Government Mandates Paid COVID-19 Vaccination Leave

The BC government has passed an amendment to the Employment Standards Act requiring employers to provide up to three hours paid leave to be vaccinated against COVID-19.

Under the amendment, when an employee requests leave from work to be vaccinated, employers must pay their average hourly wage for the hours that they are on leave up to a maximum of three hours.

For employees with variable hours or pay, the average hourly wage is calculated by taking the total amount of wages and vacation pay (excluding overtime) paid within the preceding 30 calendar days divided by the number of hours worked within that 30 calendar day period.

The amendment is effective as of April 19, 2021, so any employees who required leave since that date may be entitled to pay for the hours of work they required to receive a vaccine dose.

An employer may request reasonable proof that the employee required the leave to receive a COVID-19 vaccine dose e.g. proof of an appointment. However, they cannot specifically request a note from a medical professional.

We would be happy to discuss any questions you may have about this new and first ever ESA paid leave.

You can contact us at:

Geoffrey Howard, ghoward@howardlaw.ca 604 424-9686

Sebastian Chern, schern@howardlaw.ca 604 424-9688