Archive for the ‘COVID-19’ Category
OLDER FOLKS ARE PEOPLE TOO
Expanded Federal Pandemic Guidelines Allow Favorable Treatment for Aged 65-Plus Personnel The U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission’s (EEOC) June 17 update of COVID-related guidelines (June 17 Update) offers first-time protocols for the management of aged 65-plus workers in pandemic times under the Age Discrimination in Employment Act (ADEA). COVID-19’s unprecedented circumstances have led the EEOC […]
CALIFORNIA CORONAVIRUS RESPONSE, UPDATED
Cities and Counties Requiring Paid Sick Leave Above and Beyond Federal Limits The federal Families First Coronavirus Response Act (FFCRA) requires most businesses with fewer than 500 employees to provide emergency paid sick leave benefits for workers affected by COVID-19. For example, covered employers must provide 80 hours of paid sick leave for full-time employees and two weeks of […]
CABIN FEVER IN A PANDEMIC
California’s Updated Coronavirus Response On June 28, 2020, Governor Newsom directed bars to close in five counties on the state’s watch list: Fresno, Kern, Kings, Los Angeles, and Tulare. These join two other counties – Imperial and San Joaquin – with bars already subject to such mandatory closings. The state has recommended bar closings in eight other […]
SUMMER PANDEMIC PAY
FFCRA Paid Leave Eligibility for Youth Program Closure The Families First Coronavirus Response Act (FFCRA) provides emergency paid sick leave and additional paid family leave for a worker who must care for his/her child due to COVID-19-related school or other “place of care” closures. Would a summer camp closure qualify? Perhaps. The U.S. Department of Labor (DOL)’s FAQs […]
NOW WHAT?
California Requirements to Avoid Employee Heat Illness in Time of Face Mask With temperatures rising to summer levels in parts of the state, employer obligations to protect outdoor workers from heat-related illnesses, beginning at 80 degrees Fahrenheit, come into force. Areas not yet reaching that threshold should prepare for the heat to come. Particularly with […]
FREE MONEY, DEFINED
PPP Loan Forgiveness Clarified and Expanded The Coronavirus Aid, Relief, and Economic Security (CARES Act) protects small business from COVID-19’s economic impact. Section 1102 of the Act created the Paycheck Protection Program (PPP) to help employers keep their workers on payroll. Qualifying PPP loans may be forgiven up to the full principal amount. See also, […]
SOCIETY’S HIGH WIRE ACT WEEK ELEVEN
California’s Stage Two Phased Reopening Continues While we are not yet out of the woods, state and local government continue to ease restrictions upon life as we at least used to know it. As pandemic pressure has eased and public demands have increased, at least 35 counties have announced their ability to accelerate their transition through “Stage 2” […]
FAITH AND THE PANDEMIC
State and Local Governments Now Agree Churches Are Essential Setting aside the vital importance of people’s spiritual ties in times of need, California (echo’ing the feds) had regarded churches “non-essential” from the March 19 start of its safer-at-home orders. As pandemic pressure has eased and public demands have increased, the state has now acknowledged the […]
PAID SICK LEAVE GOING VIRAL
California Cities and Counties Expanding Pandemic-Related Benefits In response to COVID-19, a growing number of California cities and counties have issued expanded paid sick leave laws primarily targeting employers exempt from the federal Families First Coronavirus Response Act (FFCRA). To our knowledge, and as of May 29, 2020: City Covered Employers Effective Date Expiration Date Other resources […]
REALITY CHECK
Government Pandemic Defense Monrovia, Liberia April 17, 2020 African Literacy Campaign Pandemic Response As much of the U.S. begins to dig out after months of pandemic-inspired “hibernation,” many of us resume reach to the wider world. My attention returns to Liberia and Sierra Leone and our firm’s support of Applied Scholastics International (APS) and its African […]