The Department of Health Services (DHS) and Wisconsin Economic Development Corporation (WEDC) want to remind Wisconsin employers that resources are available to businesses to support employee health and workplace productivity. Please share this email with your members and/or business community.
Paid Leave Credit for 2021
Payroll tax credits are available for small- and medium-sized businesses (i.e., under 500 employees) to cover the full cost of paid leave for employees to get the COVID-19 vaccine and recover from any side effects. The credits are available for leave from April 1, 2021, through September 30, 2021. For more information:
- IRS Fact Sheet: Under the American Rescue Plan, employers are entitled to tax credits for providing paid leave to employees who take time off related to COVID-19 vaccinations (multiple languages)
- Employers: Paid Leave Flyer from the US Treasury
These credits make it easy to keep your employees safe and healthy. And, they are good for more than just your business: offering paid sick and family leave helps fight the virus by helping employees get vaccinated and encouraging sick employees to stay home.
Strategies to Boost Vaccination
Employers can play a key role in supporting vaccination among their employees by:
- Providing vaccination at your workplace. Get matched with a vaccinator to host a vaccination clinic: Employer Matching Survey
- Providing and posting information about getting vaccinated
- Share the websites for finding available vaccine, www.Vaccines.gov and www.Vacunas.gov
- Using this customizable PowerPoint presentation to communicate with employees about the COVID-19 vaccines
- Informing your employees about paid leave options, including policies about:
- Taking paid time off to get vaccinated
- Taking paid time off to recover from any vaccination side effects
Access DHS guidance for employers, COVID-19 Vaccination Distribution Implementation Program, for more information on preparing for vaccination either through community efforts or at the workplace.
Providing paid time off for vaccinations is an investment in the safety, productivity, and health of your workforce, business, and community. Paid leave has been shown to be a critical tool for stopping the spread of COVID-19, which keeps your staff productive at work. One Wisconsin study shows that paid leave provisions have the potential to significantly reduce the spread of COVID-19 by:
- Preventing approximately 10,000 cases per month
- Saving 75 lives per month
A study by KFF shows that overall, nearly 3 in 10 (28%) employed adults who are not yet ready to get the vaccine say that they would be more likely to get the COVID-19 vaccine if their employer gave them paid time off to get vaccinated and recover from any side effects.