LTD or Injury Leave in Alberta: What It Does — and What It Doesn’t
A lot of Alberta workers assume that if they are too sick or injured to work, their employer has to keep paying them or hold their exact position indefinitely.
That is not quite how it works.
Alberta does provide a job-protected long-term illness and injury leave, but it is important to understand what that actually means. This leave can protect your employment status for a period of time, but it does not automatically mean you will be paid, and it does not solve disputes about disability benefits, WCB, or whether your employer is accommodating you properly.
What is long-term illness and injury leave?
In Alberta, eligible employees can take up to 27 weeks of unpaid, job-protected leave per calendar year if they are unable to work because of illness, injury, or quarantine.
“Job-protected” means your employer is generally required to let you take the leave and, when the leave ends, return you to your same job or an equivalent one.
That protection matters. When people are sick, injured, overwhelmed, and worried about money, the last thing they need is panic over whether taking time off will cost them their job.
Who qualifies?
To be entitled to this leave under Alberta employment standards legislation, you must have worked for the same employer for at least 90 days. Employees with less than 90 days of service can still ask for leave, but the employer is not legally required to grant it.
Is it paid?
Usually, no.
This is one of the biggest points of confusion. Long-term illness and injury leave in Alberta is generally unpaid. Your employer is not required to keep paying your wages or benefits during the leave unless your employment contract or collective agreement says otherwise.
That means the leave protects your job, but it does not itself create income. If you are off work, your income may have to come from somewhere else, such as:
- WCB benefits, if the condition is work-related
- short-term or long-term disability benefits
- Employment Insurance sickness or related federal benefits, if you qualify
It is also important not to assume that because you qualify for the leave, you automatically qualify for EI or disability benefits. Those are different systems with different rules.
What do you need to give your employer?
If you are taking this leave, Alberta requires a medical certificate stating the estimated duration of the leave. That certificate can be issued by a physician or nurse practitioner. The certificate should be given to the employer before the leave starts, or as soon as reasonably possible if that is not feasible.
You must also give your employer written notice as soon as is reasonable, including your estimated return-to-work date. If that date changes, you are expected to update the employer.
When you are ready to come back, you must generally provide at least one week’s written notice of your intended return date, unless you and the employer agree otherwise. If you are not returning at all, you must generally provide at least two weeks’ written notice of your intention to terminate employment.
Can your employer fire you while you are on leave?
Generally, an employer cannot terminate, lay off, or force you to resign because you requested or took a job-protected leave. They also cannot discriminate against you for doing so.
There is an exception if the employer suspends or discontinues the business. In that situation, termination or layoff may still occur. If the business starts up again within a defined period after the leave ends, the employer may still have reinstatement obligations.
That said, real life is often messier than the legislation sounds on paper. Employers do not always come out and say, “We are firing you because you took leave.” Sometimes the issue gets framed differently. That is where workers can get blindsided.
What this leave does not do
This is where people often get tripped up. Long-term illness and injury leave does not mean your WCB claim has been accepted, that you’re entitled to wage-loss benefits, that you’ve been approved for short-term or long-term disability, that your employer has done enough to accommodate you, or that you’re protected from every possible employment dispute. It’s just one piece of the puzzle. You can be on job-protected leave and still be fighting with WCB, still be denied LTD, or still end up in a dispute over whether your employer should have done more to accommodate you. These issues often overlap, but they are not the same thing.
Vacation and years of service still matter
Employees on this leave are generally considered to remain continuously employed for the purpose of calculating years of service. Vacation earned before the leave may still have to be taken within the applicable timelines, subject to how the leave period affects that scheduling.
What if your employer is not following the rules?
If your employer is not complying with Alberta employment standards, a complaint may be made under the Employment Standards Code. Timelines apply, and waiting too long can cost people options.
That is why it is important to get clarity early, especially where the situation overlaps with disability benefits, human rights, WCB, or return-to-work issues.
The practical takeaway
If you are too sick or injured to work, Alberta’s long-term illness and injury leave may give you a crucial layer of protection. But it is not a magic shield, and it is not income replacement.
It protects your right to step away from work for a limited period without automatically losing your job, provided you meet the eligibility requirements and follow the notice and medical certificate rules.
What it does not do is resolve the bigger battle for you.
If your condition is work-related, you may still need to fight with WCB.
If you are on disability, you may still need to push insurers or employers.
If accommodation, termination, or benefits are in dispute, you may need a proper strategy, because the legislation by itself does not stop employers, boards, or insurers from taking positions that are unfair, incomplete, or flat-out wrong.
At Blue Collar, we help injured and ill workers understand where they stand, what system they are actually dealing with, and what steps make sense next.
