Business support under Red

Two support payments are currently available to businesses under the Red Traffic Light setting. These payments cover employees while they have been advised to self-isolate and cannot work from home.

COVID-19 Leave Support Scheme

The COVID-19 Leave Support Scheme is available to employers, including the self-employed, to help pay their employees who have been advised to self-isolate because of COVID-19 and can’t work at home during that period.

The COVID-19 Leave Support Scheme is paid at the rate of:

• $600 / week for full-time workers (working 20 or more hours a week)

• $359 / week for part-time workers (working less than 20 hours a week)

To be eligible for a one-week payment of Leave Support Scheme your employee will have been advised to self-isolate for at least four consecutive days. If your employee needs to keep self-isolating for 11 days or more, you can apply for a second week payment. You can apply for third and subsequent Leave support payments for every further seven days of self-isolation.

Apply here for the COVID-19 Leave Support Scheme

COVID-19 Short-Term Absence Payment

The COVID-19 Short-Term Absence Payment is available for businesses, including the self-employed, to help pay their employees who cannot work from home while they wait for a COVID-19 test result.

The Short-Term Absence Payment helps businesses keep paying eligible employees who:

• cannot work from home, and

• need to miss work to stay home while waiting for a COVID-19 test result

There’s a one-off payment of $359 for each eligible worker. You can only apply for it once, for each eligible employee, in any 30-day period (unless a health official or doctor tells the employee to get another test).

Apply here for the Short-Term Absence Payment