YOUR PAY PACKET AND COVID-19

÷ COULD I BE DOCKED PAY IF I GO INTO SELF-ISOLATION OR QUARANTINE?

The confirmation of a number of coronavirus cases in Ireland — and the chance that more could follow — could see an increase in the numbers of Irish people going into quarantine or selfisolating in the coming weeks or months.

You are likely to be out of work for two weeks or more if this arises. So if you are not in a position to work remotely from home during those two weeks, could you be docked pay?

This will largely come down to your employer and employment contract. Under Irish law, employers are not obliged to pay sick pay unless it is specifically provided for in the worker’s employment contract. So if you have an entitlement to sick pay under your contact, you should be able to take sick leave and to get paid as normal if you have contracted the virus.

However, you may not be entitled to sick pay if you self-isolate on a precautionary basis, even if you are following the advice of health authorities when doing so. In such instances, you may be able to work remotely or take annual leave, if you have enough left, to avoid loss of earnings. ÷ WHAT HAPPENS IF I CAN’T WORK REMOTELY TO PROTECT MY PAY? There may be some options open to you if you cannot work remotely or from home, or if you can’t take sick leave or annual leave to cover your absence from work.

For example, you may be able to come to an agreement with your boss to work back the days or hours lost. You may be able to work from an alternative location. You may be entitled to State sick pay in the form of illness benefit, depending on your social insurance record. State sick pay, however, does not kick in for the first six days of sickness. Self-employed people are not entitled to this shortterm State sick pay. They are only entitled to State sick pay for long-term illnesses. ÷ WHAT IF I HAVE TO LOOK AFTER A CHILD? Some parents may have to stay at home to look after a child who has Covid-19 or who has been advised to self-isolate.

In such cases, you may be able to take force majeure leave to cover some of that time. You may also be able to take parental leave, though this is likely to be unpaid. Working from home might also be an option.

Whether or not your pay will suffer in this instance will largely come down to your employment contract and how flexible your employer is. ÷ COULD I GET LAID OFF

Should the coronavirus impact your boss’s ability to provide you with work, you may be laid off temporarily.

“Periods of lay-off are unpaid,” said the Workplace Relations Commission. “There are a number of social welfare payments which employees may potentially be entitled to.”