Countries with the best sick leave allowances
The UK-based legal firm The Compensation Experts conducted research to rank the sick leave packages in Europe. They came to the conclusion that Iceland, Norway, Luxembourg, Denmark, Austria, Germany, Finland, Switzerland, Monaco and Montenegro offer the best sick leave allowances in the European continent, both in terms of the number of days and the percentage of their salary workers get while on leave. Outside of Europe, some other countries with good sick leave allowances are China, Bolivia, Egypt and Indonesia, among others.
How exactly do the aforementioned European countries have great sick leave allowances? In Iceland, Norway and Luxembourg, employees are entitled to 100% of their salary throughout their entire sick leave, according to the global HR firm Mauve Group. This means that in Iceland, when workers who've been employed by the same company for at least a year use their 2 months of sick leave, they are not financially impacted at all. A worker who's been continuously employed by the same company for 5 years receives double the amount of fully-paid sick leave: 4 months.
In Norway, the sick leave period covered by 100% of one's salary is even longer: one whole year for any person who's worked for at least 4 weeks, regardless of whether it's with their current employer or a former one. Of course, as emphasized by the Nordic Council, long-term sick leave requires a medical certificate and monitoring by both doctors and employers to verify that it's a legitimate case. As an expat, you could be domiciled in Norway and be working remotely for a company based in another EEA (European Economic Area) country: you will benefit from the same sick leave allowance as people working for Norwegian companies!
Luxembourg covers 100% of the employee's salary for an even longer period: 1.5 years, or 89 weeks! The cost is split between the employer and the country's national health service, and officials from this service will visit your house regularly to check if you're actually sick. You get the same benefits regardless of whether you're a salaried employee or a self-employed worker.
Many of the European countries above charge high taxes and have a high cost of living, but that is clearly compensated by a high quality of life. They tend to have strong social welfare nets and great equality ratings, which are compatible with good sick leave packages. Some of the other European countries mentioned above don't cover 100% of the workers' salary when they are sick, but they cover a high enough percentage (e.g., 80% in Switzerland, 70% in Germany) for them to keep living normally.
Turning our gaze to another part of the world, China is another country with good sick leave packages, especially when it comes to duration. According to Human Resources Director Magazine, someone who has just entered the Chinese workforce is entitled to 3 months of sick leave, while this duration can increase to 8, 9, 12, 18, or even 24 months (i.e., up to 2 years) when the worker has more years of service. However, in contrast to the European countries above, there is no national Chinese law concerning the salary percentage to be received during that period. Workers will definitely receive at least a reduced salary, but the exact amount is up for them to negotiate with their employers.
Meanwhile, in South America, Bolivia's legislation is quite similar to that of Scandinavia's: 26 weeks (nearly 6 months) of sick leave backed by a medical certificate are fully paid by the employer. In Egypt, an employee gets 75-100% of their salary over the same period – 6 months. In Indonesia, workers are entitled to 4 months of sick leave with a full salary – however, that is drastically reduced to 25% in the fifth month. These allowances are very good when compared to countries that have no national law for a minimum number of sick leaves or which have paid sick leaves measured in mere days, not weeks or months.
Countries with the worst sick leave allowances
The United States, India and Japan stand out as three major economies with no national sick leave rights. In the United States, 14 out of 50 states have laws concerning sick leaves, but in the remaining 36 states, workers have to negotiate with their employer for sick leaves. In India, only those below a middle-class salary threshold (of Rs 21,000, or about 260 USD) receive sickness benefits from the state. Like in the US, employees earning more have to negotiate with their employer. In Japan, a country notoriously known for its strenuous work culture, companies sometimes grant sick leaves as a “special benefit” rather than a basic right, and workers often have to use up their paid vacation days as sick leaves.
Some less powerful countries also have the same lack of national legislation about the minimum number of sick leaves: Georgia, Macedonia, Mozambique, Angola, Chad and Somalia are notable examples, according to the global advisor Staffing Industry Analysts.
The 14 US states with paid sick leave legislation are Arizona, California, Colorado, Connecticut, Maryland, Massachusetts, Michigan, New Jersey, New Mexico, New York, Oregon, Rhode Island, Vermont, Washington and Washington D.C. The rules will not be the same in each of these states mentioned above, but in general, they provide a cap of 30-40 hours or 3-7 days of mandatory sick leave per year. These durations are far shorter than in the countries with the best sick leave packages. The federal Family and Medical Leave Act (FMLA) can also, under certain conditions, grant unpaid – not paid – sick leave for up to 12 weeks.
In India, the Employee State Insurance Act (ESI Act), which came into existence with the country's independence in the 1940s, gives low-paid workers the right to claim paid sick leave for 90 days in every 6-month period, as detailed by Mauve Group and Lexology. Apart from the income limit, its second eligibility requirement is to have contributed 1% of one's wages to the scheme. Various ‘Shops and Establishment Acts' in different Indian states or cities (e.g.: Tamil Nadu, the city of Mumbai) also provide sick leaves of 7-14 days per year to a limited segment of the population – those employed in shops and commercial establishments.
Other economically powerful countries with poor sick leave allowances are Ireland, Australia and Singapore. In Ireland, a worker is entitled to only 3 days of paid sick leave annually – in 2024, this number will only increase to 5. In Australia, full-time employees are entitled to only 10 days of paid sick leave per year and may have their contracts terminated if their health prevents them from working for more than 3 months. Singapore, which, like the US and Japan, is known for its stressful work culture, only provides between 5-14 days of mandatory paid sick leave, all depending on the worker's length of employment. Mauritius, the wealthiest African country on a per capita basis, also grants only 15 days of paid sick leave – quite similar to Australia.
Other countries have sick leave allowances, which are neither excellent nor bad – just decent or average. In the United Arab Emirates, for example, employees are entitled to 90 days of sick leave: they receive 100% of their salary for the first 15 days and 50% of it for the following 30 days.
Cultural perceptions of sick leaves
Sick leaves are not only a question of law but also of culture. Indeed, in a culture that puts a lot of importance on dedicating one's life to work, taking sick leave might be seen as taboo or a sign of “weakness,” even when workers are legally entitled to it. On the other hand, a relaxed lifestyle and the social valorization of family life make it easier for workers to apply for their sick leaves.
In September 2022, the video of an American expat in Australia about sick leaves went viral on TikTok. Tate Elizabeth, who recently relocated from California to Melbourne, shared her very different experiences of trying to take a sick day off work in the US and in Australia. In California, she was shamed by a former boss for requesting a day off when she had a fever. Meanwhile, she feels that her boss in Australia is more laid back and shows more concern for her wellbeing. Many Australians in the comments section echoed her second experience, saying that, in general, Australian upper management don't make a fuss about employees taking sick leaves and tends to respond to requests with texts like “Yeah, no worries mate, rest up.” Both Australia and the United States have poor legal frameworks for sick leaves, yet Australia's culture makes a whole lot of difference to the ability to take one.
Indeed, multiple studies have shown that, because of peer pressure and a cultural taboo, many Americans don't take the vacation and sick leaves granted to them by their company. A 2017 Glassdoor survey showed that Americans took only about 54% of their allotted paid time off that year. The ethos of the “American Dream” creates a cultural expectation that people must always be working hard or risk falling behind. A 2018 study by the US Travel Association showed that the fear of “looking less dedicated or replaceable” prevents many Americans from applying for leave – whether it's for vacation or recovery from illness. During the pandemic, the compounded legal and cultural difficulties of getting sick leave in the US prevented many American workers from self-isolating when they were Covid-positive, analyzes the journalist Olga Kazan in an article in The Atlantic.
The same cultural pressure is present in Singapore and Japan, two Asian countries known for their stressful corporate cultures. On Channel NewsAsia, an executive in Singapore by the name of Helen talked about how she was strongly discouraged by her company to take sick leave when she tested positive for Covid-19, despite being legally entitled to do that. On BBC Worklife, an engineer by the name of Hideyuki talked about how he barely took any leaves from work in 2019 because “[...] the atmosphere in the workplace wouldn't allow it.”
In contrast, in another Asian country with little legal provision for sick leaves, India, cultural factors can make it easier to request a leave from your employer. India is a multi-religious country with many festivals, and its culture places a lot of emphasis on family life, as reported by the Australian resource Culture Atlas, which means that your boss might be more willing to grant you a day off when you need to, say, take care of an ailing grandparent, or attend a religious ceremony.
Before accepting an expatriation or job offer in a foreign country, you should consider whether the workplace culture there, including its laws and social norms surrounding sick leaves, suits you. For example, if you have multiple health issues or are the main caregiver of young children or elderly relatives, you should opt for a country with an excellent national sick leave allowance. Or, at the very least, you should communicate clearly with your employer in advance that you are likely to take many sick days off (for reasons beyond your control!). You can emphasize that a certain number of sick leaves in your contract is a non-negotiable factor for you to accept that job.
