SINGAPORE - General practitioner clinics have been reporting a surge in walk-in, mildly symptomatic Covid-19 cases since the start of the year, prompting some doctors to suggest that employers can help by not insisting on medical certificates (MCs) for such patients. The Straits Times answers some questions you may have on this topic. Show
Q: I have Covid-19 but I am physically well. Working from home is not possible for me. Do I still need an MC?A: No. According to an advisory issued by tripartite partners - the Ministry of Manpower (MOM), National Trades Union Congress and Singapore National Employers Federation - employees should immediately inform their employer when they test positive, and begin self-isolation at home. They should not report to the workplace. Those who cannot work from home should not be required to submit an MC. Employers should treat their period of absence, while self-isolating at home, as paid sick leave. Q: What if I do not have enough sick leave to cover my period of isolation?A: MOM advises employers to "exercise compassion and flexibility in supporting the needs" of employees. The ministry notes that every employee who has at least three months of service is entitled to up to 60 days of paid sick leave, including hospitalisation leave, which "should generally" suffice to cover self-isolation. Employees should not be asked to take no-pay leave for the period of self-isolation. Q: What if I test positive and can work from home?A: The tripartite advisory states that employees who are physically well should be allowed to work from home if they are able to do so. They do not need to visit a clinic, but should self-isolate at home for 72 hours. For those with mild symptoms and a five-day MC issued by a doctor, employers should similarly treat the period of absence as paid sick leave. Q: Can I go back to my workplace before the five-day MC is up, if I feel well?A: Employees should still self-isolate for 72 hours, and self-administer an antigen rapid test (ART) after. If the result is negative and there are no symptoms, they can return to office without waiting for the MC to expire. If the result is positive, the employee should continue to self-isolate, and take an ART every 24 hours. If the result is positive, the employee should continue to self-isolate, and take an ART every 24 hours. Self-isolation can end either with a negative ART result, or on the seventh day if the employee is vaccinated and on the 14th day if unvaccinated. Do you know that you are entitled to both paid outpatient sick leave and paid hospitalisation leave if you have worked at least 3 months with your employer?According to the Ministry of Manpower, entitlement starts after 3 months of service (“Contract of service”) with the employer. In order to qualify for paid outpatient sick leave, the worker needs to be certified by a medical practitioner to be unfit for work (Medical Leave/ML) and have informed/attempted to inform the employer within 48 hours. For paid hospitalisation leave (HL), the worker should be warded, or has undergone day surgery, requires bed rest or requires rest for the condition after hospital discharge or is quarantined under any written law e.g. due to COVID 19 and also have informed/tried to inform the employer within 48 hours.
Leave Entitlement The showcase the paid entitlement for various lengths of service: Months of Service Days of ML (Up to 14 Days per year) First 3 months 0 Days 4th month 5 Days 5th Month 8 Days 6th Month 11 Days 7th Month onwards 14 Days
Months of Service Days of HL (Up to 60 days per year for both warded/stay at home recovery) First 3 months 0 Days 4th month 15 Days 5th Month 30 Days 6th Month 45 Days 7th Month onwards 60 Days
After using up the basic HL and ML of 60 or 14 days respectively, the leave entitlement becomes ⅔ of the workers’ wage.
Medical Reimbursement and Salary The company must pay for medical consultation if there is a full day of paid sick leave and a medical certificate (MC) is given by a medical practitioner from a public health institution/company-appointed medical clinic and the worker falls sick during a workday (visiting the hospital during the public holidays/rest day/non-working day will not count towards medical reimbursement/medical leave), according to MOM.
Leave entitlements under the Covid-19 pandemic The employment law is worded as encompassing “Quarantine Orders”. If the employee is unable to work due to Covid-19, the company has to pay the employee as per the above ML/HL entitlement, although the employee’s work responsibilities limit the type of compensation that can be given. In Reeracoen Singapore, all employees could work from home as our work could be performed online. This is advantageous as employees are not required to take medical leave for quarantine/stay-home recovery if the need ever arises. For Reeracoen Singapore, We also encourage all our staff to take their vaccination jabs and inform the operations and branch manager of their vaccination dates so that they can be given ML without MC if they are suffering from side effects after their vaccination shots. Such measures can be put in place for companies that could accommodate employees to work from home. However, some companies that require workers to report on-site e.g. F & B or manufacturing sectors may not be able to cater for remote working arrangements. MOH has issued a statement that workers who are tested positive for Covid-19 should not be allowed to return to the workplace and their period of absence should be considered as “paid sick leave” without the need of an MC as a positive ART result is sufficient. It is therefore important for companies to follow this directive to minimise the spread of COVID-19 in the workplace and the community. With the rise in cases above 10,000 daily due to the omicron surge, high workforce absenteeism has also led to reduced productivity. The tripartite partners have also issued an advisory on the steps that companies should take for business continuity. For workers who are under the category of “contract for service” such as contractors, food delivery personnel, private hire drivers, are the most vulnerable group of workers as the nature of their work exposes them to the virus more yet they are not covered for the loss in earnings when they are down with Covid-19. Some companies are stepping up to provide extra support for these workers. One notable example is Grab’s Driver Care Protection by Chubb where these workers can receive up to $1000 if they are unable to work due to Covid-19. Furthermore, companies should not exploit loopholes in the employment law such as offering “attendance bonuses” to dissuade workers from taking ML/HL if they are really unwell. Similarly, it is also unfair for companies to appraise their employees based on their use of sick leave. The employment law and guidelines serve as the bare minimum for companies to play their part in minimising the impact of the pandemic on Singapore–however, companies should go above and beyond in managing business continuity plans and employee sentiments so as to protect the wellbeing of all employees in such disruptive and challenging times. Related Post
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