The Government of Ontario has announced that Infectious Disease Emergency Leave (“IDEL”) will be extended for a fifth time. It will now cover the period from March 1, 2020 to July 30, 2022. As a result of this change, it is possible that the worst effected employees may find themselves out of work, and without pay, for a staggering 2 years and 5 months.
IDEL is an unpaid statutory leave. It was created early in the pandemic with the express purpose of attempting to shield employers from the economic fallout of COVID-19. IDEL enables employers to place their workers on a special form of layoff for reasons related COVID-19. This has the result of allowing employers to keep employees off work, without pay, for a much longer period than would ordinarily be permissible under the Employment Standards Act, 2000.
As we have reported previously, it is unclear whether IDEL protects employers from common law claims of constructive dismissal. To date, lower-level courts in Ontario have issued conflicting decisions on the issue. Fortunately, the Ontario Court of Appeal is now scheduled to address the legal consequences of IDEL in early April 2022. Even more interesting is the news that the Ontario Government is seeking to intervene in this appeal to provide its own view on the interaction of IDEL and common law rights.[1]
Pandemic Paid Sick Leave to Continue
In addition to its extension of IDEL, the Ontario Government has also indicated that its Worker Income Protection Benefit (“WIPB”) will continue until July 31, 2022. The WIPB is another pandemic response measure and was introduced to provide up to 3 days of paid sick leave to all Ontario employees for reasons related to COVID-19.
Workers qualify for paid sick leave under the WIPB program if they are:
going for a COVID-19 test;
staying home awaiting the results of a COVID-19 test;
sick with COVID-19;
receiving individual medical treatment for mental health reasons related to COVID-19;
going to get vaccinated;
experiencing a side effect from a COVID-19 vaccination;
self-isolating due to COVID-19 as directed by an employer, medical practitioner, or other specified authority; or
providing care or support to certain relatives related to COVID-19.
The WIPB provides employees with a payment of up to $200 per day of sick leave, for a total of three such days that may be taken. Employers can seek reimbursement for these costs from the Workplace Safety and Insurance Board.
Ontario’s COVID-19 paid sick leave has proven quite popular. To date, 235,000 workers have qualified for payment under the program, resulting in a total of 515,000 paid sick days across the province. Moreover, the WIPB remains under budget, demonstrating ample capacity to continue providing support as the pandemic lingers on throughout Ontario.
To read more about IDEL and the WIPB program, please see our previous coverage here and here.
Vey Willetts LLP is an Ottawa-based employment and labour law firm that provides timely and cost-effective legal advice to help employees and employers resolve workplace issues in Ottawa and across Ontario. To speak with an employment lawyer, contact us at: 613-238-4430 or info@vwlawyers.ca.
[1] A blogging hat tip to Barry Fisher, who first reported on the appeal date and proposed government intervention for the case of Taylor v. Hanley Hospitality Inc., 2021 ONSC 3135.