ManitobaDoctors are sick of filing sick notes for minor illnesses — and the Manitoba government is heeding their advice.Province plans to introduce legislation in next session, which starts TuesdayIan Froese · CBC News · Posted: Nov 18, 2025 6:00 AM EST | Last Updated: 4 hours agoListen to this articleEstimated 4 minutesThe audio version of this article is generated by text-to-speech, a technology based on artificial intelligence.Need a sick note? Manitoba may soon only require them if a worker has been absent for seven calendar days, if planned legislation eventually passes. (CBC)Doctors are sick of filing sick notes for minor illnesses — and the Manitoba government is heeding their advice.The province will introduce legislation to eliminate mandatory sick notes for short-term absences from work, according to a senior government source.Employers will only be able to request a sick note after seven consecutive calendar days of absence, the official said.The new legislation, which is expected to be introduced in the upcoming legislative session, will apply to public and private businesses, but not federally-regulated workplaces. The government is expected to tease the new legislation in the throne speech read by Lt.-Gov. Anita Neville on Tuesday. Paperwork ineffective: Doctors ManitobaDoctors Manitoba president Dr. Nichelle Desilets said she’s thrilled by the government’s move. She considers sick notes an unnecessary burden for herself and her patients.“It’s not a productive use of an unwell patients’ time, who should be at home resting and recovering, nor of physicians’ time, nor of the taxpayers’ dollars,” Desilets said.The physician advocacy organization launched its “Sick of Sick Notes” campaign earlier this year to argue eliminating the use of sick notes in cases of short-term illness would add an equivalent of 50 doctors — or 300,000 more patient appointments — annually to an overburdened health-care system still coping with a physician shortage. At the time, the provincial government said it was considering the proposal.More than 600,000 sick notes are currently requested annually in the province — many of which aren’t medically necessary, Doctors Manitoba said. It estimated the practice costs taxpayers about $8 million per year.Desilets said in an interview Monday physicians are asked to verify illnesses through sick notes, but that’s not often possible.“If someone comes to the clinic and tells me that they’ve been unwell with a gastrointestinal illness, I have no way of confirming that outside of observation,” she said.“And most of the time people’s symptoms, especially flu-like symptoms … are resolved by the time they are well enough to seek care to get the note.”Desilets said some of her patients are required to present a sick note for a single-day absence, but three days is the most common limit she sees. Many patients “realize that they don’t really need to be in the doctor’s office asking for this paperwork, and it’s a burden for them, too,” she added.Doctors Manitoba president Dr. Nichelle Desilets said ditching sick notes will save the time of physicians and their patients. (Submitted by Doctors Manitoba)The government official said the province’s proposal was referred to the labour management review committee, which has representatives from labour and business, and both sides are supportive.Kevin Rebeck, labour caucus chair for the committee, said the joint consensus speaks to businesses and workers realizing the status quo has its drawbacks.“Sick notes have been doctors saying, ‘Oh, you were ill last week? What were you ill with?” Rebeck said. “There’s not much difference between that and self-attestation forms.”“And I think we need to figure out a way that we deal with this that doesn’t burden our health-care system.”Manitoba is currently one of only two provinces without rules limiting the use of sick notes. Saskatchewan, B.C. and Nova Scotia, along with federally-regulated workplaces, limit sick notes to absences longer than five work days. Quebec and Ontario have similar legislation, where the limit is three days of work.Winnipeg Chamber on boardLoren Remillard, president of the Winnipeg Chamber of Commerce, said he understands some businesses may oppose the planned legislation, but he argued there’s other ways an employer can address the potential abuse of a sick day policy.“The fact is, any system there is going to be instances where there may be questions as to the use of sick leave,” he said.Reducing the use of sick notes “still allows the employer to do that, but again … no one benefits if you’re having your employees’ run to the doctor’s office because they’ve got a flu for three days.”ABOUT THE AUTHORIan Froese covers the Manitoba Legislature and provincial politics for CBC News in Winnipeg. He also serves as president of the legislature’s press gallery. You can reach him at ian.froese@cbc.ca. Twitter: @ianfroese
Manitoba looks to end sick notes unless employee absent for 1 week
