In the wake of the coronavirus, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) is recommending companies actively encourage workers to stay home if they are showing symptoms.
But not all workers can telecommute.
Some jobs just have to be done in person. Consider the person who stocks your supermarket’s shelves. The cashier at your favorite retail store and the person who pumps your gas. The barista who makes your caramel latte and the server who brings you lunch. The folks who work at Amazon fulfillment centers.
Those jobs can’t be done if workers stay home, and unless a company offers its employees substantial paid sick time, workers who stay home could lose a lot of money.
Imagine how many people would be in trouble if stores and restaurants decide to close.
It’s a bleak outlook for families without healthy emergency funds who will have to find a way to pay the bills while they’re not getting a paycheck.
“Workers who run out of paid sick time will be at the mercy of their employers,” said Rebecca Kolins Givan, associate professor in the Rutgers School of Management and Labor Relations. “If the employer chooses to pay them, great. But many workers, especially low-wage service workers, will be in dire straits.”
If your boss tells you to stay home or if you decide to self-quarantine — but you don’t have paid sick time — here are your protections in New Jersey.
SOME PROTECTIONS, NOT MANY
New Jersey passed a bill two year ago that allows workers to earn sick time.
The New Jersey Earned Sick Leave Law went into effect on Oct. 29, 2018.
Before the law kicked in, some 1.2 million New Jerseyans wouldn’t be paid for sick time, and those who stayed home without pay could have lost their jobs.
Businesses of every size that don’t already provide paid sick leave are subject to the law, and it includes part-time, full-time, temporary and seasonal workers.
“It permits workers to use their earned sick time to care for themselves or a family member (which is broadly defined); when the employee’s workplace, child’s school, or child’s daycare is closed by order of a public official because of a public health emergency; or where a public health authority determines that the employee’s (or a family member’s) presence in the community would jeopardize public health,” said Angela Delli Santi, a spokeswoman for the state’s Department of Labor and Workforce Development.
For every 30 hours worked, a person is entitled to one hour of leave. It maxes out at 40 hours per year, so for most employees, it would only cover a week’s worth of sick time.
That’s a problem given current guidance that those infected with coronavirus should quarantine for 14 days.
When you run out of earned sick time, you can’t necessarily count on unemployment insurance.
If a worker isn’t clearly unemployed, but rather working inconsistent or fewer hours than usual, they may not be eligible, Givan said.
“In general, workers only receive unemployment insurance if they are actively looking for work. It’s hard to envision how workers could seek other employment during a pandemic,” she said. “
Delli Santi offered these examples of how workers might or might not be covered under current unemployment, disability and worker’s compensation rules:
· If a worker contracts the virus because he/she waited on or worked with someone who had the virus, the worker may be eligible for workers’ compensation.
· If a worker was quarantined, is under the care of a health care provider and negative for the virus, he/she may be eligible for temporary disability.
· If a worker is laid off because the market dried up, he she may be eligible for unemployment insurance.
· If an employer knows a worker was exposed to the virus and orders him/her to stay home, the worker may be eligible for unemployment insurance.
· If a worker contracts the virus and is under a doctor’s care, the worker may be eligible for temporary disability. (The employer could pay the difference between the amount of the temporary disability benefit and the worker’s weekly salary.)
Federal law doesn’t require companies to provide paid sick time.
But the Family and Medical Leave Act could provide help for some workers, but not everyone — including employees of companies with fewer than 50 employees — would be eligible. You can learn more here from the U.S. Department of Labor.
And if you’re a union employee, you can check to see if your collective bargaining agreement includes paid time off for certain emergencies.
Even though they’re not required to offer more help, companies can step up to support their workforce.
“Employers are free to enact all kinds of policies to help their workers, from additional paid sick time to covering co-pays and deductibles for workers who need to see a healthcare provider," Givan said. “As long as some workers can’t afford to stay home because they’ve exhausted any earned sick leave, or they’re unable to see a doctor because they can’t afford the out-of-pocket cost, the virus will spread more quickly.”
Have you been Bamboozled? Reach Karin Price Mueller at Bamboozled@NJAdvanceMedia.com. Follow her on Twitter @KPMueller. Find Bamboozled on Facebook. Mueller is also the founder of NJMoneyHelp.com. Stay informed and sign up for NJMoneyHelp.com’s weekly e-newsletter.