COMPLIANCE ALERT
COVID-19
The Federal House of Representatives has passed the Families First Coronavirus Response Act, an economic stimulus plan to minimize the impact of COVID-19. It includes employer sponsored paid sick leave for employees affected by COVID-19 and a drastic expansion of the existing paid family medical leave including which now includes employer sponsored paid leave. H.R. 6201 will be presented to the Senate on Monday, March 16th and will likely be signed into law soon after potentially with modifications. The changes would take effect 15 days after enacted and would end December 31, 2020. Employers who fail to comply with the Families First Coronavirus Response Act will be in violation of the Fair Labor Standards Act and subject to penalty.
The Act has not been finalized and may vary from the information below. We will keep you updated as soon as we know more.
Emergency Paid Sick Leave Act
Employers with less than 500 employees must provide employees with up to 80 hours of job protected paid sick leave. There has been differing interpretation as to whether this Act applies to employers with less than 50 employees. We will keep you up to date as information is just coming in.
Eligible reasons for use include the following reasons:
- To comply with a requirement or recommendation to quarantine due to exposure to, symptoms of, or diagnosis of Coronavirus.
- To obtain a diagnosis of Coronavirus.
- To comply with a recommendation or order by a health provider or public official due to exposure to or symptoms of Coronavirus.
- To care for an at-risk family member with a requirement or recommendation to quarantine due to exposure or to care for a family member with symptoms of COVID-19.
- To care for the employee’s child due to school or daycare closure in the event of a public emergency.
If an employee has been diagnosed with Coronavirus or they have been recommended to quarantine by a public official or health care provider, the leave must be paid at the employee’s normal rate of pay. If the leave is to care for a family member or due to school/daycare provider closure, the employer can pay at 2/3 the employees standard rate of pay.
This leave is in addition to existing sick leave requirements such as Paid Sick Safe Leave.
Expanded Family and Medical Leave Expansion Act.
This Act temporarily expands and modifies FMLA to include paid time off due to reasons related to COVID-19. Changes included expanded eligibility and employer paid time off for up to 12 weeks.
What employers are required to comply?
The expanded Act applies to all employers with 50 – 500 employees. There has been differing interpretation as to whether this Act applies to employers with less than 50 employees. We will keep you up to date as information is just coming in.
There may be an opportunity for a small business exemption for employers with less than 50 employees if adhering to the Act would jeopardize the viability of the business. Additional exemptions include healthcare providers and emergency responders.
Who is eligible for the leave?
The bill extends leave to all employees who have been with the employer for 30 days or more prior to taking leave.
How much will employees be paid?
The first 14 days of leave may be unpaid but employers must allow an employee to utilize any accrued paid time off including PTO, sick and vacation. Following the initial 14 day period, employers must pay full-time employees two-thirds of the employee’s standard wage for the number of hours the employee would normally be scheduled.
Part-time employees or those with inconsistent schedules must be paid an average of the number of hours the employee worked over the past six months. Employees who have been with the employer for less than six months should be paid the average number of hours they are normally scheduled to work.
What are the eligible reasons an employee can take leave under the new Act?
Employees may take leave under the Expansion Act for the following reasons:
- To comply with a requirement or recommendation to quarantine due to exposure or symptoms of COVID-19. The employee must be unable to perform for functions of the job and comply with the recommendation to quarantine.
- To care for an at-risk family member with a requirement or recommendation to quarantine due to exposure or to care for a family member with symptoms of COVID-19.
- To care for the employee’s child due to school or daycare closure in the event of a public emergency.
Are other changes included in the Act?
Yes, the definition of parent has also been extended to include parents-in-law, parents of domestic partners, legal guardians, and someone who acted as a parent presently or when the employee was a child.
Additional parts of the Act include free coronavirus testing for all including the uninsured, increased funds to help for paying with unemployment claims and expanding food assistance programs.
Additional details:
While these benefits are all employer sponsored, there are specifications in the bill that will provide tax credits for employers under specific situations.
The Human Resources professionals from JB Consulting Systems are available to further discuss the upcoming changes, answer questions, or review your current policies and practices for compliance