Last week, the U.S. Department of Labor issued temporary regulations addressing paid leave under the Families First Coronavirus Response Act (FFCRA). The FFCRA provides up to 80 hours of paid sick leave, capped at $511 per day and $5110 in the aggregate for care related to the employee, and $200 per day and $2,000 in the aggregate for care related to others, for certain COVID-related reasons. It also expands the FMLA to require FFCRA-covered employers to give paid leave to employees who need to care for a child whose school is closed or whose childcare provider is unavailable due to COVID-19. Along with the expanded FAQs on the DOL’s website, these regulations clarify certain areas of the law, discussed further below.
Read MoreOn April 3, 2020, New York State enacted state-wide mandatory sick leave, which employees may begin using on January 1, 2021. This leave is in addition to the emergency paid sick leave for COVID-related reasons, which was enacted a few weeks ago. Employers in New York City and Westchester will find the new law similar to the existing local requirements, with some changes.
Read MoreThe federal Department of Labor and New York State have issued additional guidance in the form of FAQs clarifying some of the ambiguities in the recently enacted leave laws. Below is a brief summary of some of the relevant clarifications.
Read MoreThe requirement that employers inspect original documents in person and in the presence of the new employee has posed significant challenges for employers during the COVID-19 Pandemic. Employers may have instituted remote work policies or other social distancing measures that make physical inspection of original employment authorization documents and in-person meetings with new employees impracticable for the foreseeable future. This difficulty has been exacerbated by the recently issued Executive Orders from various states which require non-essential businesses to work solely from home. In response to these challenges, the U.S. Department of Homeland Security (DHS) announced last Friday that it will defer the physical presence requirements for employment authorization verification for employers and workplaces that are operating remotely
Read MoreOn March 18, President Trump signed the “Families First Coronavirus Response Act” (the “Families First Act” or the “Act”). Among other provisions, the Act expands the coverage of the Family and Medical Leave Act (“FMLA”) through December 31, 2020 to cover childcare needs related to a public health emergency for all employers with fewer than 500 employees. The Act also requires such leave to be paid, up to a cap. In addition, the Act provides emergency paid sick leave for all employers with fewer than 500 employees. To offset these costs, the Families First Act grants employers tax credits for amounts paid for expanded FMLA and sick leave, up to specific caps. The expanded FMLA and emergency paid sick leave requirements go into effect on April 1, 2020. Additionally, on March 17, Governor Andrew Cuomo announced that the state government had come to an agreement regarding the provision of emergency paid leave for employees impacted by mandatory or precautionary orders of quarantine due to the COVID-19 virus.
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