EMPLOYMENT LAWS
FPLG COVID-19 RESPONSE
EMPLOYMENT LAWS
[UPDATE: November 19, 2020]
With the continuing fluctuation of reopenings followed by minor or sometimes significant retrenchments, nonprofit employers continue to face a complex and confusing maze of regular as well as COVID-19-specific laws, regulations, and rules.
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[UPDATE: May 26, 2020]
Nonprofit employers struggle to keep up with rapidly changing employment laws due to COVID-19.
Complicating these issues are the interim “reopening” laws passed by each of the 50 states. This is a developing story that we will update frequently.
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[March 31, 2020]
For the many nonprofits with paid staff, the COVID-19 pandemic magnifies the already complicated maze of federal, state, and local laws that govern the employer-employee relationship.
On top of an existing pattern of legal rights and duties come new benefits and obligations, particularly – but not only – from the recent Congressional action that has upended sick and family leave laws.
We’ll cover many of these topics in our FAQs as well as in periodic blog posts.
As COVID-19 rates are rising throughout the country, employers may want to review the safety measures they are taking to prevent spreading the coronavirus in the workplace. The U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission recently released additional guidance on the interplay between COVID-19 and an employer’s legal obligations under the Americans with Disabilities Act.
— Allison Sues, Esq., SmithAmundsen (10/27/20)
The impact of COVID-19 triggers many different employment laws. Each law should be analyzed in its own lane.
— Katherine S. Catlos, Esq., Kaufman, Dolowich & Voluck LLP (3/23/20)
…[A]s the economic shutdown continues, many nonprofit executives will face wrenching decisions about their staffing. The choices made will depend on a range of factors, including their programming, revenue model, and financial reserves. They will also depend in no small part on organizational identity, culture, and values, which shape how staff and board frame and respond to crises.
— Jeanne Bell & Steve Dubb, The Nonprofit Quarterly (4/1/20)
REFERENCES & RESOURCES
- How employers can ensure federal law compliance by following updated EEOC guidance on COVID-19 screening and testing protocols (October 29, 2020) Sara Svedberg, Esq., Nexsen Pruett
- DC Revises Definition of “Close Contact,” Expanding Scope of Employer Workplace Contact Tracing (October 29, 2020) Julie Capell, Esq., et al, Davis Wright Tremaine
- COVID-19 and older employees: What employers should know and how they can lessen the impact (October 28, 2020) Lori Jones, Esq., Thompson Coburn
- OSHA COVID-19 Reporting Guidelines Require Reporting Of COVID-19 Fatalities (But Rarely Hospitalizations) (October 28, 2020) Peter Goetschoel, Esq., Vinson & Elkins
- Can You Ask Employees Medical Questions During A Pandemic? The EEOC’s Guidance On Complying With The ADA During COVID-19 (October 27, 2020) Allison Sues, Esq., SmithAmundsen
- Can Employers Require Mandatory Vaccinations? (October 23, 2020) Greenwald Doherty
- CDC’s Latest COVID-19 Guidance Complicates 6-15-48 Contact Tracing Procedures For Employers (October 22, 2020) Nicholas Hulse, Esq. et al, Fisher Phillips
- Additional Department of Labor Guidance on Wage and Hour Rules and Family and Medical Leave as Workplaces Reopen (July 22, 2020) Jeh Johnson, Esq., et al, Paul Weiss
- New Employer Obligations in the Age of COVID-19: Safety Policies, PPE, and Deep Cleaning (June 25, 2020) David J. Santeusanio, Esq. et al, Employee Relations Law Journal
- COVID-19 Lawsuits and Claims Increasing in Courts Nationwide (June 25, 2020) Littler Mendelson PC
- Nonprofits Have Laid Off 1.6M since March, Finds Center for Civil Society (June 24, 2020) Steve Dubb, The Nonprofit Quarterly
- Is COVID-19 A Disability Under Discrimination Law? The Next Wave of Workplace Lawsuits May Answer Question (June 19, 2020) Sarah Wieselthier, Esq., Fisher Phillips LLP
- COVID-19 Fact vs. Fiction Essential Insight For Nonprofit Employers (May 26, 2020) Unemployment Services Trust
- New Challenges for Employers, But Old Accommodation, Anti-Discrimination, Wage Laws Still Apply (May 22, 2020) Kelly-Ann Cartwright, Esq., et al, Holland & Knigh
- Emergency Paid Leave: Answers to Your Questions (April 2, 2020) Lisa Schohl, The Chronicle of Philanthropy
- COVID-19 Emergency Paid Leave and Other Leave-Related Benefits (April 02, 2020) HansonBridgett
- It’s Different This Time: Handling Nonprofit Staff Cuts under COVID-19 (April 1, 2020) Jeanne Bell and Steve Dubb, The Nonprofit Quarterly
5 Tips for California Employers Facing COVID-19 Concerns (March 23, 2020) Katherine S. Catlos, Esq. - Coronavirus: Employment Law Considerations and Practical Guidance for Employers (March 10, 2020) Paul, Weiss, Rifkind, Wharton & Garrison LLP
Remote-Work Costs: Must Nonprofit Reimburse?
[June 5, 2020] Among the many adjustments that employers - including nonprofits - have had to make during the COVID-19 pandemic is the abrupt switch to remote work for some or all of their employees. That includes making sure that everyone in the workforce has needed hardware, software, and internet and phone connectivity. California is among the jurisdictions that initiated early and mandatory stay-at-home orders for a large portion of the population and economy. There [...]
Filing Deadlines Extended for Nonprofit Organizations
[April 24, 2020] By the third week of March 2020, governments at all levels had begun to respond to the many questions and issues raised by the COVID-19 emergency, including - most notably - the curtailment or suspension of operations and activities by individuals and entities on account of new stay-at-home orders and recommendations. The necessary federal emergency declaration under the Robert T. Stafford Disaster Relief and Emergency Act was made in mid-March. The [...]
UPDATE: The CARES Act and Nonprofits
[March 27, 2020] The third prong of the Congressional response to the COVID-19 pandemic - the Coronavirus Aid, Relief, and Economic Security Act (CARES Act) (S. 747) - is now before the House of Representatives, having passed the Senate on Wednesday. The House is expected to approve it today with overwhelming support; voting is expected to begin shortly. It could be signed at the White House and in effect before the end of this weekend. [...]
Some Good News: Funders are Stepping Up
Ten days ago, we posted Funders Must Step Up - Right Now! (March 16, 2020). That same morning, influential blogger Vu Le had posted Funders, this is the rainy day you have been saving up for. Mr. Le has long been a vocal critic of many foundations’ viewing the five percent payout figure in the tax code as a ceiling instead of what it is: a floor. During that week, as most of us were [...]
Nonprofit Board Meetings in an Emergency
The devastating pandemic has brought sudden and profound challenges for all of us. In What Nonprofit Board Members Should Be Doing Right Now to Address the COVID-19 Situation, (March 16, 2020), the experts from BoardSource write: “As the world responds to the threats of COVID-19, many nonprofits and their boards are wrestling with difficult questions and decisions.” A rewrite of that sentence may be in order; every nonprofit and its board is flying blind in [...]
The Charitable Sector: COVID-19 Relief and Economic Stimulus Package
America's charities request $60 billion infusion of support to help the most vulnerable March 18, 2020 The COVID-19 (Coronavirus) pandemic facing the country is having a profound impact on the economy and has greatly expanded the need for charitable organizations to provide additional services in an unprecedented manner. At the same time, the economic downturn will undoubtedly result in a contraction in contributions and other sources of revenue which are the lifeblood of many charitable [...]
Coronavirus and Nonprofits: Challenges & Resources
What a difference a week makes. Last week, the news media focused on the minutiae of the primary-election horse race. This week, Americans have been forced to confront the coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic. For the nonprofit sector, the emergency becomes a double-barreled crisis: we are both victims and saviors. This is not an unfamiliar conundrum; there are frequent natural disasters that devastate one area or another. This nation’s charitable organizations - and, in particular, the social [...]
Funders Must Step Up – Right Now!
“Funders,” writes nonprofit blogger Vu Le, “this is the rainy day you have been saving up for.” Recently, we wrote about Mr. Le’s earlier plea for America’s foundations to step up their payouts beyond the “five percent rule” in the federal tax code. In an article last summer, he characterized it as a moral imperative: The ethical argument for foundations to increase their annual payout rate beyond 5% (August 4, 2019). This morning, it’s a [...]
Small Business Association Disaster Loan Guidance and Resources
The U.S. Small Business Administration (SBA) has an existing program, the Economic Injury Disaster Loan program, that extends disaster relief loans to small businesses, including nonprofits, to help alleviate economic injury caused by disasters. On Thursday, March 12, 2020, the SBA announced that the program will be available to claims arising from COVID-19. The SBA will work with state officials to offer loans of up to $2 million. “These loans may be used to pay [...]