Last week the  Families First
Coronavirus Response Act which with providing partial income replacement to
some employees (who are unable to work due to the coronavirus) was signed, by
President Donald Trump. You can read a full summary of the act here (link to
last week’s blog). The U.S. Department of Labor (DOL) has now published
materials to aid employers in compliance with this new law. 

Firstly, they have made available a
required workplace poster. Employers are to post this required poster in their
offices as soon as possible, in “conspicuous places on the premises of the
employer where notices to employees are commonly posted” Further employers who
implemented remote workers should send the poster via direct mail or email
and/or post it on an internal (or external) website. The poster outlines: Paid
Leave Entitlements, Eligible Employees, Qualifying Reasons for Leave Related to
Covid-19, and Enforcement.

Department Labor of Poster HERE: 

Second, they have released a
Question and Answers page, and it has been clarified that the  FFCRA takes
effect on April 1st, 2020 (and sunsets on December 31st). Any leave taken prior
to April 1st does not count towards the leave required under the FFCRA.

Further clarification has been
added that Employees may not take both 80 hours of paid sick leave for their
own self-quarantine, and then another 80 hours of paid sick leave for another
qualifying reason. Employees are entitled to two weeks (80 hours for full-time
employees, or for part-time employees the number of hours equal to the average
number of hours they typically work in a two-week period), of paid sick leave
for any combination of qualifying reasons. 80 hours is the maximum
allowed. 

For more free resources on managing
your business, in regards to the coronavirus outbreak, click HERE. 

Find
the Department of Labor Question and Answer page for FFCRA
For Employers Here
For Employees Here