Leave of Absence

A leave of absence is a period of time which employees can spend away from their normally scheduled work without jeopardizing their job standing. Frequently shortened to the single word “leave,”, leaves of absence fall into several categories. 
 
Each leave of absence has another classification: 
  • Paid leave, where the employer provides compensation as if the employee was working during that period
  • Unpaid leave, where employees are not required to come to work, but also earn no compensation for that period from the employer. 
 
Rules for paid and unpaid leave are almost solely at the discretion of the employer. While many forms of leave mandate that an employer keep an employee’s position available until the end of the specified period, there are very few regulations around whether or not employers must pay employees their normal compensation during a leave of absence.