"Too little too late."
That's how the president of the Windsor and District Labour Council is describing the Ford government's paid sick day plan.
Brian Hogan says Premier Doug Ford promised the world, but did not deliver.
The program announced Wednesday will provide three paid sick days to help workers take time off to self-isolate in an effort to address COVID-19 outbreaks at the workplace.
Hogan says the program is a joke.
"Ford said we are going to get sick days and we are going to be the best in North America. By the way, New York has 14 days during the pandemic. It's been 407 days since the pandemic was here, it's taken almost 8,000 deaths and this is what we get from the Ford government?"
He says three paid days is not nearly enough.
"Countless medical people are saying that sick days will be a huge way of slowing the curve. Three days is not enough for someone to get a COVID test, wait for results and isolate. Why aren't you listening to doctors? Why aren't you listening to those experts?"
Hogan says it's time to seriously start questioning Ford's ability to lead to province.
"Any tax dollars spent, that's our money. It's not his money. Spend our money to save our lives. It's as simple as that. The experts are telling you to do that. You have 100 experts around your table and yet you're not listening to them. It's beyond sad."
Under the new program, the province will reimburse employers up to $200 a day for workers off sick.
The program is retroactive to April 19 and will be available until September 25.