Employee testing positive for COVID-19 explores leave options

Q         We have an employee working remotely from home who has tested positive for COVID-19. Her doctor says she can return to work in two weeks. She is asymptomatic and wants to continue to work so she can save her emergency paid sick leave (EPSL) time in case her elderly mother gets sick. Can we allow her to continue working?

A   You can allow her to continue working, but before she can save the EPSL for later, her mother will have to be either subject to a quarantine order or advised to self-quarantine.

Under the Families First Coronavirus Response Act (FFCRA), employees may take the EPSL when they are (1) subject to a governmental quarantine or isolation order, (2) experiencing COVID-19 symptoms and seeking a medical diagnosis, (3) directed to self-quarantine because of the virus by a healthcare provider, or (4) caring for someone who is subject to a quarantine order or has been advised to self-quarantine.

For your employee to use the EPSL to care for someone else, the person must be an immediate family member, someone who lives in her house, or someone who depends on her for care. Your employee falls into the category of caring for an immediate family member.

Alternatively, she can continue to telework if feasible. Employees may telework during their quarantine period instead of using the EPSL, depending on your expectations and their health condition. If she becomes unable to telework because of one of the qualifying reasons, she will be entitled to take the paid sick leave.