Yesterday, Gov. Inslee issued a proclamation prohibiting “any food production employer from continuing to operate between August 18, 2020, and November 13, 2020, unless the food production employer . . . provides its workers . . . with emergency supplemental paid sick leave . . . for a qualifying event.”

Washington’s regular paid sick leave law (in place since 2018) does not apply to all agricultural workers, and leave is accrued over time. Under the governor’s new proclamation, the full amount of emergency leave would be available immediately, and it would be available to more workers.

Covered employers include orchards, fields, dairies, fruit- and vegetable-packing warehouses, meat and seafood processors and packers, and other agricultural operations.

Covered workers include workers who are Washington-based, seasonal or migrant, or temporary foreign workers. Workers do not have to be classified as employees to be covered. Workers provided leave under the federal Family First Coronavirus Response Act are not covered.

Workers may take the leave if they are subject to a quarantine order, if they’re advised by a health care provider to self-quarantine, if they are “prohibited from working due to health concerns related to the potential transmission of COVID-19,” or if they are experiencing COVID-19 symptoms.

Employers must provide up to 80 hours of leave (for full time workers) or the total number of hours they normally work in a two-week period. Each hour of leave must be compensated at a rate of $10.75.

Earlier this week, Gov. Inslee announced the creation of a $3 million “Food Production Paid Leave Program.” Yesterday’s proclamation notes that the $3 million fund was created “to offset the leave expenditures mandated by this proclamation.” According to the governor’s office, more details about the “reimbursement program” will be available soon. It’s not clear how many workers will be eligible for this new emergency leave (or how far the $3 million will go). Here’s hoping most workers will stay well and have no need to use it.