Sick leave in Israel: how does it work?

Sick leave in Israel, in brief

1. An employee accumulates 18 days of sick leave per year. (1.5 days per month).
2. If you are absent from work due to illness, you will be paid as follows:
   1. Day 1: 0%.
   2. Second and third day: 50%.
   3. From day 4: 100%.
3. Sick leave is deducted from the first day. (Even if you are not paid for this day of absence).
4. An employee may not convert unused sick leave into cash. (Unless otherwise stipulated in a labor or collective agreement applicable to that employee).

Sick leave in Israel

Sick leave in Israel is an employee's right to be absent due to illness. Sickness is defined by law as a temporary or permanent inability of the employee to perform his or her work. This incapacity must be certified by a doctor. The employer may not dismiss an employee who is absent from work due to illness during the period in which the employee is absent. However, this period cannot exceed the amount of sick leave remaining to the employee. In other words, if a person falls ill for a long period (say, 60 days), and has "only" 35 days of sick leave left, the person's employer will be entitled to dismiss him/her from the 36th day of leave.

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See also: What are the employer's obligations in Israel?

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How do I accumulate sick leave in Israel?

• An employee accumulates 1.5 days of sick leave for each month of full-time work for the same employer at the same place of work. That's 18 days a year.
• It is important to note that an employee may not accumulate more than 90 days of sick leave in one year. Israel.
• For an employee who has not worked the entire month for the same employer (part-time work, for example), accrual will be as follows:

Case 1 : An employee in a workplace that is accustomed to working 5 days a week:

• During the month of August (22 working days), the employee worked for the employer for 10 days.
• The employee will therefore have accumulated 0.69 days of sick leave, calculated as follows: 0.69 = 1.5 X 10/22.

Case 2: An employee in a workplace who usually works 6 days a week.

• In August, the employee worked for the employer for 10 days.
• The employee will have accumulated 0.6 sick days in the same month, calculated as follows: 0.6 = 10/25 x 1.5.

Caring for a family member

Employees can use their sick days to care for a child, spouse or parent. Without going into detail, here is a non-exhaustive list of cases where you can use your sick leave for a family member:

• Your spouse is ill (you can use up to 6 days per year).
• Birth of your spouse. (Up to 7 days per year).
• Illness of your child under 16 (up to 8 days per year; if you are a single parent, 16 days per year).
• Illness of a parent (up to 6 days per year).

In other words, you are entitled to use your sick leave for one of the cases listed above. Provided, of course, that you can prove that the person requiring treatment was genuinely ill (medical certificate). In this case, payment for your work will be calculated as if you had been ill yourself (0% on the first day, 50% on the following 2 days and 100% from the 4th day onwards).

How can I use my sick leave in Israel?

• Days are automatically added to your payslip.
• An employee whose employer has allegedly refused him payment for a period of sickness is entitled to claim damages under Israel's Sick Leave Law.
• The employer is not entitled to deduct employee vacation days in lieu of available sick days. (Unless requested by the employee).
• If an employee is absent from work due to illness, and has run out of sick days, there are several options:

• The employer has the right (but not the obligation) to pay an employee on the basis of future sick days accumulated.
• Employees may request that their absence be deducted from their annual vacation.
• The employee may ask the employer to take unpaid leave.

Unused sick leave

Unused sick leave cannot be converted into cash. If they have not been used, they will be lost. As a reminder, you can accumulate up to 90 days of sick leave. Dray & Dray wishes you the best of health, and that you never need to use up your sick leave.[/vc_column_text][/vc_column][/vc_row]