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What Does the Families First Coronavirus Response Act Mean for Employers?

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April 2, 2020

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Beginning April 2, 2020, the Families First Coronavirus Response Act (FFCRA) will require employers to provide protected paid leave and paid sick leave to employees through December 31, 2020.

First, the FFCRA’s Emergency Family and Medical Leave Expansion Act extends employee leave protections under the federal Family and Medical Leave Act (FMLA) as follows:

  • Applicability: Private employers with fewer than 500 employees.
  • Eligibility: Employees employed for 30 calendar days or more may request FMLA benefits for leave where the employee is unable to work (or telework) due to a need for leave to care for the son or daughter under 18 years of age of such employee if the school or place of care has been closed, or the child care provider of such son or daughter is unavailable, due to a public health emergency.
  • Paid Leave: The first 10 days of leave are unpaid after which the employer pays the following:
    • at least 2/3 of an employee’s regular pay rate;
    • for the number of hours an employee is otherwise normally scheduled to work (for those with varying schedules, employers should use an average number of scheduled work hours over the six-month period just prior to the date of leave); and
    • up to a maximum of $200 per day and $10,000 in aggregate.

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California: Clarification on Defining Exempt Managerial Duties

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December 18, 2019

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In The Safeway Wage and Hour Cases, the California Court of Appeal revisited how to determine whether a manager’s duties qualify as exempt or nonexempt. Generally, the court identified two types of work that each qualify as exempt from overtime.

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Federal DOL Updates: Clarification on the “Joint Employer” Standard, Overtime Calculation in Multi-Week Bonus Periods, and Per-Project Pay for Exempt Salary Threshold

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All Employers

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As indicated

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The U.S. Department of Labor (DOL) published a final rule concerning the joint employer standard, as well as two Fair Labor Standards Act (FLSA) opinion letters providing guidance on specific wage and hour inquiries.  Below are key takeaways from each of these updates.

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Fifth Circuit: Clarity on Highly Compensated Employee Exception to FLSA Overtime Requirements

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All Employers with LA, MS, and TX Employees

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August 21, 2019

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In Faludi v. U.S. Shale Solutions, the Fifth Circuit Court of Appeal confirmed that an employee’s guaranteed day rate satisfied the Fair Labor Standard Act’s (FLSA) highly compensated employee (HCE) exemption, even though the employee was only paid twice monthly.  The HCE threshold—which currently requires the employee to be paid more than $100,000 per year and at least $455 a week on a salary or fee basis—only requires that the employee “regularly receive[s]” the predetermined amount on a weekly or less frequent basis.  There is no requirement that the cash amount be calculated on weekly or less basis.

In addition, the Fifth Circuit also stated that the amount the HCE is paid is not required to bear a “reasonable relationship” to the amount actually earned. Employers should take care when setting highly compensated exempt employee pay to ensure compliance with FLSA requirements.

Action Items

  1. Have highly compensated exempt employee pay reviewed for consistency with this ruling.
  2. Subscribers can call our HR On-Call Hotline at (888) 378-2456 for further assistance.

Disclaimer: This document is designed to provide general information and guidance concerning employment-related issues. It is presented with the understanding that ManagEase is not engaged in rendering any legal opinions. If a legal opinion is needed, please contact the services of your own legal adviser.

© 2019 ManagEase

December Updates

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Varies

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Varies

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This Short List addresses the following topics:
  1. 2020 Minimum Wage Increases for Federal Contractors
  2. Second Circuit: Sexual Harassment vs. Sex Discrimination
  3. Third Circuit: Blue Penciling Noncompete Agreements is Okay
  4. Sixth Circuit: Statute of Limitations Cannot be Shortened for Title VII Cases
  5. Ninth Circuit: Home Care Workers’ Overtime Rule Retroactive Effective Date Applied
  6. Tenth Circuit: FLSA Applies to Workers in Cannabis Industry
  7. California: Calculating Meal and Rest Premiums Clarified
  8. California: Mandatory Service Charges May be Gratuities
  9. Bernalillo County, NM: PTO Start Date Moved Up
  10. New York: Reproductive Health Decisions Protected
  11. New York City, NY: Guidance on National Origin/Immigrant Status-based Discrimination
  12. Oregon: Don’t Retaliate – Even After Termination
  13. Columbia, SC: Criminal and Salary History Inquiries Banned
  14. San Antonio, TX: Paid Sick Leave on Hold – Again

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NLRB Changes Course on Mandatory Arbitration Agreements

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All Employers Subject to the NLRA

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August 14, 2019

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In 2018, in Epic Systems Corp. v. Lewis, the U.S. Supreme Court stated that employers may require employees to sign arbitration agreements with class action waivers. Recently, the National Labor Relations Board (NLRB) took the Epic decision even further.

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Fifth Circuit: Day Rate Can Meet Salary Requirements Under FLSA White Collar Overtime Exemption

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All Employers with LA, MS, and TX Employees

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August 21, 2019

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In Faludi v. U.S. Shale Solutions, L.L.C., the U.S. Court of Appeal for the 5th Circuit stated that a guaranteed day rate providing compensation over $455 can meet the Fair Labor Standard Act (FLSA) salary requirements for the white collar overtime exemption. Further, the FLSA’s reasonable relationship test does not apply to the highly compensated exemption.

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DOL Issues Final Rule on Changes to Overtime Exemptions

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All Employers Subject to the FLSA

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January 1, 2020

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The U.S. Department of Labor (DOL) recently issued the final rule updating the salary requirements for overtime exempt classifications. For executive, administrative, professional, and computer professional exemptions, the salary threshold will increase from $455 to $684 per week (equivalent to $35,568 per year). Where state overtime exemptions are more strict, the federal rule will not impact those jurisdictions.

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Maine: Recent Employment Updates

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All Employers with ME Employees

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September 17, 2019

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Maine enacted several new laws before the close of this year’s legislative session; key provisions are summarized below.

Privacy Protections. Employers will be prohibited from requesting applicants’ Social Security numbers, unless used in the context of a pre-employment background screen or substance abuse testing.

Tip Pooling Clarified. Employers may only implement tip pooling among service employees, and provided that they do not violate the Fair Labor Standards Act (FLSA).

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