Manitoba extends pandemic paid sick leave plan
Advertisement
Read this article for free:
or
Already have an account? Log in here »
To continue reading, please subscribe:
Digital Subscription
One year of digital access for only $205*
- Enjoy unlimited reading on winnipegfreepress.com
- Read the E-Edition, our digital replica newspaper
- Access News Break, our award-winning app
- Play interactive puzzles
*First annual payment billed as $205.00 + GST for one year. This annual subscription will automatically renew at $233.00 + GST every 52 weeks (10% off the regular annual price of $259.35). Offer available to new and qualified returning subscribers only. Cancel any time.
To continue reading, please subscribe:
Add Free Press access to your Brandon Sun subscription for only an additional
$1 for the first 4 weeks*
- Enjoy unlimited reading on winnipegfreepress.com
- Read the E-Edition, our digital replica newspaper
- Access News Break, our award-winning app
- Play interactive puzzles
*Your next Brandon Sun subscription payment will increase by $1.00 and you will be charged $17.95 plus GST for four weeks. After four weeks, your payment will increase to $24.95 plus GST every four weeks.
Read unlimited articles for free today:
or
Already have an account? Log in here »
Hey there, time traveller!
This article was published 13/12/2021 (1717 days ago), so information in it may no longer be current.
The province is extending the Manitoba Pandemic Paid Sick Leave Program until the end of March.
“It is imperative that workers get their COVID-19 vaccinations and stay home from work when feeling ill,” Finance Minister Scott Fielding said.
The paid sick leave program is giving Manitobans assurance if they are sick, they can stay home without financial repercussions, while also providing employers with financial assistance to accommodate public health guidelines, he said Monday in a news release.
The program first announced in May to help cover the costs of employee sick leave related to COVID-19 and to safely reopen the economy had expired at the end of October. The province has committed an extra $5 million for the extension.
The program provides eligible employers with up to $600 per employee for a maximum of five full days (40 hours) of COVID-19-related sick leave.
Eligible sick leave related to COVID-19 includes testing, vaccinations and side-effects, self-isolation due to COVID-19 symptoms or care for a loved one in any of these circumstances.
Eligible employees are those who live in Manitoba and work and receive wages in the province on a full-time or part-time basis. To date, the program has received approximately 4,250 employer applications representing 16,300 workers, totaling $5.2 million in benefits, with $275 as the average benefit per eligible worker.
It was set up to address gaps that exist between the federal Canada Recovery Sickness Benefit and provincial employment standards for paid sick leave.
The federal program covers up to four weeks of leave and requires eligible individuals to apply for leave and wait approximately one week for payment. Under Manitoba’s program, employees are paid on schedule and employers can request partial reimbursement from the province.