There’s a lot of gratitude being shown to everyone who continues to work in essential services through the COVID19 pandemic. We thank the drivers, construction crews, doctors, grocery store workers, nurses, gas station attendants, cleaners, care aids, government service employees, garbage collectors, journalists, and others who are out there keeping our province running.
But we know gratitude won’t get them very far if they become ill because of work.
At the Office of the Worker Counsellor we hear regularly from people who have questions and concerns as they or their family members work through the pandemic. We’ve discovered there’s growing awareness of health and safety rights and responsibilities.
But one thing we’ve noticed is that most callers don’t know that they can file a WCB claim for COVID19, the same way they would for any other injury that happens at work.
If your work puts you at risk of exposure to COVID19 and you contract COVID19, you can (in fact, you must) file a claim for Workers Compensation Benefits.
We get it – There’s no way to know for sure where you contracted COVID19. Maybe it was during a visit to the grocery store, or getting coffee at a drive through, or filling your car up with gas. But you don’t need to know for sure. If there’s a chance you got it at work, WCB will review your claim and will make a decision about your entitlement to benefits.
Check out our HOW-TO about filing a WCB claim. And if you run into any problems at all, or if you just want to talk it through, contact us. We’re here to help.