Superior To Give Employees Retroactive COVID PTO Days

It needs a final vote by the City Council, but it looks like the City of Superior will provide some equity to employees who tested positive for COVID-19 early on during the pandemic.  At issue is the use of PTO time.

At the beginning of the COVID-19 pandemic, city employees who tested positive and stayed home from work to quarantine were given PTO relief by the city's declared state of emergency. The impetus behind that allowance came from a requirement by the federal government.  When that program was finished, the city's "normal policy" took over.

That left many city employees utilizing their PTO to accommodate the quarantine period.  This new retroactive policy would aim to make sure that "city employees are treated equally when required to quarantine after testing positive for COVID-19".

The new policy would apply to city employees who tested positive for about a one-year period. Here are the specifics, according to an article in the Superior Telegram [paywall]:

"Employees who can document they tested positive for COVID-19 between June 1, 2021 and May 3, 2022 will be given credit for using up to five days of paid time off they were required to use for the mandatory quarantine period."

Since that May 3, 2022 date, city employees were able to take administrative leave for their quarantine.

City officials aren't sure how many total employees would be affected, as the "city wasn't tasking it".

In order to qualify for the credit, those city employees would need to provide documentation of their positive COVID-19 tests. Documented tests would have to have been "performed at a pharmacy, medical facility, or testing site".  Home tests wouldn't apply or provide qualifying documentation.

While some members of the Superior City Council have gone back and forth on their support of the issue, the committee has provided engaged conversation for the last couple of months.  The retroactive policy - as submitted - will go for a full vote by the Superior City Council at their next meeting on July 5.