BC moves to bring their Serious Injury or Illness Leave in line with most other Canadian provinces with the introduction of Bill 30. Introduced on October 20, 2025, Bill 30 would amend the Employment Standards act (ESA) to increase the length of unpaid Serious Illness or Injury Leave to 27 weeks in a 52-week period. This pushes the province ahead of Alberta and Quebec, who provide 16 and 26 weeks, respectively, for such leave.

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The new Serious Illness or Injury Leave introduced by Bill 30 is in addition to employer’s obligations under the BC Human Rights Code and expressly includes job protections, where employees must be reinstated to their pre-leave positions (or comparable) once they return to work.

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The new entitlements, available to employees covered by the ESA, can be used across multiple periods of at least one weeks, allowing employees who are managing episodic diseases or are undergoing recurrent treatments (e.g., dialysis).

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There is no minimum length of service for employees to be entitled to this leave, but they will need to provide medical documentation confirming their inability to work due to medical reasons and specifying the dates when leave is required.

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Employers should monitor any developments regarding Bill 30, as workplace policies will need to be reviewed and updated the bill were to come into effect.

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You can track the status of Bill 30 here.

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