North Carolina Labor Laws of Excused Sick Days
- There are laws relating to excused sick day that employers must comply with.sick woman image by forca from Fotolia.com
Employees are notorious for taking advantage of a company's policy on unexcused sick leave by skipping work on a day when they are not actually ill or injured. You have probably taken at least one "sick" day in your career. However, legitimate and excused sick days are another issue. In North Carolina, laws relating to excused sick days are clearly stated in the labor law code. - An excused sick day is defined as an absence from work due to illness or injury that is verified by an authorized doctor's excuse. Any absence from work that is not accompanied by a signed note from a doctor is considered an unexcused absence. Individual employers may also have other requirements and qualifications for an excused sick day.
- Pay for an excused sick day is considered a wage benefit, just like vacation pay, holiday pay or jury duty compensation; under North Carolina labor law, employers are not required to pay any of these benefits. Payment for sick day is purely at the discretion of the employer. However, if the employer does agree to pay for excused sick days, that agreement must be in writing and made available to the employee. The employer is legally held to that contract. Most employers in North Carolina do cover wage benefits such as paid sick leave. The employer is free to determine how many excused sick days will be paid under the worker agreement. An employer must make this information available to its employees.
- Most employers allow a certain number of unexcused, paid sick days to employees. If an employee is found to be abusing the policy on sick days by taking an excessive amount of sick days or not providing doctor's excuses, the employer is free to penalize the worker in the manner described in the worker's contract or company policy. Employers can also offer different benefits (or no benefits) to part-time workers. If an employer pays a reduced rate during the time the employee is out, this information must be provided to the employee beforehand and not changed after the sick day.
