A termination notice is difficult to receive at any point in an employee’s career. But receiving one while sitting at home on doctor’s orders can create an entirely different level of uncertainty.

That is the situation described in a recent post on Reddit’s r/LitigationPioneers community. According to the employee’s account, they had been away from work for approximately three weeks after a doctor recommended time off because of stress and anxiety. The employee said medical documentation had been provided to the employer and that the employer had responded by saying, “take the time you need, we support you.” Then, while the employee was still away from work, a termination email arrived.

The employer reportedly described the termination as a “business restructuring” and offered four weeks of severance. The employee’s post then raised a series of questions: Can an employer terminate someone during medical leave? Does the fact that the leave was medically documented change the situation? Is four weeks of severance enough? And does the timing of the termination matter?

Those are legitimate questions, but the answers depend on considerably more than the fact that the employee was sick when the termination occurred.

The First Question Is Not Simply “Can They Fire Me?”

When an employee is terminated during a medical absence, it can be tempting to frame the issue as a simple yes-or-no question.

In practice, there are several separate questions.

Was the employee taking a protected statutory leave?

Was the employee dealing with a disability protected under Ontario’s Human Rights Code?

Did the employer have accommodation obligations?

Was there a legitimate business reason for the termination?

Did the employment contract contain a valid termination provision?

Was the employee offered the minimum amount required by employment standards?

Could the employee have additional rights under common-law principles?

These questions can overlap, but they are not identical.

An employer’s ability to terminate an employee is therefore not determined solely by whether the employee happened to be away from work on the day the termination was communicated.

Ontario’s Long-Term Illness Leave Is an Important Part of the Analysis

Ontario introduced long-term illness leave under the Employment Standards Act, 2000 effective June 19, 2025.

Eligible employees can receive up to 27 weeks of unpaid, job-protected leave within a 52-week period because of a serious medical condition. Generally, an employee must have worked for the employer for at least 13 consecutive weeks and must be unable to perform their position because of the serious medical condition. A certificate from a qualified health practitioner is also required, setting out the condition and the period during which the employee will not be working.

That is particularly relevant to employees who have medical documentation supporting their absence.

However, the existence of a doctor’s note does not automatically answer whether a particular absence qualifies for this specific statutory leave. The statutory requirements still need to be considered.

The certificate and the period it covers can therefore become important documents in a dispute.

The New Leave Can Last Up to 27 Weeks

The maximum entitlement under Ontario’s long-term illness leave is 27 weeks during a 52-week period.

The leave does not necessarily have to be taken as one continuous block. Ontario’s guidance explains that an employee can take the leave in separate periods, subject to the legislation’s rules. The length of the medical certificate can also affect the amount of leave available under a particular certificate.

The law also recognizes that a serious medical condition may be chronic or episodic.

For employees dealing with ongoing or recurring medical conditions, these details can be significant.

A Protected Leave Is Different From a General Medical Absence

Not every day away from work because of illness necessarily falls into exactly the same legal category.

Ontario has several different forms of leave under the Employment Standards Act. Sick leave, long-term illness leave and other statutory leaves have different eligibility requirements and rules.

That means an employee should not automatically assume that saying “I was on medical leave” establishes a particular statutory entitlement.

The underlying facts matter.

For example, the employee’s length of service, the medical documentation, the nature of the condition, the dates of the absence and the communications with the employer may all be relevant.

What Happens When the Employer Says “Restructuring”?

This is where the circumstances described in the Reddit post become particularly interesting.

The employee said that the employer had not previously mentioned restructuring and that the termination happened roughly three weeks after the employee began medical leave. The employee therefore questioned whether the stated restructuring explanation was connected to the leave.

But timing alone does not establish the reason for a termination.

Companies can legitimately restructure at any time. A business might eliminate a position, merge departments, reduce its workforce or change its operations while an employee happens to be on medical leave.

At the same time, if an employee believes that a protected leave or disability played a role in the decision, the circumstances surrounding the termination can become important.

That is why employees should preserve evidence rather than relying only on assumptions about what happened.

Look at What Happened to the Job

One practical question can be particularly useful when an employer says a position was eliminated:

What happened to the work?

If a company says an employee’s position was eliminated, relevant factual questions might include whether the position disappeared completely, whether the department was reduced, whether other employees were also affected and whether the employee’s duties were redistributed.

Again, none of these facts automatically proves unlawful conduct.

They can, however, help establish the factual context surrounding the employer’s stated reason.

An employee who receives a termination letter should therefore avoid deleting old emails, workplace messages or documents that might later help establish what was happening before the termination.

Disability Protection Is a Separate Consideration

Employment standards leave is not the only potential source of protection.

Ontario’s Human Rights Code protects people from discrimination in employment on the basis of disability. The Ontario Human Rights Commission explains that disability-related discrimination can arise in areas including employment conditions, dismissal and layoffs.

That means an employee’s medical condition can potentially raise human-rights issues in addition to employment-standards issues.

The analysis may involve whether the employee had a disability, what the employer knew, whether accommodation was required, whether accommodation was explored and whether the termination was connected to the protected ground.

These questions are highly fact-specific.

Accommodation Can Be an Important Issue

When a medical condition affects an employee’s ability to work, accommodation can become relevant.

Accommodation might involve modified duties, changes to work schedules, a gradual return to work or other adjustments depending on the employee’s circumstances and the requirements of the job.

The important point is that disability-related employment disputes do not necessarily revolve exclusively around whether an employee was absent.

The employer’s response to the employee’s limitations can also matter.

For that reason, an employee who has communicated medical restrictions or requested accommodation should preserve those communications.

What Does a Doctor’s Note Actually Prove?

A doctor’s note can be important evidence, but it does not necessarily prove every aspect of an employment-law claim.

A medical certificate may establish that a health professional determined the employee should be away from work for a specified period.

It does not automatically establish why the employer later made a termination decision.

That distinction is important.

An employee may have perfectly legitimate medical documentation while an employer may simultaneously have a genuine business reason for eliminating a position.

Alternatively, the surrounding evidence might raise questions about whether the employee’s medical situation influenced the decision.

The legal analysis requires examining both sides of the factual record.

Four Weeks of Severance: Is That Enough?

The employee in the Reddit discussion reported being offered four weeks of severance.

But there is no universal rule stating that four weeks is either automatically appropriate or automatically inadequate.

Termination entitlements can depend on factors including the employee’s length of service, employment contract, statutory minimums and common-law principles.

An employment contract can be particularly important.

For example, an employee may have signed an agreement when they were hired containing a termination clause. Whether that clause effectively limits the employee’s entitlements can require legal interpretation.

This is why comparing a severance offer with a simple chart based only on years of employment may not provide a complete answer.

The Employment Contract Should Be Read Carefully

Employees sometimes locate their employment agreement only after they have been dismissed.

That can be a mistake.

The contract may contain provisions concerning termination, notice, benefits, probation, compensation and other employment conditions.

If an employer offers a particular amount of severance, the contract can help determine how that amount should be evaluated.

For people looking for Ontario employment-law information, HTW Law’s official website identifies areas including wrongful dismissal, severance pay, workplace discrimination, disability-related claims and employment contracts.

Reviewing employment-law resources can be useful, but an employee with an actual dispute should consider obtaining advice specific to their own circumstances.

Can an Employer Terminate Someone by Email?

The Reddit post also questioned whether an employer is allowed to terminate someone through an email rather than conducting a meeting.

The method of communication is not necessarily the most important legal issue.

An employer’s decision to communicate a termination electronically does not by itself establish that the termination is lawful or unlawful.

The more important questions concern the employee’s contractual and statutory rights, the reason for termination and whether the employer complied with applicable legal obligations.

For practical reasons, however, employees should save the original message and any attachments.

The exact wording can become relevant later, particularly if the employer’s explanation changes.

Why the Timeline Can Be Important

A detailed timeline can help make a confusing situation easier to understand.

Consider the following sequence:

Day 1: Employee becomes unable to work because of a medical condition.

Day 2: Employee contacts employer.

Day 3: Medical documentation is supplied.

Day 4: Employer confirms the leave.

Week 2: Employee remains away from work.

Week 3: Employer sends termination notice citing restructuring.

This timeline does not itself prove anything unlawful.

But it gives an employee, lawyer or other decision-maker a factual framework for asking the next questions.

Was restructuring already planned?

When was the termination decision actually made?

Were other positions eliminated?

Did management discuss the employee’s medical leave?

Did the employer comply with applicable leave requirements?

Was accommodation relevant?

What does the employment contract say?

The more complete the timeline, the easier it may be to assess those questions.

Employees Should Avoid Deleting Communications

When people lose their jobs unexpectedly, their first instinct may be to clean up their inbox or stop thinking about the workplace.

It is better to preserve relevant information.

This can include:

• Employment agreements
• Offer letters
• Pay statements
• Termination letters
• Severance offers
• Emails with human resources
• Emails with managers
• Medical-leave communications
• Accommodation requests
• Workplace policies
• Messages concerning restructuring
• Performance reviews
• Relevant text messages

Employees should also keep copies of documents outside a workplace system if they are permitted to retain them, while avoiding taking confidential company information unrelated to their own employment.

Think Before Signing a Release

A termination package may contain a release.

A release can have significant consequences because it may require the employee to give up potential legal claims in exchange for the negotiated payment.

That is why an employee should understand the document before signing it.

This is especially relevant when the termination occurred during a medical absence and the employee is questioning whether statutory leave, disability, accommodation or termination-entitlement issues may be involved.

A severance deadline can create pressure, but an employee should still understand what they are agreeing to.

Medical Leave Does Not Automatically Guarantee Reinstatement

Another question raised in the Reddit discussion was whether an employee must be reinstated after medical leave.

The answer depends on the applicable legal protections and the circumstances.

Protected statutory leave can carry reinstatement-related rights, while disability accommodation can involve additional considerations.

However, that should not be confused with an unlimited guarantee that an employee’s position will exist indefinitely.

If an employer genuinely eliminates a position as part of a lawful restructuring, different considerations can arise.

Again, the distinction between the reason for termination and the employee’s protected rights is central.

What Employees Can Do Immediately After Receiving a Termination Notice

A sudden termination can make it difficult to think clearly. A practical first step is to slow down and organize the information.

Save the termination notice

Keep the original email, letter and attachments.

Locate the employment contract

Do not assume the severance offer is the final word on entitlement.

Review the medical-leave paperwork

Keep copies of the doctor’s documentation and communications with the employer.

Write down the chronology

Record important dates while they are fresh in your memory.

Preserve workplace communications

Save relevant emails and messages concerning the leave, accommodation, restructuring or termination.

Read the severance agreement carefully

Look for releases and other conditions before signing.

Consider independent legal advice

A lawyer can review the particular documents and circumstances rather than relying on general information.

The Bigger Issue: What Was the Real Reason for the Termination?

Ultimately, the central issue in a situation like the Reddit post is not simply that an employee was sick.

It is the relationship between the medical absence and the employment decision.

If the employee was exercising a protected leave entitlement, statutory protections may be relevant.

If the employee’s medical condition constituted a disability, human-rights obligations may also be relevant.

If the employer had a genuine business reason for eliminating the position, that may form part of the employer’s explanation.

If the termination package does not comply with the employee’s contractual or legal entitlements, severance issues may arise independently.

Several of these issues can exist at the same time.

A Situation Worth Examining, Not Assuming

The Reddit post describes an employee who felt that the timing of the termination was suspicious because they went on medical leave and were terminated approximately three weeks later. The employee also reported that the employer had previously expressed support for the leave and then cited business restructuring as the reason for termination.

Those facts may naturally lead to questions.

But an online account cannot establish the employer’s actual motivation or determine whether any law was violated.

That requires a closer examination of the documents, chronology, applicable legislation and employment agreement.

The same principle applies to severance. Four weeks may or may not represent the employee’s full entitlement depending on the circumstances.

Conclusion

A termination delivered during medical leave can be confusing because several areas of Ontario employment law may intersect at once.

The province’s current Employment Standards Act provides qualifying employees with up to 27 weeks of unpaid, job-protected long-term illness leave within a 52-week period when the statutory requirements are satisfied. The leave became effective on June 19, 2025.

But statutory leave is only one part of the picture.

Disability protections, accommodation obligations, employment contracts, termination notice and severance can all become relevant depending on the facts.

An employer’s claim that a termination resulted from “business restructuring” should therefore be considered alongside the surrounding evidence rather than viewed in isolation. At the same time, the fact that an employee was on medical leave does not automatically establish that the termination was unlawful.

For an employee in this position, the most useful immediate steps are generally to preserve the relevant documents, understand the employment contract, carefully review any severance or release agreement and obtain professional advice before making an irreversible decision.

The original Reddit discussion offers a real-world example of how quickly questions can arise when an employee receives a termination notice while away from work for medical reasons. It also illustrates why understanding the legal framework—and looking carefully at the evidence—can be more useful than relying on assumptions about what a termination email means.

For additional information about Ontario employment matters, including wrongful dismissal, severance, workplace discrimination, disability claims and employment contracts, employees can explore the resources available through HTW Law’s official website.