Employer sick-note rules · gig
Does Uber accept an online doctor’s note?
Uber drivers are independent contractors. There is no attendance policy and no note is ever needed to go offline. A note only matters for the few city and state gig sick-pay programs or an insurance claim.
What Uber (drivers) workers are told
Absences tracked
Not applicable, drivers are independent contractors with no attendance policy; deactivation is based on ratings, cancellations, fraud and safety conduct, not on time offline (Uber deactivation policy).
Note required
Never required to go offline. A note can matter only where drivers have sick pay: Seattle's App-Based Worker Paid Sick and Safe Time ordinance (the company may ask for reasonable verification for more than 3 consecutive days) and New York State under the 2023 Attorney General settlement with Uber and Lyft. California's Prop 22 provides no sick pay.
Paid sick time
No employer sick leave. Exceptions: Seattle paid sick and safe time (1 day per 30 days with a Seattle stop) and New York State sick pay under the 2023 AG settlement (1 hour per 30 hours, up to 56 hours a year). California's Prop 22 gives a health care stipend, not sick pay.
Verified against the company’s own published policy · 2026-09-23
Sources, read 2026-09-23
- Uber, Lyft, DoorDash workers remain contractors due to California Supreme Court ruling (KPBS, Jul 2024) (news, read 2026-09-23) “Uber, Lyft, DoorDash workers remain contractors”
- App-Based Worker Paid Sick and Safe Time Ordinance - Seattle Office of Labor Standards (government, read 2026-09-23) “A covered entity may request reasonable verification from the worker for uses more than 3 consecutive days.”
- Lyft and Uber Settlement - New York Attorney General (government, read 2026-09-23) “For each 30 hours you work, you earn one hour of sick pay. ... You can earn up to 56 hours of sick time per year.”
- Deactivations: Losing Account Access - Uber (official, read 2026-09-23) “A driver or delivery person can lose access to part or all of the Uber platform for ratings that are below the minimum average rating in their city.”
The rules that sit above Uber’s policy
Federal leave law lets an employer ask for medical certification and gives you at least 15 days to return it; disability law limits medical inquiries to what the job requires; twenty states and D.C. limit when any employer, Uber included, may demand a note; and federal guidance treats a licensed physician’s online evaluation as telehealth. The statutes and sources are on the state-by-state doctor’s note law index and in are online doctor’s notes legal?
Other gig employers
DoorDash
Every employer’s sick-note rule, in one list
SickSlip is not affiliated with Uber (drivers). Employer names are used to describe their published policies. Reviewed by Adam Z. Kawalek, MD (NPI 1326223306). Facts checked 2026-09-23.