How many paid sick days should the province offer?

The province is now seeking feedback to help decide if paid sick-leave will be a minimum of three, five or 10 days as it moves into the next stage of its consultation process.
 
More than 26,000 surveys were completed by employers and employees between Aug. 4 and Sept. 14. The survey results found that employers and employees reported concerns about staff coming to work sick and infecting others. Of the employers who offer paid sick-leave to their employees:

• close to 45% provide three to five days per year;
• about 25% provide six to 10 days;
• about 20% provide more than 10 days; and
• close to 10% provide less than three days.

About 70% of workers with access to paid sick-leave indicated they typically don’t use all of the paid sick-days in a year.
 
The public can comment on the current round of engagement until Oct. 25. The province plans to implement permanent paid sick-leave on Jan. 1, 2022.
 
In May, the government announced a temporary paid sick-leave program that paid up to $200 per day to help businesses that didn’t already provide paid sick leave. The subsidy was available for up to three days and was meant to help reduce the transmission of COVID-19.