Coronavirus (COVID-19): Guidance for Businesses

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Perkins Coie LLP
Perkins Coie

Latest from Coronavirus (COVID-19): Guidance for Businesses

By Jill Ripke, Lauren Kulpa, and Brittany Sachs On October 21, 2020, the Centers for Disease Control (CDC) updated its website as to the definition of close contact. The definition has been modified to “Someone who was within 6 feet of an infected person for a cumulative total of 15 minutes or more over a 24-hour period starting from 2 days before illness onset (or, for asymptomatic patients, 2 days prior to test…
By Norton Cutler Several decisions and numerous pending motions filed during the last few weeks have transitioned the litigation over COVID-19 Business-Interruption (BI) claims from what seemed like a preliminary event, namely the quarrel over whether COVID-19 contamination is property damage, to what may well turn out to be the main event: the meaning of the various exclusions for pollution, contamination, and microorganisms that insurers have cited when denying claims. Read the original post here…
By Jill Ripke and Aimee Raimer The DOL recently issued guidance clarifying that employer-sponsored COVID-19 incentive payments, such as hazard pay, must be included in the regular rate for calculating overtime payments. Employers may compensate non-exempt employees in a variety of ways. The amount of overtime pay must be calculated using the employee’s regular rate of pay, which generally is calculated by dividing an employee’s total compensation for employment, less any statutory exclusions, by the…
By Heather Sager, Jill Ripke, and Matthew Goldberg On September 17, 2020, as part of a trio of new COVID-19 protections for employees, California Governor Gavin Newsom signed AB 685, the text of which is available here. AB 685 requires employers to provide written notice to employees and employers of subcontractors of all potential exposure to COVID-19 within one business day of receiving notice of the potential exposure and notify the local…
By Jill Ripke and Alejandra Jimenez On September 17, 2020, California Governor Gavin Newsom signed Senate Bill 1159 (SB-1159), which eases workers’ compensation requirements for employees who contract COVID-19 on the job.   SB 1159 extends protections similar to Governor Newsom’s Executive Order N-62-20, which expired on July 5, 2020.  SB-1159 takes effect immediately through January 1, 2023. Under SB-1159, for purposes of workers’ compensation, a compensable workplace “injury” now includes illness or…
By Heather Sager, Jill Ripke As previously described, California has adopted AB 1867, which addresses supplemental COVID-19 paid sick leave in California. The California Department of Industrial Relations (DIR) has issued FAQs On Supplemental Paid Sick Leave for California Workers at Companies With 500 or More Employees Nationwide and for Health Care Providers and First Responders Excluded from the federal COVID-19 Related Paid Sick Leave to address this new legislation. In addition, model posters…
By Heather Sager, Jill Ripke, Brittany Sachs and Matthew Goldberg The City and County of San Francisco recently enacted an emergency Ordinance, the text of which is available here, effective September 11, 2020, which prevents all employers from taking adverse employment actions (e.g., firing, threatening to fire, disciplining, or in any manner discriminating) against employees and independent contractors (collectively “Workers,” as defined in the Ordinance) related to absences caused by COVID-19. The…
By Heather Sager, Jill Ripke, Lauren Kulpa, Brittany Sachs, and Matthew Goldberg On April 16, 2020, California Governor Gavin Newsom issued Executive Order N-51-20, which mandated paid COVID-19–related sick leave for food sector workers who provide services to an entity with 500 or more employees nationwide. The Executive Order was noteworthy because the eligibility for leave was not dependent on employee status—contractors were deemed eligible as well. Last week, Governor Newsom…
By Jill Ripke, Brittany Sachs, and Lauren Kulpa We have updated and added to our frequently asked questions (FAQs) for U.S. employers relating to COVID-19 and developments in employment law based on the September 8, 2020 update to the EEOC’s What You Should Know about COVID-19 and the ADA, the Rehabilitation Act, and Other EEOC Laws. These updates also include new Q&As regarding FFCRA leave for employees with school-age children, remote working, notification…
By Heather Sager, Jill Ripke, Lauren Kulpa, Brittany Sachs On September 11, 2020, the U.S. Department of Labor (DOL) announced revisions to its implementation regulations for the Families First Coronavirus Response Act (FFCRA). As stated in the DOL’s News Release, “[t]he revisions do the following: Reaffirm and provide additional explanation for the requirement that employees may take FFCRA leave only if work would otherwise be available to them. Reaffirm and provide additional explanation…