Legal Solutions At Work

Last week the Center for Disease Control (CDC) revised its definition of “close contact” with someone with COVID-19 to include shorter, repeated contacts. Previously, the CDC defined “close contact” as 15 consecutive minutes within 6 feet of someone who had tested positive for COVID-19. The revised guidance now considers a total of 15 minutes of… More

Earlier this month, the U.S. Department of Labor through the Office of Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) issued the following helpful guidance for service industry employers—   COVID-19 Guidance for Restaurants Resuming Dine-In Service Stay home if you are sick Comply with state & local occupancy restrictions Require staff to wear face coverings Increase cleaning… More

On September 22, 2020, the President of the United States issued an Executive Order on Combatting Race and Sex Stereotyping (the “Executive Order”). In the Executive Order, the President declared that the policy of the United States is “not to promote race or sex stereotyping or scapegoating in the Federal Workforce or in the Uniformed… More

The widespread use of teleworking and working from home appears to be here to stay.  Since the onset of the COVID-19 pandemic, many employees have been unexpectedly working from home, prompting them to purchase office equipment and supplies that they otherwise would not have purchased. Under the federal wage law — the Fair Labor Standards… More

There is an abundance of information on the internet and elsewhere about the Families First Coronavirus Response Act (FFCRA). This can be difficult for employers to navigate, especially when interpretations of FFCRA provisions keep evolving. Below are the top ten takeaways for employers regarding the FFCRA. 1. Paid Sick Leave. Employers covered under the FFCRA… More

Business owners are often compelled to meet staffing needs with independent contractors in lieu of employees in order to save money on taxes, benefits and sometimes pay (minimum wage and overtime). In doing so, they risk increasing federal (DOL, IRS, EEOC), state (Wage & Hour, Unemployment, HR) and even local/county scrutiny, as well as potentially… More

The EEOC continues to fine tune its guidance regarding the interplay between COVID-19 and the Americans with Disabilities Act, the Rehabilitation Act, and other equal employment opportunity laws. Six guidelines of particular importance for employers are summarized below from the full EEOC guidance: 1. Employers are entitled to ask why an employee did not report… More

On August 13, 2020, the Mayor of D.C. enacted an emergency law that mandates workplace safety protections for all D.C. workplaces. The Protecting Businesses and Workers from COVID-19 Emergency Amendment Act of 2020 (the “Emergency Law”) will be in effect until November 10, 2020, but could be extended due to the current pandemic. Many employers… More

Earlier this month, the U.S. Department of Labor’s (DOL) Wage and Hour Division (WHD) announced revised regulations further clarifying the implementation of the Family First Coronavirus Response Act (FFCRA) in response to a recent ruling in the Southern District of New York invalidating prior interpretations of the FFCRA as summarized in a previous alert.  … More

Join us (virtually) — we will run through some real-world situations and crowd-source possible answers to complicated questions. Sign-up through the link below, or reach out to me directly with questions: https://bit.ly/3mljwX8 Contact info:Meredith S. Campbell Chair, Employment and Labor GroupShulman Rogers mcampbell@shulmanrogers.com | T 301.255.0550 | F 301.230.2891