Frequent Sick Leaves: Can We Legally Mark Them as Unpaid Without Issues?

Hi,

In our company, one employee takes frequent leaves every month and claims it as sick leave (SL), for which his manager warns him every month, but he still continues the same. This time, they mentioned that it will be treated as loss of pay and not sick leave.

I want to understand if this action will create any legal impact for the company if we mark him as loss of pay by ignoring his sick leave balance. Can it be done, or is there any alternate solution to deal with it?

Kindly help with your thoughts.

Dear Naveen, leave is only a welfare measure in the realm of employment to enable every employee to discharge their personal and social obligations, like any other member of civilized society. As such, leave, in general, cannot be claimed by any employee as a matter of right under any labor law. Therefore, an inherent discretion is always bestowed on the employer regarding whether to sanction the leave applied for, subject to work exigencies.

Types of Leave

However, the employer's discretion is also defined based on reasonableness by classifying leaves into various types such as Casual Leave, Sick Leave, Earned Leave, and others, depending on the type of industrial establishment, and sometimes through Collective Bargaining Agreements. Thus, there is no straightforward answer to effectively handle the issue of any particular employee frequently availing leave of a specific type.

Handling Frequent Sick Leave

If an employee frequently goes on sick leave despite having sufficient leave credits, it may indicate a feigned reason to avoid seeking prior sanction. The warning letter mentioned in the post is a reasonable response. If the behavior persists, the requested leave can be denied, and the absence may be considered unauthorized, leading to loss of pay and a break in service, subject to the presence of such a clause in the applicable service regulations or standing orders.

In addition to the valid points shared by our Senior Member, Umakanthan Sir, I suggest that in case of repetition from the employee even after the issue of a warning, please inform him through a letter that in case of further medical/sick leave, he will be required to appear before the Medical Practitioner appointed by the Company. The practitioner will diagnose his health and certify the genuineness of his sickness. If you have certified Standing Orders, they should have clauses reserving the right of the Company.