To protect workers going forward from monetary losses as a result of COVID, Governor Gary Newsom has signed two pieces of legislation into law.
The first of these laws affects everyone, but priority is given to front line workers. If a frontline worker is infected on the job, they are eligible for workers comp immediately. For those in other jobs, it will depend on the size of their company. For it to count as a COVID outbreak for those with up to 100 employees, only four people who work in the same area within two weeks need to be infected. This becomes permanent for EMS workers while the benefits for non-EMS workers expire January 1st, 2023. The second mandates that companies tell their employees if they had been exposed within one business day of finding out, effective January 1st, 2021. Business owners are worried that while they support legislation to help their frontline workers, “They said it wasn’t fair to do that for other occupations with a lower risk of infection. They called the law “unworkable for employers.”[1]
COVID is still a threat to public health and will continue to be one for a very long time. States are creating protections for workers and they will be a challenge for business owners. Consult your state’s laws concerning workers comp and how COVID affects it.
[1] https://www.insurancejournal.com/news/west/2020/09/21/583382.htm