As the number of COVID-19 infections in the U.S. mounts daily, the question of who is entitled to get paid sick leave has become critically important for millions of workers and employers.

A recent Pew Research Center analysis of Bureau of Labor Statistics data found that nearly a quarter of civilian workers in the U.S. still do not have access to paid sick leave. Pew found that paid sick leave is a nearly universal option among high earners, but becomes noticeably rarer among lower earners, data journalist Niall McCarthy noted yesterday on Statista.com. For example, 92 percent of people in the top quarter of earnings can access some form of paid sick leave compared to just 51 percent of those in the lowest quarter of earnings.

This Statista infographic shows levels of access to paid sick leave among a selection of key U.S. occupation groups. It is generally more common in the public sector than private business. For example, it is nearly universal among teachers with 96 percent able to avail of the option, along with 94 percent of those in management, business and finance positions. Access to paid sick leave is lower among workers employed in sales at 64 percent while it stands at 59 percent among those working in construction, extraction, forestry and fishing.

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