Employer sick-note rules · retail

Does Whole Foods Market accept an online doctor’s note?

Whole Foods uses a points system, reported at 3 points for counseling and 6 for termination. Employee reports on whether a note prevents a point conflict, and the point values themselves vary by region. An absence covered by sick time or protected leave is the safe path.

What Whole Foods Market workers are told

Absences tracked

Points system (news, Sept 2020): points for lateness/absence; 3 points = counseling, 5 = final warning, 6 = termination; points fall off after 6 months. Policy was paused early in the pandemic (points due to expire from March 3, 2020 were frozen) and reinstated June 22, 2020.

Note required

Conflicting employee reports: one 2021 answer says a doctor's note prevents a point; a 2024 answer from Bay Area stores says two points per call-out and a doctor's note is required to return after three days in a row. Nothing official from Whole Foods on notes was found. Foodborne-illness symptoms were exempt from corrective action during COVID.

Where to submit

Call the store/team leader; Whole Foods' benefits site names Sedgwick as its short-term disability administrator (the leave-of-absence administrator is not stated).

Paid sick time

Paid time off program (details on mywfmbenefits.com; accrual not verified).

From published reporting on the policy · 2026-09-23

Get a doctor’s note · $29.99A licensed physician reviews your case online, same day. Your HR can verify it at sickslip.co/verify.

Sources, read 2026-09-23

Whole Foods workers upset by reinstated time, attendance policy (Fox Business, Sep 10 2020) (news, read 2026-09-23) “Accruing up to three points warrants a counseling session with a manager and five points warrant a final warning and six points means termination.”
What is the point system like at Whole Foods? (Indeed Q&A) (employee forum, read 2026-09-23) “each day you call out is one point unless you have a doctor's note then you do not get a point”
Disability FAQs - Whole Foods Market Benefits (benefits effective Jan 1 2026) (official, read 2026-09-23) “Sedgwick is the administrator for our Short-Term Disability (STD) plan”
Whole Foods Reinstates Attendance Policy Amid COVID-19 (Refinery29, Sep 2020) (news, read 2026-09-23) “points that should have expired between March 3rd and June 21st got an extended lifespan of 111 days”

Employee-forum sources describe what workers say happened at their site. Policies can differ by location and contract.

The rules that sit above Whole Foods Market’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, Whole Foods Market 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 retail employers

Walmart · Target · Lowe's · Costco · Kroger · Best Buy · H-E-B · AutoZone

Every employer’s sick-note rule, in one list

SickSlip is not affiliated with Whole Foods Market. Employer names are used to describe their published policies. Reviewed by Adam Z. Kawalek, MD (NPI 1326223306). Facts checked 2026-09-23.

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