| | |
New! 2021 Virtual Leadership Training Series - A Six Part Series for Lead Personnel, Team Leaders, Supervisors and Future Front-Runners (Read Overview)
Virtual classes start - February 3rd, 2021. Register now!
|
|
|
|
HR and Employment Law News |
| Today's Articles - What does the ADA allow an employer to do if an employee refuses to cooperate with precautionary measures put in place to prevent COVID-19 exposure in the workplace?
(Jan. 11, 2021)
- ¶47,530 EEOC extending mediation pilot through next September — FEDERAL NEWS,(Jan. 11, 2021)- HRDive.com BRIEF Employers may take FFCRA tax credit for leave through March, Labor Department saysPUBLISHED Jan. 7, 2021- Constangy.com News & Analysis: Department of Labor announces final rule on independent contractor status under the FLSA Jan 06, 2021- HRDive.com BRIEF: Biden taps former union president for labor secretary PUBLISHED Jan. 8, 2021
|
| | | What does the ADA allow an employer to do if an employee refuses to cooperate with precautionary measures put in place to prevent COVID-19 exposure in the workplace?
(Jan. 11, 2021) from GEA HR Answers Now
Issue: Your company is preparing for employees to return to your worksite within a few weeks. As a precautionary measure, employees will be required to have their temperature taken and answer questions about whether they have COVID-19 symptoms or have been tested for COVID-19. What are you, as an employer, allowed to do under the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) if an employee refuses to have his or her temperature taken or answer questions about having symptoms or being tested?
Answer: Under current circumstances, the ADA allows an employer to bar an employee from physical presence in the workplace if he/she refuses to have his/her temperature taken or refuses to answer questions about whether he/she has COVID-19, has symptoms associated with COVID-19, or has been tested for COVID-19. To gain the cooperation of employees, however, employers may wish to inquire into the reasons for the employee’s refusal. The employer may be able to provide information or reassurance that they are taking these steps to ensure the safety of everyone in the workplace, and that these steps are consistent with health screening recommendations from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC). Sometimes, employees are reluctant to provide medical information because they fear an employer may widely spread such personal medical information throughout the workplace. The ADA prohibits such broad disclosures. Alternatively, if an employee requests reasonable accommodation with respect to screening, the usual accommodation process should be followed.
|
| | | ¶47,530 EEOC extending mediation pilot through next September — FEDERAL NEWS,
By Pamela Wolf, J.D.
(Jan. 11, 2021) from GEA HR Answers Now
The EEOC is extending through September 30, 2021, its pilot program that expanded opportunities to voluntarily resolve charges through mediation. The EEOC’s ACT (Access, Categories, Time) Mediation pilot, which began July 6, 2020, expanded the categories of charges eligible for mediation and generally permitted mediation throughout an investigation. The pilot also expanded the use of technology to hold virtual mediations.
Criticisms. The pilot has garnered criticism from stakeholders, though. For example, urging the Commission to discontinue it, the National Employment Lawyers Association expressed concern about the changes made under the pilot, saying "it appears that high priority issues and systemic discrimination claims will not be subject to investigation before referring the case for mediation." As a result, the EEOC "will be hampered in its ability to advocate for the public interest through injunctive relief," according to NELA.
Creating an information gap. Notably, employees, especially those who participate in a mediation pro se, don’t have all the information at their disposal that respondents or the EEOC likely have about other similar claims of discrimination or systemic issues. "This will increase the information gap that generally exists between a Charging Party and her employer and will often leave the worker with the impression that his or her one charge is an isolated event—when in reality the charge may be consistent with the experiences of many other workers and is the key that will unlock an accurate picture of systemic discrimination on the part of one employer," NELA explained.
Concealing widespread abuse. The attorney organization warned that this approach "will enable many serious, egregious, ongoing discrimination issues to remain hidden from detection and will leave many workers who face such discrimination without appropriate intervention from the EEOC." NELA pointed to the EEOC Alternative Dispute Resolution Policy, which notes that "ADR use should be ‘fully consistent with EEOC’s mission as a law enforcement agency.’" The policy further notes, ‘"… an effective ADR program must further the EEOC’s dual mission of vigorously enforcing federal laws prohibiting employment discrimination and resolving employment disputes.’"
More opportunities for resolution. But EEOC Chair Janet Dhillon sees it differently. "The ACT Mediation pilot has created more opportunities to resolve charges throughout an investigation, enhancing EEOC’s already successful mediation program," she said in a press release. Dhillon also cited "feedback" that the pilot has been well-received.
More time to tune and assess. However, Dhillon also said that the Commission needs more time "to fine tune its implementation and assess its impact."
Source: Written by Pamela Wolf, J.D.
|
| | | HRDive.com BRIEF Employers may take FFCRA tax credit for leave through March, Labor Department says
AUTHOR Ryan Golden PUBLISHED Jan. 7, 2021
Dive Brief:- Employers are not required to provide paid leave under the Families First Coronavirus Response Act (FFCRA) this year, but they may continue to do so on a voluntary basis in exchange for a tax credit, the U.S. Department of Labor (DOL) said in guidance updated Dec. 31, 2020.
- December's emergency coronavirus relief law, signed by President Donald Trump in the final days of 2020, extended IRS tax credits for FFCRA leave provided voluntarily to employees through March 31, 2021. But the law did not extend eligible employees' entitlement to FFCRA leave past Dec. 31, DOL said.
- In a separate section, DOL confirmed that its Wage and Hour Division would continue to enforce the FFCRA for leave taken or requested between April 1 and Dec. 31, 2020. The statute of limitations for both types of FFCRA leave is two years from the date of alleged violation or three years in cases involving alleged willful violations. Employees may also have a private right of action for alleged violations, DOL said.
Dive Insight:
The agency's statement confirms what management-side sources previously told HR Dive at the time of the emergency relief bill's publication.
It may also serve as a reminder to employers about DOL's active and ongoing enforcement of the law's provisions moving forward. The department has already undertaken several enforcement actions alleging unpaid FFCRA leave, including one against a Best Western Plus hotel in Kansas, netting more than $5,000 in back wages....Continue Reading>>
|
| |
Register Now! FREE LIVE WEBINAR
Long Term Care Education and Planning for Your Employees - Understanding the Impact and Costs of Long Term Care
Presenter - Corey Rieck
President & Founder of The Long Term Care Planning Group
Jan 26, 2021 11:00 AM Eastern Time (US and Canada)
|
| | Constangy.com News & Analysis: Department of Labor announces final rule on independent contractor status under the FLSABy Jim Coleman / Washington DC Metro Office
1.6.21
On January 7, 2021, the U.S. Department of Labor Wage and Hour Division will publish its final rule concerning the criteria used to determine an individual’s independent contractor status under the Fair Labor Standards Act, completing the rulemaking process it began in September 2020. (A preview copy of the final rule can be found here.) Unfortunately for those employers that might have benefitted from these regulations, the DOL’s actions are almost certainly too late. The Biden Administration has already announced its intent to issue an Executive Order on the first day of the administration that will freeze all final regulations issued by the Trump Administration that have not yet become effective by Inauguration Day. The projected effective date of this final rule is March 8, 2021, thus, it – along with many other so-called “midnight regulations” published late in the outgoing Trump Administration – is likely never going to take effect.
The final regulations concerning independent contractors are quite similar to what the DOL proposed in September and reaffirm an economic reality test to determine “whether a worker is in business for himself or herself (independent contractor) or is instead economically dependent on an employer for work (employee).” Two core factors are cited in making this determination – the nature and degree of control over the work performed and the worker’s opportunity for profit or loss based on initiative and investment. Three other factors are also mentioned:
- The amount of skill required for the work,
- The degree of permanence of the working relationship, and
- Whether the work is part of an integrated unit of production.
The final regulations also provide six examples of how to apply these factors. However, as previously stated, these regulations will almost surely be halted on the first day of the Biden Administration before they take effect.
For a printer-friendly copy, click here.
|
| | HRDive.com BRIEF: Biden taps former union president for labor secretary
AUTHOR Katie Clarey PUBLISHED Jan. 8, 2021
Dive Brief: - President-elect Joe Biden has nominated Boston Mayor Marty Walsh as labor secretary, the Biden-Harris transition team announced Jan. 7.
- As the first union member to fill the role in "nearly half a century" if confirmed, Walsh will be part of the incoming administration's effort to "usher in a new era of worker power," according to the transition team. Walsh became a member of the Laborers' Union Local 223 in Boston at 21, according to the Boston Globe, and served as the group's president before heading the Building and Construction Trades Council.
- The mayor pledged his support to the working class after his nomination was announced. "Working people, labor unions, and those fighting every day for their shot at the middle class are the backbone of our economy and of this country," he said in a tweet. "As Secretary of Labor, I'll work just as hard for you as you do for your families and livelihoods. You have my word."
Dive Insight: Throughout his campaign, Biden voiced strong support for unions, a pledge he appears to be making good on so far. "You can be sure you will be hearing that word 'union' plenty of times if I'm in the White House," Biden said during a September virtual event hosted by AFL-CIO. "If I have the honor of becoming your president, I'm going to be the strongest labor president you have ever had.".... continue reading>>> |
| |
Update from 01/11/2021 (State of Georgia)
Confirmed Cases 642,712
Confirmed Deaths 10,299
Hospitalizations 44,742
ICU Admissions 7,744
Visit Georgia Department of Health website for more information:
|
| | | | |
Georgia Employers' Association |
|
|
| |
