Leave entitlements during Covid-19 self isolation

Posted on 04 Aug 2022

With so many people off sick or in self-isolation at the moment, ?this is a good time to clarify some of the entitlements surrounding sick leave and payments if you are working from home or cannot work from home. It is important to note we are not HR advisors, and any employment dispute or issue should be raised with an HR professional.? The following information has been gathered from various government websites such as employment.govt.nz and workandincome.govt.nz. We can help with any queries you may have but would recommend you speak to an HR advisor for further advice. In most circumstances it is in both the employer's and employee's best interest to discuss any leave requirements and work these out together. Employment law still applies to all employee relationships regardless of the current pandemic circumstances. We recommend everything is put in writing so both employee and employer are clear on their circumstances. The below questions and answers relate to both employee and employer.

Do I need to use my sick leave if I am off with Covid and have to self-isolate?

To put simply, you don't have to use your sick leave. You can opt to go for unpaid leave or special leave, but you need to work this out with your employer and get any arrangements put in writing.

If you are sick and isolating:

Sick leave is available if you are sick. You can only take sick leave if you are sick, or your spouse, partner, dependent child, or other person who depends on you is sick. If you are sick, and sick leave is available to you then you are entitled to use this. The employee can also opt to take unpaid leave, but this should be in a written agreement between employee and employer. The Covid-19 Leave Support Scheme may also be available to the employee if they meet the criteria and is available whether they use sick leave or not. The employer needs to apply for this payment. Reference this page: https://www.employment.govt.nz/workplace-policies/coronavirus-workplace/leave-and-pay-entitlements-during-covid-19/

If you are not sick and isolating:

If you cannot work from home:

If you are not sick but are required to self-isolate and cannot work from home, you should discuss with your employer what options are available. If eligible, your employer can apply for the COVID-19 Leave Support Scheme to help pay your wages. If you are unable to work from home, and it is unclear what you should be paid, your employer and you should consult your employment agreement, discuss, and seek to reach agreement in good faith on what approach will be taken. This could include considering special paid leave, annual holidays, long-service leave, other payments (including partial payments) by your employer for a certain period of time, or any combination of the above. Your employer may never unlawfully make you take annual leave, including while using the Leave Support Scheme. If your staff member is well but in self-isolation and not able to work from home, then technically they do not qualify for sick leave entitlement. The employer and employee should consider what options are available, such as taking annual leave or leave without pay, or the employer accessing the below Government assistance scheme:

• Covid-19 Leave Support Scheme:

This is a payment available to an employer (including self-employed people), to help pay their employees who must self-isolate and can't work from home during that period. The employee will have to have been self-isolating for at least 4 consecutive calendar days. More info here: https://www.workandincome.govt.nz/covid-19/leave-support-scheme/index.html

?If you can work from home:

If you can work from home, then you must be paid, as normal, for each and every hour that you work as set out in your employment agreement, unless both you and your employer agree, in writing, that you will be paid at a different rate while you are working from home. There is a really good list of Q&A's on this employment.govt.nz website. https://www.employment.govt.nz/workplace-policies/coronavirus-workplace/employment-guide-for-workers-at-different-covid-alert-levels/ If you need assistance in this area we would recommend talking to an HR specialist.? There are online tools available on HR Toolkit.? www.hrtoolkit.co.nz.