Malinauskas, who is currently on leave to spend time with his family, will on Monday join his interstate counterparts at an urgent national cabinet meeting convened by Prime Minister Anthony Albanese.

The meeting is in response to growing state and territory criticism over a federal government decision to discontinue a program that offers free rapid antigen tests for concession card holders at the end of this month.

State premiers are also applying pressure on the federal government to change course on a controversial cut to the $750 pandemic payment, which was made to casual workers who did not have sick leave entitlements but who were required to isolate if they tested positive for COVID-19.

Albanese told reporters this morning that the decision to end the payment at the beginning of this month was made by the former Morrison Government, but “good employers” would continue to pay their workers if they were required to isolate.

“There are a range of companies who are good employers who are providing those systems,” he said.

“The idea that no one is getting any sick leave at the moment, it’s just not the case.”

An Australian Bureau of Statistics workforce report released on Wednesday found about 776,000 Australians worked fewer hours in June due to illness – more than twice the number affected two years ago.

In August 2019, about 26.5 per cent of South Australia’s workforce were employed on casual contracts.

You’ll rarely find a state government volunteering to step in where the federal government has previously funded

South Australian Deputy Premier Susan Close said she expected there would be an “interesting lively discussion” at Monday’s national cabinet meeting, with Malinauskas’ priority being to secure an extension of the pandemic leave payment.

“We completely understand the challenges for the federal government coming in with a very large deficit and a very difficult budget situation,” she said.

“We do see a case for ongoing pandemic leave support just during this next phase for those people who don’t have sick leave.

“That’s because it is so important that people are in a position to isolate if they have the virus and they might have a disincentive to might not if they’ve got the virus.”

Asked if the state government was prepared to chip in to cover part of the pandemic leave payment, Close said: “You’ll rarely find a state government volunteering to step in where the federal government has previously funded.”

“This is going to be a big discussion on Monday and I want to give lots of room for that discussion to happen, not only from… Peter Malinauskas’ perspective, but from all the other state and territory leaders,” she said.

“It’s important that we give them the room to have this discussion, expecting that all of them have good intent – all of them want to see the right outcome for the nation.”

Meanwhile, Close said authorities would discuss the state’s handling of the current COVID-19 wave at an Emergency Management Council meeting on Tuesday.

SA Health today reported 4453 new COVID-19 infections – down from 4761 on Thursday – but the number of infectious people in hospital has increased to 266 (up 35 patients from yesterday).

Another six people have died after testing COVID-positive – a woman in her 80s, a woman in her 90s, two men in their 80s, and two men in their 90s.

Close said Tuesday’s meeting would assess modelling and receive an update on the state’s over-stretched hospital system.

It comes after Health Minister Chris Picton told reporters on Wednesday the government would consider delaying elective surgery to cope with an expected surge in hospital demand by early next month.

Close said the government did not want to enforce a “wholesale cancellation of elective surgery” and was instead negotiating for some surgeries to be transferred to private hospitals.

“It is being managed and there will inevitably be an impact on elective surgery, but at present [the government is] managing it through deferrals and through relocations,” she said.