Kela to cover earning losses caused by coronavirus quarantines

To date, around 13,000 people have applied for salary compensation in connection with coronavirus, the national social insurance institution Kela said on Thursday.

Under the law, the government completely reimburses the income lost by a resident ordered into quarantine, even though the person would never get infected, while actual sickness compensation steps in only after diagnosis, reported Xinhua.

The Finnish system of full compensation of quarantine losses has eliminated the financial incentive for disobeying a quarantine order in Finland, and thus the anti-COVID-19 restrictions are more readily complied with, noted the Kela.

There is no upper limit on reimbursement. The average daily compensation for lost income has been 125 euros per person, according to the Kela.

However, this compensation only applies in cases when the quarantine is ordered by an authorized doctor specialized in infectious diseases. The voluntary "quarantine-like seclusions" required upon arrival in Finland are not eligible.

Accordingly, about one in four of the applications have had to be rejected, the local News Agency STT reported Thursday. In addition, the rights of migrant foreign workers to claim such compensation vary.

Milla Kaitola, benefits manager of Kela, told Xinhua that the citizens of European Union (EU) and European Economic Area (EEA) countries staying in Finland as "posted workers" can apply for such compensation, and that their eligibility will be decided on a case-by-case basis.

"Posted workers" from non-EU/EEA countries are not eligible. The prevailing rule is that seasonal workers remain in the social security system of their home country. The status of foreign workers in Finland has been reviewed by the Kela following recent reports of clusters of COVID-19 infection among them, Kaitola said.