Sick Leave While on Holiday

What are the correct procedures when dealing with employee illness while they are on annual leave? 

It has been established in UK employment law for a number of years that an employee unfit for work before a period of paid annual leave is due to begin is entitled to take that leave at another time if they wish. It also follows that a worker who falls ill during their holidays should be allowed to take annual leave for the period of sickness at another time. The European Court of Justice has only recently clarified this, stating that whether an employee falls ill before or during their annual leave period is largely irrelevant. They are entitled to take the period of annual leave at another time, even if that means carrying forward the period of holiday into the next leave year*. The UK Government is planning to amend the Working Time Regulations 1998 to take account of the ECJ case law in this area.

In order to manage this kind of situation effectively, it is important that any sick leave taken within a period of annual leave should be managed within the company's normal procedures and clarified in the company’s sickness and holiday policy.

An employee who becomes sick or injured while on holidays should follow the same reporting procedure as they would during a normal working day. If your sickness policy states that employees must notify their line manager prior to a certain time in the morning on the first day of sickness absence, this should also apply while on holiday. It may not always be possible to do so depending on the illness, but the employee should inform their manager of illness as soon as reasonably possible when on annual leave. If your sickness policy requires self-certification or a doctor’s certificate and a return to work interview after a period of illness, the same should apply to sickness absence during planned leave.

It is not unreasonable to request employees to provide evidence of illness on their return to work from annual leave. Medical evidence showing the employee would have been unfit for work will suffice. There is no current ruling on this requirement in UK employment law, therefore employers are entitled to request employees to provide evidence of illness, clearly showing they would have been unfit for work, before allowing them to reallocate their annual leave.

It may not always be possible to provide this evidence if the illness was short-lived or a medical professional was unavailable. In this instance, it is entirely discretionary if you wish to take employees at their word. You are not obliged to do so, but if you do, it is imperative that all decisions are made as fairly as possible to avoid any claims of discrimination.

To avoid misunderstanding and ensure every case is treated in the same manner, it is important to clearly state your company’s procedures for managing sickness during annual leave in both the Sickness and Holiday policy in your company handbook. 

*The carry-over entitlement only applies to the statutory 4-week annual leave allowance under European law. If you choose to give employees a more generous allowance, any additional leave above the statutory allowance is not required to be carried over.     

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