Can an employer make you return to work with a doctor’s note?

When workers begin to return to work, you may want direction on what a return from sick leave may entail. Here are some answers to frequently asked questions.

What you’ll discover:

Is it permissible to compel workers who took a leave of absence due to COVID-19 to get a doctor’s note before returning to work?
What are the rules and procedures for preserving workers’ medical information privacy?
What further may be done once an employee returns from sick leave?
Where can I get information on medical exams before employing an employee, FMLA rules, and other relevant topics?

Some companies are required under the Families First Coronavirus Response Act (FFRCA) to offer workers with medical leave for particular reasons relating to the COVID-19 pandemic (through December 31, 2020). You want to do the right thing by your staff, but how do you know when it’s safe to let them back in?

When states continue to relax shelter-in-place orders and enable workers to return to work, you may want particular direction on how to return from sick leave. Can you legally demand an employee to bring a doctor’s note before they can return to work?

We’ll address concerns concerning COVID-19-related return-to-work processes, including the legality of obtaining a doctor’s letter.

Is it permissible to compel workers who took a leave of absence due to COVID-19 to get a doctor’s note before returning to work?

Such queries are authorized under the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA), according to guidelines released by the U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC), since they are not deemed disability-related. You may make medical (including disability-related) questions “only if they are job-related and compatible with business need,” according to the EEOC. Ensuring a safe workplace is unquestionably a corporate imperative.

Doctors and other health care experts, on the other hand, may be unable to satisfy the amount of such demands, hence other certification systems should be examined. Instead of a written letter certifying fitness for duty, an email certification that an employee does not have or no longer poses a danger of transmitting the virus may be appropriate.

What are the rules and procedures for preserving workers’ medical information privacy?

To limit access to protected and sensitive information, the ADA mandates that any medical information about workers be kept separate from employment files. Medical information examples covered include any employee remarks concerning probable COVID-19 exposure or paperwork about inquiring an employee about the virus or its symptoms.

Although federal rules and recommendations offer a starting point, particular cities or states may impose more stricter privacy limitations on an employee’s health-related information. In general, if state and local laws offer more strict privacy safeguards than federal ones, you should observe them. If you are unclear, consult a lawyer about the medical privacy and employment regulations in your state and locality.

What further may be done once an employee returns from sick leave?

All staff should adopt infection control procedures such as good coughing and sneezing etiquette, frequent hand washing, and proper tissue use and disposal. If you must enforce any particular rules, be sure to apply them evenly to the whole crew.

In order to minimize the spread of illness during a pandemic, you may require your personnel to wear personal protective equipment such as face masks and gloves. But, if an employee with a handicap needs a relevant reasonable accommodation, such as non-latex gloves, the employer must offer the accommodation unless it would cause undue hardship.

Where can I get information on medical exams before employing an employee, FMLA rules, and other relevant topics?

See Hiring During COVID-19 Shelter-in-Place: Legal Best Practices for more information on needing a medical examination or a doctor’s note before or during the employment process. See FMLA Guidelines and Paid Sick Leave Legal Answers for Employers for employer-specific information on family and medical leave (i.e. FMLA leave) or paid sick leave. If you have particular questions concerning your case, consult with a lawyer.