What is the impact of a refusal to provide a doctor’s note to verify a sick leave claim?

Based on the facts that I have found, the plaintiff’s dismissal was the result of her refusal to comply with the employer’s policy and her manager’s repeated (September 13, 22 and 29) requests to provide doctor’s notes to verify her sick leave claim. I have found that the employer’s reaction to this refusal or delay was disproportionate, and should result in damages in lieu of notice. While disproportionate, the employer’s conduct was not one of the exceptional cases that can be described as “harsh, vindictive, reprehensible and malicious”. The employer did not know that the plaintiff had visited a doctor with complaints about dizziness, and did not know that the plaintiff had been diagnosed with vertigo. The plaintiff, for whatever reason, did not provide the employer with this information until after she was dismissed on October 4, 2010, notwithstanding three requests by the defendant employer. As in Honda v. Keays (at para. 76), the employer was sceptical and was taking legitimate steps to verify the sick leave claim. The employer did not know about the seriousness or true nature of the employee’s illness because the employee was not providing the relevant documentation or information.