Quarantine and sick leave: does quarantine lead to sick leave?

The pandemic caused by the COVID-19 virus has wreaked havoc in the world, Spain has been one of the countries with the highest number of people affected in Europe and since last May 2020 it has decreed a state of alarm throughout the country. This state of alarm has brought with it several periods of general quarantine, which have ceased in recent months with the intention of returning the population to normality following various security protocols. However, during this return to activities, many people have asked themselves: does confinement lead to sick leave, can I opt for sick leave if I have to look after a direct relative who is ill with COVID-19, if the entire class where my child is studying has been placed in preventive isolation, can I have sick leave to look after him/her, etc.?

Questions in labour law are numerous, many of them can find answers in the multiple laws that have been published since March 2020 with the intention of protecting the health of citizens. Although considering that this situation has been relatively new and there are still legal loopholes that are detrimental to workers, it is expected that new legislation will be published to guarantee 100% the health, safety and right to work of Spaniards.

Sick leave for common illness vs. sick leave for accidents at work due to COVID-19

With the publication of Royal Decree-Law 6/2020, of 10 March, which adopts a series of measures for the protection of the economy and health of Spaniards, it is established that all workers who have tested positive for COVID-19 or must remain in isolation as a preventive measure, will be considered to have an occupational accident status. This status provides the worker with job protection and access to a series of benefits that guarantee the right to health. This type of sick leave differs from common sick leave, so we will talk about the most relevant differences:

Who pays and how much does the worker have to be paid?

When a worker is absent from work due to a cold or other illness, he/she starts to receive 60% of his/her salary from the fourth day after the absence until the 20th day. If he has to be absent for a period of more than 21 days, he begins to receive 75% of his salary from the 21st day, up to a maximum of one year. On the other hand, a worker on sick leave due to an accident at work because of COVID-19 shall be entitled to 75% of his salary from the day after he has been on sick leave.

Temporary incapacity allowance paid by the company

Companies provide the worker with the percentages established in the General Law on Social Security, but they are also governed by contracts or collective agreements where the percentages can be extended up to 100% of the salary and even pay for the first three days of sick leave for common illness.

No minimum contribution period

Workers who are on sick leave due to an accident at work caused by COVID-19 do not need to have a minimum contribution period. The opposite is the case with sick leave due to common illness, which must be accredited if the employee has a period of 180 days of contributions during the previous 5 years worked.

Exceptional duration

The Royal Decree establishes that the duration of sick leave due to an accident at work due to COVID-19 will be exceptional and will be determined by the isolation leave report as well as by the medical discharge issued by a health professional. In other words, if a worker misses work due to a cold, is diagnosed with COVID-19 at a health institution and is issued a sick leave report for isolation, this will be valid from the day of the event, even if the sick leave report is issued later.

How the procedure is handled

Due to the State of Alarm decreed in Spain, the number of medical staff in health institutions has been reduced to avoid a greater number of contagions. However, new medical care channels are being set up to diagnose possible cases of infection by telephone. For this reason, those possibly infected should call their health centre where specialised staff will provide an assessment of their case and, if they have a high percentage of the virus, a sick leave form will be issued for isolation, which can be sent by post or picked up by a family member at the health centre.

Parents with children in quarantine to be released from work accident leave

After the call for a new start of activities in Spain, but with strict biosecurity measures, many parents have had to return to work and their children to school. However, in the face of new outbreaks of contagion in several Spanish communities, isolation has become a reality for many workers and children. If a child in a classroom tested positive for PCR COVID-19, the rest of the children will be preventively isolated, so they will have to stay at home even if they do not have symptoms and have not tested positive for COVID-19. How will parents take care of their children if they have to report to work?

The care and security of the little ones has been complicated by legal loopholes that the government has not yet solved in October 2020. With the Royal Decree-Law 30/2020, which came into force on 30 September, employment protection was extended until 3 January 2021 for people who could be made redundant due to economic and logistical issues of the employers as well as issues of convalescence of the worker or the need to care for children or relatives who are COVID-positive. However, this decree ignored important cases that the return to work would bring, such as the care of children or other dependents with CRP negative in periods of isolation.

Government representatives such as Ignacio Álvarez, Secretary of State for Social Rights, reported that in the "next few days" they would approve laws that would allow parents to opt for sick leave in the event of having to care for their children or relatives in confinement with negative PCR.

The creation of a new law that would allow parents with children in isolation and negative COVID to obtain sick leave was ratified by the Minister of Labour, Yolanda Díaz, but until a formal publication is made by the governmental bodies, parents will have to find their own way to care for their children.