Application of wage subsidy for vulnerable worker under level 3 and beyond
Question
We have a question in regards to a member of our team who is over 70 and therefore a vulnerable worker under alert level 3 and possibly under alert level 2, as the work requires site visits to multiple locations during the day.
Our technical team will be returning to work under alert level 3 at 80% capacity for the first 2 weeks.
After 2 weeks we expect to be back at 100% although the workload will be much less than prior to lockdown.
My question is around our vulnerable over 70 year old worker. He can do limited work at home with some remote support for clients, but this work will be more than covered by the wage subsidy. We do not think we can keep him at 80% of salary while remaining at home after the level 4 lockdown has ended. Do you have any advice or recommendations in this area?
Answer
Your obligations may depend on the terms in the employment agreement and how he has been paid prior to lockdown. From the wording of your question, it would appear that his normal salary prior to lockdown was more than the subsidy. The term "salary" suggests that his base pay excluding any overtime was a set amount each pay day, so even if he is unable to do any work, the following would apply:
If the above assumptions are correct, you are obliged to pass on the subsidy to him and top up his salary to 80% of what he would have been getting prior to lockdown if at all possible. Whether this is possible or not will be a matter of fact and if you absolutely cannot afford to top up his salary, you will need at least to pass on the subsidy and keep him on in accordance with the commitment associated with receiving the subsidy.
If the assumptions are incorrect or this doesn't adequately answer your question, please do get back to us again.