Coronavirus: Best Practices for Employers to Ensure a Healthy Workplace MALCOLM MACKILLOP
With the spread of the Novel Coronavirus (2019-nCoV or “Coronavirus�), employers should refresh their knowledge of their obligations towards their employees and take steps to ensure they foster a healthy workplace environment.
Employee Absence Employers have an obligation to ensure a safe and healthy workplace for their employees. If employers have a reasonable basis to believe an employee may have Coronavirus, for instance, if an employee or one of their family members have recently visited a high-risk area for Coronavirus and/or they exhibit flu-like symptoms such as fever, coughing and shortness of breath, employers can ask that employee to stay home until it can be determined that they do not have Coronavirus and their health improves. When asking an employee to stay home, employers should consider arrangements that would allow their employees to work from home if it is practical to do so. Further, employers should consider the implications of choosing not to pay sick employees while they remain at home. Providing employees with unpaid leaves may encourage sick employees to come into work and increase the potential of spreading their illness to the rest of the workforce.
Employment Standards In the absence of a greater contractual right or benefit, all employees subject to the Ontario Employment Standards Act, 2000 (the “ESA”) are entitled to minimum employment standards, including unpaid leaves of absences that eligible employees can use if they are sick and need to stay home. Ill employees who have at least two (2) weeks of service with an employer can take up to three (3) unpaid days for sick leave under the ESA. These employees may also be able to take up to three (3) unpaid days of family responsibility leave to care for an ill family member.
While Coronavirus has not caused any fatalities in Canada, it may result in significant medical issues. For more serious illnesses, employees may be able to take an unpaid family caregiver leave for up to eight (8) weeks to care for a family member with a serious medical condition. Employees may also be able to take an unpaid family medical leave of absence for up to 28 weeks to care for a family member who has a serious medical condition and a serious risk of death.
Finally, an unpaid critical illness leave is available to employees who have worked for their employers for at least six (6) months. These employees can take this leave to care for a critically ill minor child who is a family member for up to 37 weeks, or to care for a critically ill adult family member for up to 17 weeks.