What is quarantine leave?
Quarantine leave is a special leave entitlement which applies to
employees who have been ordered to quarantine by the Superintendent of Public
Health or other authorities. The quarantine leave is to be given in addition to
any other leave entitlement, as it is not related to paid vacation
leave. In the case of part-time work and reduced hours of work, quarantine
leave is to be calculated at a pro-rata basis.
What is the difference between quarantine and
sick leave?
In the case of an employee testing positive for
Covid-19, they are to be considered as sick, and therefore is to make
use of sick leave. If the employee is under quarantine order and becomes sick,
the employee should be put on sick leave until the sickness is over. Should the
employee still have to remain under quarantine order following the termination
of his illness, the employee will be put on quarantine leave once again. The
following example may help clarify the matter:
Joe is served with a
quarantine order after his son Paul, who works and still lives with his
parents, tests positive for Covid-19. Joe is tested for the virus, and tests
negative. Here both Joe and Paul are following a quarantine order, however,
whereas Joe is on quarantine leave, Paul is on sick leave because he is sick
with the virus. Should Joe test positive eventually, he will be put on sick
leave for as long as he tests positive for Covid-19.
When an employee is sick, only
the sickness entitlement applies. Therefore, a quarantine order only does
not allow an employer to place an employee on sick leave.
It is highly recommended that the
employee should present medical certificates throughout the period of their
sickness even after the paid sick leave has been used up completely.
How are employees paid during
quarantine leave?
As stated in S.L., quarantine
leave is “to be granted to the employee without loss of wages”. This means that
a full-time employee in quarantine should receive their full wage for the
duration of the quarantine order – this excludes employees who have been
diagnosed as positive for Covid-19. In the case of part-timers, the same
principle is to apply, with the wages being calculated pro-rata.
A quarantine order can only be
imposed by the Superintendent of Public Health or by any public authority who
holds such power at law. Therefore, the employee cannot impose any additional
period of quarantine onto an employee if their official quarantine order period
has ended.
Once Paul’s quarantine order
is lifted by the Public Health Authority, his employer cannot prevent Paul from
returning to work extra precaution. Paul’s employer may decide to resort to
forced leave; however, Paul can challenge his employer’s reason for forced
leave.
Any wages covering a period of
quarantine leave includes all statutory entitlements (public holidays,
government bonuses, etc).