Just a reminder... A requirement for employers to pay employees for some sick days related to COVID-19 ends at the end of March.
Last year, the Ontario government extended to March 31, 2023 amendments to the Employment Standards Act, 2000 that allow eligible employees to take up to three days of paid infectious disease emergency leave for certain reasons related to the COVID-19 pandemic. These include being tested for COVID-19 and awaiting the test results, being sick with COVID-19, getting vaccinated against COVID-19, and providing care or support to certain family members for reasons related to COVID-19. The paid leave, which began on April 19, 2021, was scheduled to end on July 31, 2022, before the government extended it.
The Ministry of Labour notes that although the paid leave requirement applies until the end of March, employees are not entitled to additional days specific to 2023. They are entitled to a maximum of three days for the paid leave between April 19, 2021 and March 31, 2023.
For each of the three days, employers must pay employees the amount that they would have earned if they had not taken the leave, to a maximum of $200 per day. The provincial government will reimburse employers, through the Workplace Safety and Insurance Board (WSIB), for the paid leave, up to the $200 per day maximum for each employee. Employers must apply to the WSIB within 120 days of the date they paid the employee for the leave or by July 29, 2023, whichever is earlier.
For more information, please refer to 15.12.4, Emergency Leave: Declared Emergencies and Infectious Disease Emergencies.