Employment law
Sick leave
Two regimes, two payers: everything depends on whether the condition is occupational.
Absence for illness suspends the employment contract. That is the starting point, and it holds in every case. But what follows differs radically according to a single question: is the condition occupational in origin?
The answer determines the payer, the amount, the length of protection and the payroll treatment. Confusing the two regimes is the costliest error in absence management. Labour Code, Article L.34 (French).
1. The dividing line
| Occupational illness or accident | Non-occupational illness or accident | |
|---|---|---|
| Origin | By reason of or on the occasion of work | Unconnected with work |
| Who pays | The INPS, under the Social Security Code | The employer, on a scale |
| Length of suspension | The whole period of incapacity | Six months maximum |
| Triggering formality | Report to the INPS within 48 hours | Medical justification beyond three working days |
| Detailed article | Occupational illness or accident | Non-occupational illness |
2. The occupational regime
Where the condition is occupational in origin, the INPS provides cover throughout the suspension: medical costs, hospitalisation, appliances, transport, and daily allowances replacing income.
The employer is not the payer, but it triggers the mechanism. It must report within 48 hours every workplace accident and every occupational disease established. Where the event occurs outside Mali, the deadline runs from receipt of the information.
It must also, in case of an occupational accident or disease, provide first aid, alert the available doctor and have the employee taken to the nearest health centre. Social Security Code, Articles 71 and 72 (French).
3. The non-occupational regime
Here the employer is the payer, within a limit of six months of suspension. Compensation follows a scale linked to seniority and to the notice period applicable to the occupational category:
| Seniority | Compensation |
|---|---|
| First year of service | Compensation equal to remuneration, for a period matching the notice period : one, two or three months by category |
| Beyond the first year | The first-year compensation, increased by half of one month's remuneration during the notice period |
Two observations. The notice period applicable to the occupational category is therefore a parameter of the calculation: it must be known before compensating. And the collective agreement may be more favourable, this is frequent, and it prevails over the scale above.
4. The employee's obligations
They condition entitlement to the regime, and are best set out in the internal rules:
- Inform the employer immediately of the absence, save established force majeure.
- Produce medical justification beyond three working days of absence.
- Submit to the medical check the employer is entitled to request to verify their state of health.
That check is an employer's right, but it is exercised with restraint: its purpose is to verify the reality of the incapacity, not to influence the medical decision.
5. Effects on other rights
Whatever the regime, suspension protects the essentials:
- the post is kept and the contractual bond remains;
- accrued seniority is not lost;
- the period counts towards annual leave: medically justified sick leave, up to six months, like absences for workplace accidents, is treated as effective work. Labour Code, Article L.149 (French).
On termination, one precaution: sick leave is not in itself a ground for dismissal, and absence following a workplace accident enjoys reinforced protection during the incapacity.
6. What to check before handling a sickness absence
| Check | Why |
|---|---|
| The origin of the condition | It determines the payer and the length of protection |
| The exact start date and expected length | It triggers the six-month count, where applicable |
| The occupational category and its notice period | They are parameters of the compensation scale |
| What the collective agreement provides | It may be more favourable than the statutory scale |
| The INPS report if the origin is occupational | 48 hours, from the events |
Key takeaways
| The rule | What it implies |
|---|---|
| Illness suspends the contract | The post is kept, seniority remains |
| Occupational origin: the INPS compensates | Throughout the incapacity |
| Non-occupational origin: the employer compensates | Within a six-month limit |
| The scale is tied to the category's notice period | One, two or three months, increased after the first year |
| Medical justification beyond three working days | And immediate notification of the employer |
| The period counts towards annual leave | Up to six months for illness |