Paid sick leave is a right under the Basic Conditions of Employment Act (BCEA), section 22. Every employee who works more than 24 hours a month is entitled to it, and the amount is more generous than most people realise.
How much sick leave
Over each three-year cycle (36 months), an employee is entitled to paid sick leave equal to the number of days they would normally work in six weeks.
- A five-day-week worker gets 30 days of paid sick leave per three-year cycle.
- A six-day-week worker gets 36 days.
This is not per year — it is a pool for the whole three-year cycle. When the cycle ends, a new one starts and the entitlement resets.
The first six months
There is a separate rule for a brand-new employee. During the first six months of employment, they get one day of paid sick leave for every 26 days worked (roughly one day a month). The full six-weeks entitlement kicks in once they pass six months.
Medical certificates
You may require a medical certificate before paying sick leave if the employee is:
- off for more than two consecutive days, or
- off on more than two occasions in an eight-week period.
The certificate must be from a registered medical practitioner. If the employee cannot produce one when it is fairly required, the employer is not obliged to pay for those days.
When sick leave runs out
Once an employee has used their full sick-leave entitlement for the cycle, further time off for illness is generally unpaid — unless you agree otherwise. Long-term illness is a separate situation with its own fair-process rules, and is worth getting advice on before acting.
Keeping the record
Sick leave disputes almost always come down to records: how many days were taken, and when. Tracking each sick day against the three-year cycle by hand is fiddly, which is why WageDesk keeps a running sick-leave balance for every worker and shows it on the payslip. See how WageDesk works, or read about annual leave and what must be on a payslip.