Employer sick-note rules · logistics
Does UPS accept an online doctor’s note?
UPS hourly workers are covered by Teamsters contracts, and the rules live in regional supplements. The Local 776 contract lets UPS require medical certification for FMLA leave. Neither source says when a doctor's note is needed for an ordinary sick day; that is set by local practice and your supplement. Warning letters are contested through the grievance procedure, and under the Local 776 agreement a warning notice lapses after nine months.
What UPS workers are told
Absences tracked
There is no single national UPS points policy: point systems, occurrence thresholds and call-in rules vary by building and supplement and are often local past practice. Discipline for Teamsters-represented workers runs through the contract's just-cause and written-warning procedure. Specifics live in regional supplements and local riders.
Note required
The Local 776 contract says UPS may require medical certification for FMLA leave. Neither source states a doctor's-note rule for ordinary absences or says what a note does to a warning letter. Paid sick days (5 per contract year in the Local 776 area, ramping from 1 to 5 over three years for new hires; 7 for part-timers after one year under the Southwest rider) and FMLA are the protections.
Where to submit
Report to your center per local practice; FMLA and medical-leave paperwork follow your supplement's procedure; grievances go through your steward.
Paid sick time
Paid sick days set by supplement/rider (e.g., 5 sick days per contract year; part-time 7 days after one year of seniority in the Southwest Package Rider).
From published reporting on the policy · 2026-09-23
What a SickSlip note shows UPS HR
The physician’s name and NPI number, the dates you are excused, a document ID, and a verification link HR can open without calling anyone. It does not include your diagnosis. Whether UPS accepts it depends on the rule above, not on where the physician saw you: no US state law limits a sick note to in-person visits, and the federal telehealth rules are on telehealth.hhs.gov.
Your state may limit what UPS can demand
Twenty states and the District of Columbia have a paid-sick-leave law, and most of them only let an employer ask for a note after three consecutive days. Company policy cannot override that. Check yours in the state-by-state doctor’s note law index.
Sources, read 2026-09-23
The rules that sit above UPS’s policy
- Federal leave (FMLA). An employer may require medical certification for a serious health condition, and must give you at least 15 calendar days to return it. 29 CFR 825.305 and U.S. Department of Labor Fact Sheet 28G.
- Disability (ADA). Points systems applied to disability-related absences have been challenged; medical inquiries must be job-related and consistent with business necessity. EEOC enforcement guidance.
- State paid-sick-leave law. Twenty states and D.C. limit when any employer, UPS included, may demand a note. Every state’s rule, with the statute.
- Telehealth. Federal guidance treats secure messaging with a licensed provider as telehealth; no state law limits a sick note to in-person visits. telehealth.hhs.gov.
Other logistics employers
FedEx · USPS
All employers
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SickSlip is not affiliated with UPS. Employer names are used to describe their published policies. Reviewed by Adam Z. Kawalek, MD (NPI 1326223306). Facts checked 2026-09-23.