day during a holiday is swapped back to sick leave, and what evidence that needs. Write the rule once so every manager gives the same answer.
[TRIGGER SPELLS]
Choose the number of separate absences that starts a support meeting, such as three. Use the same figure in your absence tracker.

Before you send it

  • Keep the sick leave allowance and your leave records in step. When the policy says 10 days and the leave system shows 5, people trust neither.
  • Write section 4 so it can be followed at 7am from bed. A phone number or a named person works; 'contact the appropriate manager' doesn't.
  • Train managers on sections 8 and 9 before the policy goes live. The return-to-work chat is where most of the value is, and it goes wrong when it feels like an interrogation.
  • Local rules on sick pay, notes and medical records differ by country and change over time. Check the figures you choose against them before you publish.

PeopleMuster publishes the sick leave policy beside your others, by category, and answers staff questions from its text

Questions people ask about this letter

What should a sick leave policy include?

A sick leave policy should cover who it applies to, the yearly allowance, how and when to report sickness, when a note is needed, pay during sick leave, the return-to-work conversation and how records are kept. The template above has all of these in 10 sections.

How many sick days should a company give per year?

Many companies set between 5 and 10 paid sick days a year, then check that figure against any minimum that applies where they operate. Whatever you pick, use the same number in the policy and in your leave records.

When should an employee need a medical note for sick leave?

Most policies ask for a note once an absence runs past two or three days in a row. Shorter absences are covered by the employee's own word, which saves everyone a clinic visit for a cold.

Is a sick leave policy different from a leave policy?

Yes. A leave policy covers every type of time off, while a sick leave policy covers only illness: reporting, evidence, pay and returning to work. Many teams keep both, with the leave policy pointing to this one for sickness.

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