Can an Employee Be Fired While on Sick Leave?

There is a common belief that an employee can't be fired or have their employment ended while on sick leave.

However, an employer can't fire an employee because they are on sick leave, but employment can still end during sick leave if there is another legal reason for it.

SICK LEAVE CAN'T BE A REASON FOR DISMISSAL

Being temporarily unable to work because of illness, a work-related injury, or an occupational illness is not, by itself, a valid reason for dismissal.

In simple terms, the fact that an employee is on sick leave can't be the reason for ending their employment.

However, this doesn't mean that an employee is protected from every possible reason for termination while on sick leave.

WHEN IS DISMISSAL STILL POSSIBLE?

If there is another legal reason for dismissal, the fact that an employee is on sick leave at that time doesn't automatically prevent the employment from being terminated.

One example is the misuse of sick leave.

So, it is important to make a clear difference between dismissal because of sick leave and dismissal for another legal reason while the employee is on sick leave.

What if a fixed-term contract expires during sick leave?

This is especially important for employees working under fixed-term contracts.

If a fixed-term contract expires while an employee is on sick leave, the employment can still end when the agreed contract period expires.

The employer is not required to extend the contract simply because the employee is on sick leave at the time it expires.

In this case, the employment is not ending because of sick leave, but because the fixed-term contract has reached its agreed end date.

ARE THERE ANY EXCEPTIONS?

Yes. Special rules apply to pregnant employees and employees using certain maternity or parental leave rights.

These employees have additional legal protection. When the conditions required by law are met, a fixed-term contract must be extended until the relevant leave or protected period ends.

For this reason, regular sick leave shouldn't be treated in the same way as the special legal protection related to pregnancy, maternity leave, and parental leave.

So, sick leave doesn't provide complete protection against the termination of employment. It simply means that being on sick leave cannot, by itself, be the reason for dismissal.

Each case should be considered separately, based on the reason for termination and the specific circumstances.