Ford government extends COVID paid sick leave benefits until July

Ontario’s COVID-19 program for paid sick days has been extended until July 31, 2022, the Ford government announced on Tuesday.

It was set to expire at the end of the year.

The Ford government announced the program back in April, which requires companies to pay employees up to $200 per day for three days. The province partnered with the Workplace Safety and Insurance Board (WSIB) to deliver the program and reimburse its staff.

The plan is available to full and part-time employees. Eligible workers qualify for mental health days and can stay home to care for relatives or family members sick with COVID-19.

“Nearly a quarter-million workers have already used our program, which is the first and most comprehensive in the country, for paid time off work,” said Monte McNaughton, Minister of Labour, Training and Skills Development.

“Our government is working for workers and ensuring they have the support they need to keep themselves and their families safe.”

McNaughton says extending the paid leave plan will help more workers take time off to get booster shots and help parents take time to get their children vaccinated. The Ford government says the program has helped over 235,000 people stay safe without losing pay.

#BREAKING – Ontario's Covid paid sick days program will be extended until July, sources tell CityNews 680. It was set to expire at the end of the year.

— Richard Southern (@RichardCityNews) December 7, 2021

Pressure to implement a provincewide plan built up significantly during the third wave, with legislators and pundits pressing the Ford government to fulfill their promise and protect frontline workers.

The decision to extend the program comes amidst fears of the Omicron variant and a subsequent rise in COVID-19 cases. New projections from the COVID-19 Science Advisory Table note that the variant’s impacts could be “substantial,” though its characteristics aren’t yet known.

The science table said intensive care occupancy would increase over the coming weeks, “likely exceeding” 250 patients by the end of this month without accounting for the Omicron variant, of which at least 21 cases had been confirmed as of early Tuesday.

The group called for increased vaccination and public health measures to reduce transmission as cases grow. At the same time, Ontario’s top doctor maintained that more data is needed before deciding whether to bring in provincewide measures to contain the spread.

Also on Tuesday, the government said it would maintain a pause on lifting capacity rules in specific settings, including nightclubs, event spaces with dancing, strip clubs and sex clubs.

Provincial health officials say an excess of free rapid COVID-19 tests is needed to help control the spread of the virus.

Dr. Michael Warner, head of critical care at Michael Garron Hospital, says the Ford government is “titrating” its COVID-19 public health response to ICU capacity.

“We don’t need more restrictions or new measures, we need free rapid tests, better masks, improved ventilation and concerted effort to accelerate vaccination,” Warner tweeted.

The science table’s adviser, Dr. Peter Juni, says it would make sense “from a scientific perspective” to use rapid tests more often, particularly in schools, workplaces and other congregate settings.

Families across the province have long sought access to rapid tests, and the Opposition parties say more should be handed out — particularly in winter months when infections typically rise.

A government spokeswoman says Ontario has been distributing about a million tests each week, and 11-million are earmarked over the holidays for public and First Nation schools.

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With files from The Canadian Press