Greater Vernon Chamber of Commerce calling for amendments to B.C.’s paid sick leave – Okanagan
British Columbia 1 year old employer paid sick leave Needs a rule fix.
The Greater Vernon Chamber of Commerce (GVCC) said it recently surveyed its members and found concerns from some companies that its rules were being abused.
read more:
British Columbia’s New Paid Sick Leave Policy Takes Effect
Dan Prue, General Manager of the Greater Vernon Chamber of Commerce, said:
“However, it became clear during our research that paid sick leave poses challenges for private sector and non-profit employers in terms of staffing levels and costs.”
The state enacted a rule on January 1, 2022, requiring employers to now provide eligible employees with up to five days of paid sick leave.
The state states that an employer may reasonably require sufficient proof of illness and that the employee must have worked for the employee for at least 90 days to be eligible.
The Chamber says it needs to amend its rules to be more efficient and more transparent and will reach out to Vernon-Monashee MLA Harwinder Sandhu.
“It is also clear that there is no clarity on when sick leave or absences can be taken. Unfortunately, this is misleading and in some cases leads to abuse.”
In stating its position, the GVCC said, “Many of our survey respondents indicated that some employees were treating their paid sick leave as a day off and were even willing to bank it for vacation. I will.”
We plan to request the following rule changes.
- Some form of proof of illness should be identified, such as a doctor’s note.
- Employer-paid sick leave is pro-rated to part-time or temporary staff.
- Employer coverage for paid sick leave, possibly through WorkSafeBC.
However, in December, the BC Labor Federation said paid sick leave should be 15 days instead of 5.
“The reality is we know five days is not enough,” BCFL President Suzanne Skidmore told Global News.
“Five days is just one sickness, and it only happens once a year, as we see in the growing number of health problems today.”
© 2023 Global News, a division of Corus Entertainment Inc.
