OFL: Workers Need Permanent Paid Sick Leave, Not the Bare Minimum

Ontario’s new Worker Income Protection Benefit is a bare minimum response to the longstanding call for paid sick days from labour advocates, unions, public health officials, and medical experts, says the Ontario Federation of Labour (OFL). The temporary benefit, administered through the Workplace Safety and Insurance Board (WSIB), will provide a maximum of three days paid sick leave and is only available until September 25, 2021. 

The OFL has been part of the call for permanent, adequate, employer-provided, and universal paid sick days, since long before this pandemic. This call has gained traction and broad public support across the political spectrum. The Worker Income Protection Benefit, introduced by the Doug Ford government this week, is simply not the paid sick days program we need. It is temporary, inadequate, and restricted. 

Read the full OFL statement here.