The IRS and U.S. Department of Labor announced their plans for new Federally mandated paid sick leave with Families First Coronavirus Response Act (FFCRA).
Employer items to note include:
- Employees directly affected by COVID-19 illness are entitled to up to 2 weeks of fully paid Emergency Paid Sick Leave.
- Employees can also receive benefits under the Emergency Family Medical Leave Expansion Act. This will provide both job-protected leave and 2/3 replacement pay during a period of absence from 3 to 12 weeks for absences related to the care of a child during school shut-downs.
- Both of these new leaves will be paid by employers and funded by the US government via the retention and use of payroll tax funds employers would otherwise pay to the IRS in the form of 941 payroll tax deposits. If those amounts are insufficient to cover the cost of the new paid leave, employers can seek an “expedited advance” from the IRS by submitting a “streamlined claim form” that will be released shortly.
- The Department of Labor and the IRS will be providing additional details and guidance on the specifics and the implementation of the FFCRA on March 25th.
- The Department of Labor will also release a new required workplace poster outlining these new employee rights under the FFCRA.
It may be hard for business owners affected by COVID-19 business slowdowns to imagine how they can bear additional effort and expense. We encourage anyone with these concerns to read the information in the web links below carefully:
- https://www.dol.gov/agencies/whd/pandemic/ffcra-employee-paid-leave
- https://www.dol.gov/agencies/whd/flsa/pandemic
- https://www.dol.gov/agencies/whd/fmla/pandemic
- https://www.cdc.gov/coronavirus/2019-ncov/communication/factsheets.html
We encourage all Contempo HCM clients to visit our online HR Support Center for additional tools and resources related to COVID-19. We are continually updating our HR Support Center as new information and guidance becomes available. You can learn more about the details of these leaves (who is covered, what it’s for, duration, etc.) on the HR Support Center by searching for “FFCRA.”