Workforce Bulletin

On Saturday, March 21, 2020, New Jersey Governor Phil Murphy signed two Executive Orders to bring state-wide consistency to the mandated restrictions and closures arising from the COVID pandemic. The first, Executive Order 107 (Order 107) requires all nonessential New Jersey private businesses and nonprofits to close to the public (with certain exceptions), details restrictions and guidelines for those that are not required to close, and requires residents to stay at home unless they are engaging in excepted conduct.  Order 107 supersedes and increases the prior restrictions ...

The COVID-19 pandemic has leveled a blow against businesses everywhere.  The Governors of New York, California, Illinois, and Pennsylvania, for example, have ordered all non-essential businesses to close their physical locations and the California Governor has ordered all residents, except those performing essential functions, to stay home.  Governors across the country have issued orders restricting various business activities.  The trend is likely to continue in the coming weeks and to adversely impact the bottom line of many businesses.

Some businesses, however, may have ...

On March 20, 2020, New Jersey Governor Phil Murphy signed legislation (A3848), which bars employers from taking any adverse employment actions against employees who take, or request, time off due to an infectious disease that could affect others at work based on a written recommendation of a New Jersey licensed medical professional.   It also precludes an employer from refusing to reinstate the employee to the position held when the leave commenced with no reduction in seniority, status, employment benefits, pay or other terms and conditions of employment.  Although ...

As we explained in an earlier post, the Colorado Department of Labor and Employment (“DLE”) has issued new Health Emergency Leave with Pay (“HELP”) Rules in response to the coronavirus. Effective March 11, 2020, the HELP Rules mandate employers provide four (4) days of paid sick leave for employees in certain industries who have flu-like symptoms to receive COVID-19 testing. The DLE has since released FAQs to clarify some ambiguities in the HELP Rules.

Four Calendar Days of Paid Sick Time

Per the FAQs, the four days of paid sick leave are measured in calendar days. This ...

On March 17, 2020, the District of Columbia passed the COVID-19 Response Emergency Amendment Act of 2020 (the “Act”), which extends additional benefits under the District’s unemployment insurance (“UI”) law and the D.C. Family and Medical Leave Act (“DCFMLA”), and among other things also provides various forms of business relief. The Act is effective immediately.

DCFMLA Expansion

The Act expands the reach of the DCFMLA to provide “declaration-of-emergency” (“DOE”) leave to employees unable to work as the result of the circumstances giving rise to a ...

In a news conference on March 20, 2020, New York Gov. Andrew Cuomo ordered all nonessential New York State private businesses and nonprofits to reduce their workforce reporting to work by 100%  The announcement essentially amends Executive Order 202.6 (“Order”), issued by Gov. Cuomo on March 18, 2020, which required a 50% workforce reduction, by no later than March 20th at 8 p.m. (On March 19, 2020 Gov. Cuomo had announced a 75% required reduction, which has now been superseded).

The Order requires businesses and nonprofits to use telecommuting and work-from-home procedures ...

During this global health emergency, many employers are facing the necessity of curtailing operations and imposing temporary layoffs or furloughs with their workforce.  As a critical consideration, employers have been asking whether and to what extent they may permit group health care coverage to continue during a period of temporary layoff or furlough.

The following questions and answers provide some general guidelines and legal issues to consider in deciding whether to extend group health coverage during a temporary layoff or furlough.

What do we mean by temporary layoffs or ...

On March 17, 2020, the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC) posted an article on its website, “What You Should Know About the ADA, the Rehabilitation Act, and COVID-19.”  The article confirms that workplace anti-discrimination laws enforced by the EEOC remain applicable, but that nothing in those laws interferes with or prevents “employers from following the guidelines and suggestions made by the CDC or state/local public health authorities about steps employers should take regarding COVID-19.”

In addition, the article provides a link to guidance the ...

As the United States and the rest of the world hunker down in their homes to slow the spread of the novel coronavirus (COVID-19), many organizations have implemented “working-from-home” procedures that are designed to protect the health of the employees.  Working-from-home, however, presents heightened threats to the cybersecurity of benefit plans, including the plan’s assets and employee data that is collected, transmitted, and stored with regard to employee benefit plans.  Plan sponsors and fiduciaries have asked about the particular risks that working-from-home ...

The COVID-19 global pandemic has created a multitude of business and workforce challenges for employers.  In addition to addressing organizational issues, employers that sponsor employee benefit plans and plan fiduciaries must continue to manage and administer the benefit plans as well as address plan participant inquiries during these unprecedented and uncertain times.

One area where plan fiduciaries are seeking guidance concerns oversight of defined contribution plan investment options and any additional actions that they can take now with respect to monitoring such ...

As many employers and employees in the State of New York know, when an individual files claims for unemployment insurance benefits, New York Labor Law, Section 590, Subdivision 7, has a mandatory seven day waiting period before unemployment benefits may be paid.

On March 7, 2020, Governor Andrew Cuomo issued Executive Order No. 202.1, declaring a State disaster emergency for the entire State of New York (the “Order”). The Order, which is entitled “Suspension and Modification of Laws Relating to the Disaster Emergency,” suspends and modifies many existing laws.

This ...

On March 10, 2020, Colorado Governor Jared Polis issued an executive order directing he Colorado Department of Labor and Employment (“DLE”) to create emergency rules to “ensure workers in food handling, hospitality, child care, health care, and education can get paid sick leave to miss work if they exhibit flu-like symptoms and have to miss work awaiting testing results for COVID-19.”

The DLE issued the Colorado Health Emergency Leave with Pay (“HELP”) Rules, which mandates four days of paid sick leave for employees in certain industries who have flu-like symptoms to ...

At the time of publication, at least twenty four states, plus Washington D.C. have declared states of emergency related to the novel coronavirus (“COVID-19”), with that number growing by the hour.  In addition to making more resources available to residents, in many cases, the declarations also trigger additional protections to consumers in the form of anti-price gouging laws.  These laws, which automatically go into effect, are intended to prevent merchants from significantly increasing the cost of consumer goods and services during a crisis.

For instance, in New Jersey a ten ...

In our new Advisory, "Responding to the Coronavirus (COVID-19) Outbreak: Update on Best Practices for Employers," we review significant developments since our January 30th Advisory.

Following is the "What Employers Should Do Now" section of the new Advisory:

• Appoint a single individual or department as the point of contact within your organization for questions about Coronavirus and to ensure a coordinated and consistent response to all inquiries.
• Provide updated information to employees about the symptoms of COVID-19 and affected areas.
• Educate supervisors on the ...