Overview
- Employers cannot require a doctor’s note for a worker’s first two health‑related absences of five consecutive days or fewer in a calendar year.
- The regulations took effect Wednesday under changes enabled by Bill 11 passed earlier this year.
- The new rules set a provincial minimum and apply to employees covered by B.C.’s Employment Standards Act.
- Health‑related absences include when an employee or an immediate family member is sick or injured.
- The government says the policy follows advice from health‑care providers citing evidence that most minor adult illnesses resolve within about five days.