How Should I Handle Leave Approval When an Employee Lacks a Medical Document?

Dear all seniors,

Please help me make a genuine decision. Our company allows 1 sick leave and 1 casual leave per month. One of our employees took two days' leave due to his illness and fever. He did not consult a doctor for his illness.

According to our leave policy, I can only approve the leave if he submits a medical document. Otherwise, it should be considered a casual leave. As per our company's leave policy, his leave will not be sanctioned unless he submits a medical document, resulting in a loss of two days' salary for him.

Please advise me on how to proceed in this situation. Is there any possibility of changing one sick leave to a casual leave?

I am looking forward to your comments.

Thank you,
Soju

As per policy, the company will ask for a medical certificate only if an employee takes three or more leaves. In many companies, sick leave and casual leave are credited on a yearly basis. You can deduct two days of leave from his sick leave balance. Hope this information helps you.

Thank you for your response.

Please review our company's leave policy.

What should I do in this particular condition?

A medical document for us means a doctor's prescription; a document will suffice.

Thank you,
Soju

Waiting for your comments.

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Offer to charge 2 casual leave days since he does not have medical documentation. If he doesn't wish to forfeit the 2 casual days, then he will have his salary docked for the 2 days. This will support your company's requirement to obtain medical documentation when off work due to illness.

Thank you for your advice.

Here in our leave policy, there is no mention of converting sick leave into casual leave. I believe we need to adjust the policy accordingly. Currently, our company provides only 1 casual leave per month, not 2 as mentioned. We welcome further comments on this matter.

Dear Sojuloyola,

We do have the same policies as you. It is quite understandable on the person's level that he might be sick and isn't able to provide any medical document from the doctor. Ask him to submit any medical prescription or a bill which states that he has taken some medicine for his illness.

Nowadays, it is too obvious that people take sick leave as they need to apply for any other kind of leaves. Ask him to submit any proof of his illness as it needs to be as per the company policy. Then that is his job how to produce it. You need to stick to what the norms of your organization have.

Hope I have added some value to your question.

Regards,
Neha Khale

Dear Soju,

If you have a company policy that allows for 1 sick leave per month, it is considered best practice, and your company is providing more leaves than required. Considering the social aspect, if someone has a minor illness that does not require a doctor's visit and is not prolonged, I believe it should be granted.

I agree with Mr. Kapi that if an employee takes more than 3 days off due to a serious or fatal illness, then medical certificates are necessary. Sometimes, short-term sickness can also be noticeable, causing discomfort while at work.

Additionally, I suggest changing the maternity benefits to cover all childbirths, not just the first two. It would be beneficial to specify the ESI coverage for those included under ESI and ensure sick leave benefits are provided to them. Regarding PL, it is recommended to grant 1 leave for every 20 working days.

Best Regards,
Sajid Ansari - Delhi

Dear Soju,

If you have a company policy that allows for 1 sick leave per month, it falls under best practice, and your company is providing more leaves than required. Considering the social aspect, if somebody falls ill but does not visit a doctor and the illness is not prolonged, I believe it should be granted. I agree with Mr. Kapi; if an individual takes more than 3 days off due to a serious or fatal illness, then a medical certificate is necessary. Sometimes, short-term sickness can also be evident, causing discomfort while at work.

Best Regards,
Sajid Ansari - Delhi

Thanks a lot. My final decision is to adhere to our company policy. Since no extension is allowed, he will lose two days' salary if he fails to submit the document within this week.

Thanks,
Soju

Very good information. Please let me know if we can reduce casual and medical leave to 7 days each without breaching the provisions of laws.

Thanks, Niraj.

Some companies don't insist upon a medical certificate in case medical leave is taken for a single day because minor ailments like headaches and stomach pain, which an employee might have around the time of their leaving for work, might improve even before they go to a doctor.

Crediting 1 day of CL and 1 day of SL each month is not fair. Most companies provide credit for all CL and SL that employees are entitled to in a year at the beginning of the calendar year itself. This practice would help employees avoid loss of pay (LOP) at the start of the year. At the time of resignation, the leave entitlement until then is calculated on a pro-rata basis, and any leave taken in excess of that is considered as LOP, with the amount being recovered.

Sanu Soman

Dear Friends,

I agree with most of the comments which are in line with the practices in most of the organizations we work with. However, as per Government Rule (from which all the rules have originated - I believe) and the ESI Act, sick leave is admissible only in the case the absence is more than 3 days, and it should be supported by a proper medical certificate. Since in your organization leave entitlement is on a pro-rata basis, I suggest you insist on a medical certificate if the absence on medical grounds is more than 3 days. Still, in the absence less than 3 days, it can be accepted simply on a declaration that he/she was sick. However, if someone is availing sick leave that way regularly as a matter of habit, action can be taken, including that of seeking a second medical opinion regarding his/her illness as well as fitness to join duties by referring to a company-recognized medical practitioner/hospital.

Regards, R.N. Pratihari

Dear Sojuloyola,

After going through your Leave policy, it is observed that under the head of Maternity Leave, you have restricted the benefit of a maximum of 90 days only for the birth of two children. This is contrary to the Act. If it is restricted only for two children, please quote the section of the M B Act, 1961, for further examination of the matter at hand.

Just like you, some of the other members are also of the view that a probationer is not entitled to any kind of leave during the probation period. In my view, he is also covered in one of the categories of workmen/employees. He is entitled to have CL/SL/Maternity Leaves during the probation period.

As you must be aware, CL/SL are granted and regulated under either the State Shops & Commercial Establishment Act or the State Industrial Establishment (National & Festival Holidays and casual & Sick Leaves) Act. Sick Leaves and Maternity Leaves may also be taken under the ESI Act, 1948. Since you have not mentioned the relevant State Act, no comments can be provided regarding the grant of the number of leaves at a time, the procedure, and conditions of these leaves. It is essential to go through these Acts as they provide answers to these queries.

Opinions/comments submitted as requested. Now, it is up to you and your company whether you consider them or not.

Regards, R.N.Khola
Skylark Associates, Gurgaon (Haryana)
(Labour Law & Legal Consultants)
09810405361

You have not clearly explained the policy. "Allowing" means, are you allowing an employee to avail only one day of leave on account of sickness and one day of leave for a casualty, or can the employee earn one sick leave per month of his working? In that way, he earns 12 sick leaves and 12 casual leaves in a year. If he completes six months of service in your company, he gets six days of sick and casual leave to his credit.

Secondly, can your company allow the availing of leave by combining casual leave with sick leave? Some organizations do not allow this. Normally, a doctor's certificate is insisted upon for leaves exceeding three days. For one or two days, insisting on a doctor's certificate is ridiculous. Sometimes, discretion is the only correct policy. If you are confident in the assistant, then proceed with your discretion.

Casual leaves and sick leaves are calculated on a pro rata basis. Yes, you are correct that if your company gives one CL and SL per month, you need to deduct the salary. However, you can calculate his previous months' CL and SL balance. If he hasn't taken either of them in previous months, you can simply add them and maintain his CL and SL balance, which will overcome his LWP.

The leave policy designed by your company seems inhuman and needs modification on practical grounds. To my understanding, casual leave cannot be planned, and prior permission should not be required. Informing the superior or authority should suffice. Secondly, sick leave should be granted without a medical certificate, at least for two days, as many times you may not prefer to contact a doctor for small causes like ordinary fever, stomach ache, or diarrhea. Such policies disappoint employees who work hard for the company.

Dear Soju,

Leave policy varies from company to company. However, the ESI Act provides for compensation for the loss of pay due to medical leave. If your employees are covered under the ESI Act, you may not have to go for leave adjustments.

Regards,
Satyen

Dear,

In the present time, retaining quality is more important than haggling over one or two days. Assess how much he actually contributes to your company goals. Sit with him and ask him the real purpose for absenting himself. It is the man behind the machine that needs to be valued more than the procedures. Well, rules do have their place, but focus on objectives must not be lost. Look back into his performance in the last few years before taking any adverse action.

Hi Soju,

Frankly speaking, you need to look up your leave policy objectively and consider changing it. It is asking too much from an employee to submit a medical certificate or bills for medicine purchases to prove that they were ill for a day. I am sure you have also fallen ill for a day sometimes in your life and recovered without visiting a doctor or buying any medicine.

Since medical leave is a contingency-based leave, proof of illness will be necessary. However, you can always make it proof-free for two days. Beyond that, proof may be required. Generally, medical leaves are not converted into casual leave. Nowadays, casual leaves lapse at the end of the year and are not encashed. Therefore, many organizations allow unused casual leaves to be converted into medical leaves which may be used by the employee during their service tenure.

Best,
Jai

If we make the policy in that way, there would be a tendency to take frequent leaves by the employee. Anyway, I also have a thought of changing our policy a bit.

Regards,
Soju

Hi Seniors, In our company, we have a total of 6 CLs and 6 SLs per year. Our employees are using all the leaves in the first few months only without completion of 1 year (as leaves are given for 1 year). Is it the right method to deduct the leaves first and make LOP for the remaining months, or do we need to give the leaves on a monthly basis and carry forward any unused leaves to the next month?

Thanks & Regards,
Sravya

Hello All,

We have a company with 15 staff and a leave policy of 2 sick days every 6 months, totaling 4 annually. We are considering making medical certificates mandatory to prevent leave misuse. However, we understand that asking for a medical certificate for a single-day absence, such as for a headache or stomach ache, may be excessive.

Can you suggest what we should do regarding this matter?