Canadian PM Trudeau pushes for national sick leave plan to prep for coronavirus second wave

Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau said his government is working toward ramping up the national sick leave program as the country anticipates a second wave of coronavirus infections. 

“Nobody should have to choose between taking a day off work due to illness or being able to pay their bills. Just like nobody should have to choose between staying home with COVID-19 symptoms or being able to afford rent or groceries,” Trudeau said during a news conference in Ottawa on Monday.

“Nobody should have to choose between taking a day off work due to illness or being able to pay their bills.” @JustinTrudeau said he will work with provinces to ensure those who need it have 10 days of paid sick leave a year. PM said he spoke to Jagmeet Singh about this yesterday pic.twitter.com/jKe7Xd5P5q

— Power & Politics (@PnPCBC) May 25, 2020

Though sick leave policies are typically decisions of provinces, Trudeau is proposing guaranteeing workers across Canada at least 10 days of sick leave amid the pandemic. 

As of Tuesday morning Canada has reported 85,711 cases of the virus and 6,545 deaths due to the coronavirus. Health officials in Canada said they anticipate a second wave of the virus in the fall. 

“When the fall comes and flu season starts up we don’t want people who develop a sniffle to suddenly worry that while they really shouldn’t go into work but they can’t afford to not go into work and therefore the risk of contributing to a wave significantly, could be a real problem,” Trudeau said.

Last week the U.S. and Canada announced they are extending border restrictions until late June.