Tucson company to pay employee for coronavirus quarantine sick time
Apr 24, 2020, 3:00 PM
(Pexels Photo)
(Pexels Photo)
PHOENIX – A Tucson-based company will pay one employee $1,600 in sick time after he was required to self-quarantine with potential coronavirus symptoms, according to the U.S. Department of Labor.
Bear Creek Electrical will pay the employee after the company was investigated by the department’s Wage and Hour division.
The employer’s decision to not pay the man sick time violated the Families First Coronavirus Response Act that went into effect April 1.
“This case should serve as a signal to others that the U.S. Department of Labor is working to protect employee rights during the coronavirus pandemic,” Wage and Hour District Director Eric Murray in Phoenix said in a press release.
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According to the release, the employee told the agency that he lives paycheck to paycheck and was counting on the sick pay to cover his bills.
The response act helps businesses with fewer than 500 employees with paid leave for the employee’s health or if they need to care for sick family members.
The law is intended to keep workers on the payroll and ensure that they’re not choosing between paychecks and public health.
