COVID-19 & Workers' Compensation
When COVID-19 reached California in 2020, it raised urgent questions. Is an infection caught at work covered by workers’ compensation? Who has to prove where it was contracted? What happens to workers who must quarantine?
Over the next two years, an executive order, Senate Bill 1159 and a series of Cal/OSHA rules answered many of those questions, and supplemental paid sick leave programs came and went. These articles document that history as it unfolded. Several of the temporary programs described here have since expired, but the claims principles still apply, as do the rights of workers who developed long COVID.
Our guides on this topic
All 15 articles
- Workers Continue to Face COVID Safety Issues with New Omicron VariantThe Omicron variant is spreading quickly across California, raising serious worker safety and Workers' Compensation issues. Learn about your rights and protections under SB 95.
- URGENT UPDATE: COVID-19 Paid Sick Leave Has ExpiredThe COVID-19 Supplemental Paid Sick Leave has expired, eliminating benefits for millions of Californian's.
- COVID-19 Long-Haul Syndrome and Workers' Compensation BenefitsGEKLAW attorneys explain COVID-19 Long-Haul Syndrome, its symptoms, and how California workers can receive compensation benefits for ongoing illness caused by workplace exposure.
- COVID-19 Supplemental Paid Sick Leave Continues to Provide ReliefLearn how California's Supplemental Paid Sick Leave protects essential workers and supports COVID-19-related Workers' Compensation benefits.
- California Workers Are Eligible for 80 Hours of Paid COVID-19 Supplemental Sick LeaveCalifornia SB 95 grants up to 80 hours of COVID-19 supplemental paid sick leave for eligible workers in 2021, retroactive to Jan 1 and effective Mar 29–Sep 30, 2021.
- Hero Pay and Increased Vaccination Availability Offer Hope During the PandemicGEKLAW discusses Hero Pay laws supporting essential grocery and retail workers in Los Angeles and how vaccination rollout offers renewed hope.
- Cal/OSHA Mandates New COVID-19 RegulationsCal/OSHA adopted emergency COVID-19 regulations with new rules for workplace safety, outbreaks, and quarantines, explained by Adam Dombchik.
- New Laws Designed to Protect Workers During the PandemicCalifornia's SB 1159 creates a presumption of workers' compensation liability for COVID-19 cases and expands protections to frontline and non-frontline employees during the pandemic.
- Working from Home During COVID-19—and Beyond… A New, Broader Lens On Workers' CompensationWorking from home during the pandemic poses unique challenges in California's Workers' Compensation system, including how at-home injuries and commutes between a home office and regular office are handled.
- Cal/OSHA Sets New Guidelines for Workplace Health and Safety During COVID-19Cal/OSHA issued COVID-19 safety guidelines requiring distancing, masks, sanitation, and screening to protect California workers and prevent workplace exposure.
- Executive Order Reduces the Burden on California's Workers Who Contract COVID-19Governor Newsom's executive order creates a rebuttable presumption that workers infected with COVID-19 contracted the illness at work, easing access to Workers' Compensation benefits.
- COVID-19 and Your Rights Under California's Workers' Compensation SystemWhat to know about COVID-19 and California workers' compensation: causation, OSHA risk tiers, and how GEKLAW helps injured workers.
- Burden of Proof May Create a Barrier to Receiving Workers' Compensation Benefits for COVID-19 Each State Is DifferentThe burden of proof may create a barrier to receiving Workers' Compensation benefits for COVID‐19 — each state is different and essential workers may be left without a remedy despite their frontline risk.
- COVID-19's Possible Impact on the State's Workers' Compensation SystemExplore how California Workers' Compensation law addresses COVID-19 exposure at work, including industrial causation, essential worker risks, and new legal presumptions.
- Coronavirus (COVID-19) and California’s Workers’ Compensation Law—What You Should KnowLearn how California Workers' Compensation law applies to COVID-19 exposure at work and what steps to take if you contract the virus on the job.
