An employee returns from a four-month sick leave. His manager approves his return, but no one informs him of his updated leave balance. Since the law of April 22, 2024, this situation exposes the company to a concrete risk: the employer must inform the employee, within one month of their return, of the number of available days and the deadline for taking them.
Managing leave, payroll, and HR processes is not just about maintaining a well-kept Excel spreadsheet. It is a series of rules, deadlines, and procedures where each oversight results in adjustments or disputes.
Leave accrued during sick leave: what the 2024 law changes in payroll
Before April 2024, an employee on non-work-related sick leave did not accrue paid leave. The law n° 2024-364 of April 22, 2024, has changed this rule. An employee on sick leave now accrues 2 working days of leave per month, up to a maximum of 24 days per reference period.
In practice, leave balances must be updated as soon as the employee returns. The payroll software or HRIS must automatically integrate this accrual; otherwise, the HR manager recalculates it manually, month by month of absence.
The reform also established transitional rules for periods prior to its implementation. A guide detailing HR procedures on Rue du Business discusses the concrete implications of these adjustments and the certificates to be produced.
The sticking point often is: the obligation to inform within one month of the return. The available leave balance and the deadline for taking it must be notified in writing. Without this notification, the employee’s forfeiture period does not begin, which postpones the expiration of their leave.
Carrying over unused leave: a 15-month deadline and special cases
When an employee has been unable to take their leave due to illness or an accident, they benefit from a 15-month carryover period after the end of the reference period. This mechanism, created by article L3141-19-1 of the Labor Code, does not function like a simple administrative carryover.
Let’s take a concrete example. An employee is on leave from March 1 to September 30. Their reference period ends on May 31. They return on October 1. The employer informs them of their rights on October 15. The employee then has 15 months, starting from this notification, to take the leave accrued during their absence.
Three common mistakes regarding carryover
- Assuming that unused leave is lost by the following May 31, without considering the sick leave. Since 2024, this reasoning is incorrect for any medical absence.
- Not distinguishing between carryover related to illness and carryover negotiated by collective agreement. Both coexist, but their deadlines and conditions differ.
- Forgetting to document the date of notification to the employee. Without written proof (letter, timestamped email, HRIS notification), the company cannot invoke the end of the carryover period.
Responses on this point vary depending on the size of the company: structures with fewer than 50 employees often manage these carryovers manually, which increases the risk of oversight.
Reliability of the payslip: items to check each month
Payroll is not a monolithic block. It is a succession of lines where each variable element (overtime, bonuses, leave allowances) must correspond to a documented reality.
On the ground, it is observed that recurring errors occur in three specific areas.
Paid leave allowance: one-tenth rule or salary maintenance
The calculation of the leave allowance follows a double rule: we compare one-tenth of the total gross remuneration received during the reference period with the maintenance of the usual salary. The amount most favorable to the employee applies. In practice, the one-tenth often benefits employees whose remuneration varies (commissions, regular overtime).
A correctly configured payroll software automatically performs this comparison. The problem arises when variable elements are not entered in time or when a change in collective agreement has not been reflected.
Contributions and adjustments during the year
Contribution ceilings change every year. An employee who exceeds a remuneration threshold mid-year may generate a progressive adjustment on subsequent payslips. If the HR manager does not monitor these thresholds, the discrepancy accumulates, and the catch-up at the end of the year creates visible differences on the payslip.
Digitization of HR processes: certificates and validation circuits
Requesting leave, asking for an employer certificate, reporting a change in situation: these processes increasingly go through internal portals or HRIS. The issue is not the technology itself, but the traceability of each request and each response.
An orally approved leave request that is never recorded in the system can cause problems in case of a dispute. The employee claims to have requested their days, the manager does not remember, and there is no written record. It is recommended to configure the HRIS so that an unprocessed request after 48 hours triggers an automatic reminder.
- Work or employment certificate: the employee needs it for a lease, a bank loan, or an administrative procedure. The production time rarely exceeds a few days when the process is digitized.
- Final account statement and work certificate: mandatory documents at the end of the contract, their late delivery exposes the employer to damages.
- Digitized payslip: since 2017, the employer can provide it by default in electronic form unless the employee opposes it.
Each HR document not provided on time constitutes a breach that can be invoked before the labor courts. Digitization does not eliminate the obligation; it accelerates the process and leaves a timestamped record, which protects both parties.
Managing leave, payroll, and HR processes relies on precise deadlines and documentary obligations. Since the 2024 reform, the leave counters during sick leaves add a layer of complexity that neither a spreadsheet nor a manager’s memory can sustainably absorb. Ensuring reliable tools, tracking communications, and checking payslips each month remains the foundation of management that withstands scrutiny or disputes.
