Romney Proposal Calls For Up To $5,760 In Hazard Pay Bonuses For Essential Workers

Senator Mitt Romney unveiled a ‘Patriot Pay’ Plan earlier today to provide temporary bonuses to frontline workers who earn under $90,000 a year and work in essential jobs. “This is a proposal which I think is fiscally responsible but also recognizes the additional risk that people are taking,” Romney told the Washington Post.

How Would The Patriot Pay Plan Work?

Romney’s proposal would incentive employers to increase pay for essential workers by quadrupling any bonuses an employer gives to its employees for three months, starting in May and ending in July. The plan would call for employers to receive a refundable payroll tax credit of up to 75%, which could mean a bonus of up to $12 an hour for employees. Those earning less than $50,000 would receive up to a $1,920 monthly bonus – with an employer paying $480 and the government paying $1,440 per month via the tax credit. The tax credit would phase out by $24 for every incremental $500 incoming meaning that employees would be eligible for smaller bonuses until their income hit $90,000 per year.

What Would An Example Look Like?

Romney issued a press release that provides a hypothetical example of a grocery store in Provo, UT that opts into Patriot Pay and gives workers a $12 per hour bonus. The grocery store would contribute $3 to the raise and government tax credit would add an additional $9 per hour. This means that the worker would receive an extra $1,920 each month or $5,760 over the course of the three-month Patriot Pay Plan.

Who Would Qualify As An Essential Work Under The Plan?

Romney called for the Department of Labor and Congress to designate critical industries and then have eligible employers certify that employees worked in conditions that increase their exposure to coronavirus. The plan cites examples of industries including:

• Hospitals
• Food distributors and processors
• Health manufacturers.

The plan would also require employees to work at least 100 hours each month to be eligible for the tax credit.

Why Is The Plan Important?

“Patriot Pay is a way for us to reward our essential workers as they continue to keep Americans safe, healthy, and fed.” said Romney. One reason he introduced the plan is to correct potential misaligned and unfair incentives from previous coronavirus relief legislation. He pointed out that an essential worker earning less than $22 per hour may ultimately be paid less than someone who is receiving augmented unemployment benefits passed under the CARES Act. “That’s not fair, number one,” Romney said. “And number two, it would create an anomaly, of course, for people to be taking additional risk of their health and have someone else not working making more than they are.”

Do Others Support Hazard Pay?

There is surprising support for hazard pay in theory, with both Democrats and Republicans lionizing healthcare and other essential workers; however, hazard pay was not included in any of the previous relief packages passed by Congress.

Democrats released a proposal for a “Heroes Fund” in April that would have raised pay for essential workers for eight months, longer than Romney’s plan which would expire in three months. “It strikes me that we’re open to considering a wide array of opportunities to help people that are serving the public,” Romney said. “And a number of individuals have expressed an openness to considering different ideas.”