FAQ's - Illness, work accidents and work related diseases

Illness, work accidents and work related diseases

• How many days do I have for a sick leave?

  During the first year, the sick-leave rights are two working days for each worked month. The employee therefore needs to complete each working month to be entitled to these days.
  After one year of employment with the same employer: 2 months during each 12-month period.
  After 5 years of employment with the same employer: 4 months during each 12-month period.
  After 10 years of employment with the same employer: 6 months during each 12-month period.

  However, employees who have earned the right to 4- or 6-months’ wages during sick leave with their previous employer and who change jobs shall be entitled to receive wages for not less than 2 months during each 12-month period with the new employer.
  If no sick day is used in the first year of employment, the sick-leave rights for 10 months are 20 days.

  An employee in a part-time job has the same rights; the sick-leave rights are not proportionate. Please note that employee's accrued rights could apply if employee is re-engaged, see more here.

• What is my pay during my sick days?

  Employees shall receive the same amount they would have received had they been working.
  
  

• Do employees need to submit a medical certificate in the case of illness or accident?

  If an employee falls ill or suffers an accident and is therefore unable to attend work, the employee must notify an immediate supervisor as soon as possible after such event. This should be done by telephone, or the means most commonly used. The employer will then decide whether a medical certificate will be required.

  If a medical certificate is required, the employer bears the cost for obtaining it. Parties operating according to VR’s or FA’s collective wage agreements are entitled to a reimbursement of the cost of the doctor’s visit.

  The same applies for the illness of children.

• What rules apply to illness/accidents during holiday?

  The employee is entitled to a compensation of the holiday for as long as the employee cannot enjoy the holiday due to illness or accident or if injuries because of the accident last longer than 3 days, provided that the notification obligation is fulfilled.

  The employee needs to notify the employer immediately on the first day that they cannot enjoy the holiday and specify the doctor from which they will obtain a medical certificate.

• What are the rules regarding sick-leave rights for breast augmentation?

  As a general rule, breast augmentation is considered plastic surgery and is therefore not subject to sick-leave rights.

  Regarding, for example, breast reduction, it matters whether the surgery is performed following recommendations of a physician, e.g. because of discomfort, such as back aches. Each case is evaluated on a case-by-case basis, and medical opinion is critical in this regard.

• Are employees entitled to pay while they are at the doctor’s?

  Doctor’s visits do not constitute inability to work; everybody should have the right to see a doctor, and employers cannot forbid their employees from such visits. Regarding payment obligation for doctor’s visits, the claim that the sick-leave right is used cannot be enforced; most commonly, employees are allowed to leave without any wage reduction, and most often they are using their sick-leave rights.

  If doctor’s visits are very frequent and due to a certain illness, it is wise to use the sick-leave rights since further illness is being prevented; a medical certificate needs to be submitted thereto if the employer so requests.
   
  An employee who needs to go to the doctor during working hours is entitled to do so. An employer cannot prohibit an employee from seeking medical attention.

• What rules apply for termination of employment during illness?

  As a general rule, there is nothing that prohibits termination of employment during illness. The termination of employment shall never lead to curtailment from the sick-leave rights, whether it concerns illness or accident / work accident.

  The main rule is that the first right applies. Example: an employee who is entitled to 6 months of sick leave according to the Collective Wage Agreement and has a three-month notice period is entitled to wages throughout the sick leave if they are unable to work even though the notice period is shorter.

• Do I accrue vacation time during sick-leave?

  Employees accrue vacation time during paid sick days from their employer. Vacation pay is added to all salary, which means that you have the right to vacation pay for all paid salary, irrespective of whether the wages are due to work, sick-leave, or during notice period.
  If sick-leave is not paid by the employer, but rather from a sickness fund, vacation time is not accrued for that time since vacation time is only accrued for wages that an employer pays.

• For how long can you be absent due to illness of children?

  During the first year of employment for the same employer, a parent may spend two days for each month of employment, until the entitlement reaches 12 days during each 12-month period, to care for an ill child under the age of 13, provided that no other care can be obtained, and the employee shall, in such case, retain his regular wages as well as any shift supplements, where appropriate.

  The same applies to children under the age of 16 when their illness is so severe that they need hospitalization for at least one day.
  The parties agree that the term “parent” here also refers to foster parents or guardians who support a child and act in loco parentis.

• I’m a step-parent; am I entitled to absence because of my stepchild?

  The parties agree that the term “parent” here also refers to foster parents or guardians who support a child and act in loco parentis. In such cases, the following rights apply, as with other parents.

  During the first year of employment for the same employer, a parent may spend two days for each month of employment, until the entitlement reaches 12 days during each 12-month period, to care for an ill child under the age of 13, provided that no other care can be obtained, and the employee shall, in such case, retain his regular wages as well as any shift supplements, where appropriate.

  The same applies to children under the age of 16 when their illness is so severe that they need hospitalisation for at least one day.

• What is a work-related accident?

  A work accident is an incident that occurs because of or during work. Accidents that happen on the way to and from the workplace are also classified as work accidents.

  It is important to report a work accident to the employer immediately and ensure that the employer reports the work accident to the Administration of Occupational Safety and Health (Vinnueftirlitið) and the company's insurance company within a year of the occurrence of the accident.

• Is an employee entitled to compensation for filling in for a supervisor, e.g. due to illness or holiday?

  When an employee who is not employed as the deputy of a superior temporarily takes over the functions of the superior, e.g. during holiday periods or illness, and such replacement periods last for one week or more, the subordinate shall be entitled to remuneration for deputizing in this way, taking into account the responsibility and workload undertaken. The parties shall agree on the remuneration before the deputising takes place.

• My spouse is ill. Am I entitled to sick leave?

  An employee is not entitled to sick leave from their employer when their spouse falls ill. However, the employee can apply for payments from the VR Sick Pay Fund; see more information here.

  Employees shall be entitled to leave from work in the event of circumstances beyond their control (force majeure) and in the event of urgent family circumstances resulting from illness or accidents and necessitating their presence without delay.
  During such absence, they are not entitled to wages from the employer.

• What rights do I have if I have fully utilized my sick-leave rights from my employer?

  If employees have fully utilized their sick-leave rights from their employer, they can apply for payments from the VR Sick Pay Fund. For further details, see here.

  If sick-leave rights with the employer and the sickness fund are fully utilised, and you are still unable to work due to illness, we recommend consulting your physician. You may be eligible for rehabilitation pension, e.g. for VIRK Vocational Rehabilitation, disability pension from the Social Insurance Administration and/or your pension fund, or financial assistance from your municipality.

• Can the employer pay the difference between payments from from the Sick Pay Fund and full wages?

  Yes, the employer is allowed to pay the 20% that remains if the employee is receiving payments from the VR Sick Pay Fund because of 100% inability to work. VR applauds all improvements for its members. In such cases, the confirmation from the employer on utilized sick-leave rights should specify that along with payments from the VR Sick Pay Fund, the company is covering the 20% that remains for the employee.

• How often do I have to notify my employer that I’m ill; do I need to call it in every day?

  Employees only have notification obligation once, i.e. in the beginning, and it is the employer’s responsibility to ask for a medical certificate. If an employee submits a medical certificate, it is the employee’s responsibility to renew it if the illness lasts longer than the last day of the earlier medical certificate, i.e., if they are still unable to work. The employer should be notified and make sure that they request a continuation certificate, in which case the employee is entitled to reimbursement of the cost of the medical certificate.

• What if an employee falls ill or is in an accident during the notice period?

  The notice period does not change the rights of the employee. The employee has the same rights during the notice period as before. In some cases, the notice period may be extended by the length of accrued and accumulated sick leave if the sick leave is longer than the notice period and the illness was reported in a verifiable manner before the termination occurred.

  If an employee is in a work accident on the last day of the notice period, they have a work injury right as defined in the collective wage agreement for as long as they need it; the same applies for work-related diseases.

• Can you terminate someone’s employment while they are on a sick leave?  

  Yes, there is nothing in the collective wage agreement that prohibits terminating the employment of an employee during sick leave. The termination can never limit the contractual rights of the employee as defined in the collective wage agreement. This applies to both sick-leave rights and rights regarding work accidents.  

  Example: An employee becomes sick and has accrued a 6-month sick-leave right according to the collective wage agreement. The day after the employee announces the long-term illness, their employment is terminated with a 3-month notice period as defined in the collective wage agreement. In this case, the employer is obligated to pay the unused 6-month sick-leave right.  

  As a general rule, the first right applies. This means that if the employee becomes sick after he receives termination of employment and announces illness the next day, it does not lengthen the notice period even though sick-leave rights as defined in the collective wage agreement are longer than the period of notice. Work-related illness and work injuries are exempt from this rule.   

• I have a pre-natal medical examination. What are my rights?

  Pregnant women are entitled to absences from work that are necessary for prenatal care without reduction of their regular wages if such examinations must be made during working hours.

  This only applies to the person carrying the baby.