COVID-19 Guidelines For Employee Paid Leave
The Department of Labor (DOL) has recently provided temporary regulations for employers that have less than 500 employees in regards to paid leave. In compliance with the FFCRA laws (Families First Coronavirus Response Act), employees must provide their employers notice to take the leave and documentation for paid sick leave. The temporary rule is effective from April 1, 2020 through December 31, 2020. These new regulations may appear like it contradicts previous information and CDC recommendations, however these two things aren’t mutually exclusive.
Employees are entitled to take leave related to COVID-19 if they are unable to work due to:
The employee is mandated by the local or federal government to be quarantined or in isolation
A healthcare provider has advised them to self-quarantine
Has symptoms of the coronavirus and is seeking medical attention to diagnose
Is caring for someone that has been mandated to isolation or quarantine (two-thirds of their regular pay )
Is caring for a child that is required to stay home due to school closures related to the virus (two-thirds of their regular pay)
Qualifying employees are allowed up to two weeks of paid sick leave. If the employee is caring for someone (see 4 or 5 above), they are provided two-thirds of their pay. Some employers are required to provide up to ten weeks of paid leave and two weeks unpaid due to regulations under the Emergency Family and Medical Leave Expansion Act (EFMLEA).
The employers with fewer than 500 employees are given tax credits to offset the expenses of providing paid leave due to COVID-19, according to the FFCRA.
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