A day after reporting that Texas employees rejecting a return to suitable work for fear of contracting COVID-19 could lose unemployment benefits, Govenor Abbott announced that the TWC has promulgated rules allowing employees to continue receipt of benefits even if rejecting a return to suitable work. According to the Governor’s press release:
Each unemployment insurance
When Congress was drafting the enhanced unemployment benefits available under the FFCRA some lawmakers opposed the additional $600 per week benefit because it could incentivize workers to remain on unemployment rather than returning to work. As Texas prepares to return to work, those lawmakers concerns are coming to fruition.
There are anecdotal reports that
The President and governors of individual states are discussing plans to reopen businesses in the coming weeks. Some of the measures employers will be required to take will be dictated by governmental agencies and for particular industries. A few of the most commonly discussed steps include: temperature checks, use of PPE, heightened hygiene maintenance, return
On April 1, 2020, the DOL issued its regulations on the paid leave provision of the Families First Coronavirus Response Act (i.e., the Emergency Paid Sick Leave Act and the Emergency Family and Medical Leave Act). While there is a lot to digest in the rule, the most significant aspect is the definition of and
As the paid leave provisions of the FFCRA take effect today, many employers are asking what information they should maintain so they can claim the tax credits that are available to pay for this leave. Luckily, the IRS has come to the rescue describing the information that should be maintained. The Service’s guidance explains that:
Yesterday, a U.S. District Judge enjoined enforcement of the Dallas Paid Sick Leave Ordinance. The law, effective August 1, 2019, was scheduled to start being enforced by the City of Dallas on April 1, 2020. Dallas’s law, similar to laws passed by the City of Austin and San Antonio, will now wait until the Texas
On March 27, 2020, Congress passed and the President signed, the Coronavirus Aid, Relief, and Economic Security (CARES) Act. The Act appropriated $2 Trillion to preserve and stimulate the U.S. economy during the Coronavirus crisis. In addition to important economic relief provided to individual tax payers and government backed loans and grants to especially hard
On March 26, 2020, the U.S. Department of Labor published a Field Assistance Bulletin and additional answers to what it anticipates are Frequently Asked Questions about the FFCRA’ s posting obligations.
The Field Assistance Bulletin No. 2020-1 announced that the Department would take a nonenforcement position during the first 30 days when the Act is
This morning the government reported a record number of new unemployment benefit claims: 3.283 Million new claims. Meanwhile, based on directive from Governor Abbott last week, the Texas Workforce Commission Unemployment Division is waiving the seven day waiting period for receipt of unemployment benefits and temporarily suspending the work search requirements for unemployment eligibility.
The Families First Coronavirus Response Act that provides emergency paid leave and expanded FMLA rights to employees of small and mid-sized employers requires covered employer to post notice of rights and responsibilities under the Act in the workplace. The U.S. DOL has posted model posters employers can use and post in conspicuous places where employees