Workers lost $28 billion in wages due to unpaid sick leave during COVID-19, report finds

The average U.S. employee receives around seven to eight days of paid sick leave per year, according to the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics. But during a pandemic, those seven or eight days might not be enough. Now, nonprofit The Urban Institute’s new research on unpaid sick leave during the pandemic finds that there was a spike in unpaid absences due to illness and child care needs as a result  of COVID-19, which led to a subsequent loss of as much as $28 billion in wages amongst those affected.

According to the report, which compared the first two years of the pandemic to the two years prior, there was a marked increase in sick leave due to COVID-19. The total unpaid absence rate went up 60% between the pre-pandemic and pandemic periods, with spikes in absences due to sickness, child care needs, and family obligation. Some 81% of all absences during COVID-19 were due to worker illness, but only 45% of these absences were paid. The number was even lower for child care absences, less than a quarter of which were compensated. 

The report also finds that taking a week of unpaid leave costs a worker $815 in wages on average.

The situation was particularly dire for certain marginalized groups. People who made $100,000 per year were three times less likely to take paid sick leave compared to those making under $25,000. Women and Black and Hispanic individuals were also more likely to take unpaid sick leave.

Read more: Addressing the growing paid family and sick leave crisis

Self-employed workers were also two times as likely to take unpaid leave as workers with an employer, the report finds.

The study concludes that differences in access to unpaid leave could exacerbate existing inequities. To reduce these inequities, a press release on the report notes that strategies could include COVID-19 management strategies and new nationwide leave customs, saying, “Researchers determine that workplace safety standards and public health policies, combined with comprehensive paid leave policies that cover all workers, could help reduce the spread of COVID-19 and protect workers and families from missed wages.”