Federal Paid Leave Law Signed by President Trump

On Wednesday evening, March 18th, President Trump signed into law the Families First Coronavirus Response Act (the “Act”), which, among other things, mandates paid time off for certain qualifying events. There are two primary components in terms of paid time off: (1) the Emergency Family and Medical Leave Expansion Act (“E-FMLA”); and (2) the Emergency Paid Sick Leave Act (“EPSLA”).

EMERGENCY FAMILY AND MEDICAL LEAVE EXPANSION ACT

The E-FMLA amends the Family and Medical Leave Act of 1993 (“FMLA”) by adding “public health emergency leave” as a qualifying FMLA event.

Coverage. The E-FMLA applies to government employers of any size and private employers of fewer than 500 employees. The Secretary of Labor may issue regulations to exempt businesses with fewer than 50 employees if compliance would jeopardize the viability of the business.

Eligible employees are those who have been employed for at least 30 calendar days by the covered employer. Also, employers of employees who are health care providers or emergency responders may elect to exclude those employees from coverage under the E-FMLA.
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Coronavirus Disease 2019 (COVID-19): What Employers Need to Know

By Lisa Berg on February 26, 2020 Posted in Disability & Leave, Discrimination & Harassment, Employee & Management Counseling, Employee Handbooks & Policies, Legislation & Regulations

Statistics Updated June 30, 2020.

On February 11, 2020, the World Health Organization (WHO) announced an official name for the disease that is causing the novel coronavirus outbreak, first identified in Wuhan China. The name of this disease is coronavirus disease 2019, abbreviated COVID-19. On March 11, 2020, the WHO declared the COVID-19 outbreak as a pandemic.

The United States now has the most reported COVID-19 cases in the world. Today, there are more than 2,705,000 confirmed cases. Updates on these statistics are available on the WHO web page.

With so much information circulating on the Internet and from the news media, it can become a little overwhelming for employers. So, what do employers need to know? Below, I provide background information regarding COVID-19 and measures employers can take to protect their employees and satisfy their compliance obligations.

20 Days of Immigration March Madness

By Glenn Rissman on February 18, 2020 Posted in Immigration, Legislation & Regulations

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While some of you may be looking forward to brackets, watch parties, and cheering on your favorite college basketball team, employers should also be thinking about a different type of March Madness – preparing for the H-1B Visa New Registration Process!

The USCIS recently announced the implementation of a new electronic registration process for H-1B visas. The registration period will run from March 1-March 20. Therefore, employers seeking to file H-1B cap-subject petitions for the fiscal year 2021 cap should start planning and gathering documentation on eligible employees.

In an effort to make sure employers don’t “drop the ball,” I recently recorded a presentation answering questions and sharing important information to keep in mind regarding this process. You can listen to the recording here.

Employment Laws Percolating Through the Florida Legislature

By Melanie Leitman on February 6, 2020 Posted in Discrimination & Harassment, Legislation & Regulations, Wage & Hour/Employee Classification

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2020 Session is upon us and there are some interesting labor and employment bills percolating through the Florida Legislature. Here are few particularly notable bills that caught our eye:

Minimum Wage

Minimum wage is a frequent flier in the Florida Legislature and 2020 is no exception. One pending bill proposes increasing the state’s minimum wage every year, eventually tracking inflation. This bill does not seem to be well-received and our prediction is that it will not make it to a floor vote. (For more information, see House Bill 691 and Senate Bill 456)

USCIS Releases New Form I-9

By Glenn Rissman on January 31, 2020 Posted in Immigration, Legislation & Regulations

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On January 31, the U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) released a new Form I-9, designated as the 10/21/2019 version. The only changes are the additions of Eswatini and Macedonia, North to the list of countries in the drop down fields on the fillable version of the Form and an update to the Form’s instructions.

Employers should begin using the new Form I-9 as soon as possible. Employers may continue to use the prior version of the Form (Rev. 07/17/2017N) until April 30, 2020. After April 30, employers are permitted to use only the Form I-9 with the 10/21/2019 version date.

The current edition of the Form I-9 can be found at the USCIS website.

IRS Applies Some WD-40 to its Form W-4

By Andrew McLaughlin on January 14, 2020 Posted in Employee Benefits & Compensation

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Employers need to update their new hire paperwork to include the recently revised Form W-4 for 2020. The new Form W-4 reflects the changes made to the tax code in the 2017 Tax Cuts and Jobs Act, which changed the standard deduction and created a new dependent credit. As a result of these and other changes, the prior version of the Form W-4 did not accurately estimate income tax withholding for certain individuals. The new version better estimates an individual’s income tax for purposes of withholdings.

Gone is the concept of the employee stating a certain number of “allowances.” Instead, the employee is asked to disclose marital status and, if the employee has another job or working spouse, to use the IRS “estimator” to estimate an amount that the employer will use in calculating withholding.

All new hires must complete this updated Form W-4 and existing employees must use the new form to change their withholding elections. Further, any employee who decides to change the amount withheld must use the new form.

Importantly, employers cannot require current employees to complete a new Form W-4. However, employees are encouraged to do so as the old form may not accurately estimate their taxes. Not updating may result in the individual having a lower tax refund or even owing taxes when they submit their tax returns for 2020.

Happy Holidays from Stearns Weaver Miller’s Labor & Employment Department!

By Robert Turk on December 19, 2019 Posted in Employment Litigation, Labor Law

Thank you for being a subscriber. Wishing you a joyous holiday season and happy, healthy year ahead.

We hope that BeLabor the Point has brought you important information throughout the year and a few smiles along the way. Speaking of smiles, click on the image below to view our Labor & Employment Law Department’s holiday card!

DOL Tells Employers: No Need to Include Many Employee Perks When Calculating Overtime

By Laura Farinas on December 16, 2019 Posted in Employee Benefits & Compensation, Legislation & Regulations, Wage & Hour/Employee Classification

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For the first time in 50 years, the U.S. Department of Labor (DOL) updated the “regular rate” of pay standard used for overtime calculations.

Why does this matter? Under the Federal Fair Labor Standards Act (FLSA), a nonexempt hourly employee must be paid “time and one-half” of their “regular rate” of pay for hours worked beyond 40 in a workweek. The “regular rate” is important because it determines what goes into the calculation of “time and a half” for overtime pay.

However, unlike 50 years ago, employers today often offer their employees a range of “perks” such as wellness programs, fitness classes, nutritional education, vaccinations, and health assessments. Employers normally have not considered these perks to be included in the “regular rate” or overtime calculation. Yet, the DOL’s silence on how these perks actually fit into the calculation has sparked litigation, creating concern and expenses for perk providing employers. Luckily, the DOL’s final ruling makes it crystal clear that these perks and certain other benefits are to be excluded from the “regular rate” calculation.

Surviving the Seasonal Soiree

By Glenn Rissman on December 4, 2019 Posted in Discrimination & Harassment, Employee Handbooks & Policies

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You survived Black Friday, Cyber Monday, and Giving Tuesday. Will you “survive” the office holiday party and the HR land mines it presents? Please don’t let anyone show up to the party dressed like this guy.

What’s a party without alcohol, and what’s a law blog without a curmudgeon preaching moderation and reasonableness?

LGBTQ Rights in Employment: Does it Boil Down to the “Bathroom Use” Question Again?

By Eric Roth on November 22, 2019 Posted in Discrimination & Harassment, Hiring/Termination, Legislation & Regulations

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When the first transgender discrimination case reached the U.S. Supreme Court, Chief Justice Roberts asked, “What do we do about bathrooms?” Now, The Supreme Court has been asked the question: Does Title VII of the Civil Rights Act of 1964, which prohibits sex discrimination at work, apply to discrimination based on an individual’s gender identity or sexual orientation?