Q: An employee who was informed that his role was to be made redundant has taken extended sick leave. Can this period of sick leave count as part of his notice? Similarly, can a redundancy be progressed (as long as it is genuine) while using the sick leave period as paid notice?

A: Yes, personal (i.e. sick) leave can count as part of the notice period.

You may have consultation obligations under an applicable enterprise agreement or modern award. How you undertake consultation may be affected by the employee being on sick leave, i.e. not attending the workplace for a meeting. If this is the case, you could ask the employee to put any concerns in writing, or hold a telephone meeting to discuss the redundancy with the employee.

Please note: The answer is correct at the time of publishing. Be aware that laws may change over time. Refer to Personal/carer’s leave and Redundancy and retrenchment for current advice.