Sick at Work: Doctor's Note, Pay and Protection from Dismissal

The law does not require a doctor's note for every absence – it requires that you report the incapacity and prove the cause if the employer asks for it (Art. 324a CO). In practice:

• Short absences (one to two days): reporting is enough, provided the contract says nothing else.
• From the third day a doctor's note is customary; many contracts expressly require one.
• Form: a certificate of incapacity for work stating the degree of incapacity (e.g. 50 % unable to work) and the duration – not the diagnosis.

Demanding a certificate retroactively is only permissible if the suspicion is well founded. Medical examinations by a trusted physician are possible but must remain proportionate.

In the event of incapacity for work without fault of your own, the employer owes salary for a limited period (Art. 324a CO). Without a deviating provision the following applies:

• First year of service: three weeks of full salary.
• Thereafter: a longer period that increases with the duration of the employment relationship (the Basel, Bern and Zurich scales are common, depending on canton and contract).

Important: these periods apply per year of service and cannot be renewed indefinitely for repeated absences for the same reason. If you have daily sickness benefits insurance, you receive daily benefits instead of salary – 80 percent of salary for 720 days is customary.

Daily benefits insurance is not mandatory in Switzerland but is widespread. Check the contract for:

• Amount: 80 percent of salary is standard, 100 percent rare.
• Duration: 720 days is the usual maximum; shorter variants are possible.
• Premiums: who pays – employer, employee or shared?
• Waiting period: some insurers pay only after 14 or 30 days; during this time continued salary payment applies.

Without daily benefits insurance, continued salary payment under the CO remains – and with it markedly shorter protection. This is a point that should be checked before signing.

During a blocking period a dismissal is null and void (Art. 336c CO):

• 1st year of service: 30 days.
• 2nd to 5th year of service: 90 days.
• From the 6th year of service: 180 days.

The blocking period extends the expiry of a dismissal already issued if the illness occurs after the dismissal. Anyone who dismisses during an illness must expect the dismissal to be void – and continued salary payment to run on.

The reverse applies: anyone who resigns themselves can generally no longer invoke the blocking period. The sequence is decisive.

After a longer absence, the return is a topic in its own right:

• Gradual reintegration: building up from 40 to 100 percent is customary and should be recorded in writing.
• Workplace adjustments: within the bounds of proportionality the employer must show consideration (Art. 328 CO), for instance regarding aids or working hours.
• Doctor's note: a 50 percent incapacity does not mean "half days at home" but that you can deploy 50 percent of your capacity – clarify the details with the doctor.

For a longer incapacity, a written return agreement with workload, tasks and review date is worthwhile.

Illnesses have no place in a CV – health data is especially sensitive. What you should clarify:

• Gaps: a long illness can be described as a "health-related break" without a diagnosis. That is more honest than an unexplained gap.
• Questions in the interview: questions about illnesses are only permissible if they are essential to the position. You do not have to answer in detail.
• Restrictions: if a restriction affects the tasks (e.g. heavy lifting), disclosing it openly is in your own interest.

After a job offer, the employer may ask about health if there is well-founded doubt – at the latest then you should mention relevant restrictions to avoid later conflict.