Hunter workers are now eligible for $320 test-and-isolate payments from the NSW government.
Subscribe now for unlimited access.
$0/
(min cost $0)
or signup to continue reading
The scheme to compensate people for missing work while awaiting test results was introduced in the 12 Sydney local government areas of concern in early August.
The government has now expanded the payments to the rest of NSW from today.
The scheme is especially valuable to casual employees forced to miss shifts due to post-test isolation requirements.
To be eligible, workers must be 17 years old and likely to have missed work while isolating or caring for someone else who is isolating.
The payments are not available to anyone able to work from home during isolation, receiving income during isolation via salary or sick leave or receiving government support such as COVID disaster payments.
Anyone directed by NSW Health to test and isolate as a close contact of a known case is also not eligible for the payments.
Workers must apply for the payment within seven days of having a test.
Our coverage of the health and safety aspects of this outbreak of COVID-19 in Newcastle and the Hunter, and lockdown rules and changes, is free for anyone to access. However, we depend on subscription revenue to support our journalism. If you are able, please subscribe here. If you are already a subscriber, thank you for your support. You can also sign up for our newsletters for regular updates.
Michael Parris
Michael Parris reports on politics for the Newcastle Herald. He started at the Herald in 1994 after working in the ABC Newcastle newsroom. Michael spent much of his career as a sub-editor before moving into political reporting in 2017. He was a finalist in the Sports Australia national media awards for his stories about a male-only tennis club in Newcastle. He has covered NSW and federal elections, state and federal budgets and local politics. He has also written extensively about the COVID-19 pandemic with a special focus on data analysis and the effects of lockdowns on the Hunter community.
Michael Parris reports on politics for the Newcastle Herald. He started at the Herald in 1994 after working in the ABC Newcastle newsroom. Michael spent much of his career as a sub-editor before moving into political reporting in 2017. He was a finalist in the Sports Australia national media awards for his stories about a male-only tennis club in Newcastle. He has covered NSW and federal elections, state and federal budgets and local politics. He has also written extensively about the COVID-19 pandemic with a special focus on data analysis and the effects of lockdowns on the Hunter community.
