In the current context of COVID-19 epidemic, President of Romania issued Decree No. 195/2020 on the declaration of the state of emergency on the territory of Romania,published in the Official Journal of Romania, Part I, No. 212/16.03.2020 (the “Decree”), with effect for a period of 30 days as of its publication, which can be further extended ...
On March 18, 2020, President Trump signed into law the Families First Coronavirus Act that aims to provide emergency supplemental relief to Americans affected by the novel coronavirus (COVID-19) outbreak.The Act, among other things, aims to provide such relief by addressing three employment-related areas: (1) emergency paid sick leave to employees, (2) emergency leave under the Family and Medical Leave Act, and (3) support for unemployment insurance ...
On March 18, 2020, Governor Cuomo signed a bill to provide immediate assistance to New Yorkers impacted by COVID-19.The act provides paid and unpaid leave to employees “subject to a mandatory or precautionary order of quarantine or isolation issued by the state of New York, the department of health, local board of health, or any governmental entity duly authorized to issue such order due to COVID-19 ...
On March 17, 2020, California Governor Gavin Newsom issued an Executive Order suspending some of the notice requirements under the California WARN Act ("Cal-WARN"), the state counterpart to the Federal WARN Act. The order came in response to the sudden onslaught of workplace closings across California due to COVID-19. Under the Cal-WARN, employers with 75 or more employees must give 60-days' written notice to employees and unions before layoffs occur ...
On March 18, 2020, the Senate approved, and President Trump signed H.R. 6201, the "Families First Coronavirus Response Act." The legislation contains a number of provisions related to employees' rights to time off and pay, provides tax credits to employers, and includes expanded health services and unemployment provisions. The provisions related to employees' rights to time off and pay, tax credits, and unemployment are summarized here: Family Medical Leave Act Expansion (H.R. 6201) H ...
At their core, the Regulations in terms of the Disaster Management Act, 2002 issued and brought into operation yesterday, 18 March 2020, outline the responsibilities of all government departments, the release and allocation of resources, and the conditions under which liquor industry may function. In the wake of the coronavirus (COVID-19) epidemic being declared a national state of disaster, the Regulations are intended to contain the spread of the virus ...
President Cyril Ramaphosa, in his address to the nation on Sunday, 15 March 2020, declared a national state of disaster and introduced a numberof measures to curb the spread of the new Coronavirus (COVID-19). As of 19 March 2020, South Africa has recorded 150 confirmed cases of COVID-19 ...
With the outbreak of the coronavirus (COVID-19), many businesses have taken the decision to request that employees work from home. To work from home, employees will either be using their own personal devices or company-issued equipment to either access the company network remotely or to transmit data and information through their own personal network. There are a few inherent information security risks that are posed by these arrangements ...
In accordance with the CDC’s guidance on social distancing, more and more companies are increasing the number of employees working from home. As the number of employees working from home increases, so do the related cyber risks. Sophisticated hackers have developed a game plan for exploiting weaknesses unique to the remote workforce employment model ...
Congress appears to have reached an agreement on legislation to provide paid family and medical leave in connection with the COVID-19 pandemic. However, the bill still must be signed into law by the President. In the interim, Pittsburgh employers should take note that the City of Pittsburgh has passed legislation that already requires most employers operating in the City to provide for the accrual of minimum amounts of sick leave effective March 15, 2020 ...
Following the measures announced by the Federal Government on 12 March 2020, more and more employers are considering implementing a temporary telework regime, in which employees are required to work from home. Can an employer impose such a measure and what are the implications? An employer cannot unilaterally oblige an employee to work from home, except if employees are exposed to specific health and safety related risks at work ...
In this challenging period of the Coronavirus outbreak, your organisation might currently be taking strong internal measures to protect its employees while ensuring work continuity. Such measures could have data protection implications and therefore you might be wondering how to take them in accordance with the GDPR. We have answered the most important GDPR questions below ...
EUIPO On 16 March 2020, the Executive Director of the European Union Intellectual Property Office (EUIPO) has issued Decision No EX-20-3 extending all time limits expiring between 9 March 2020 and 30 April 2020, that affect all parties before the Office, to 1 May 2020. In principle, the new deadlines will not be communicated to the parties on a case-by-case basis ...
Because of the coronavirus, several questions related to processing of personal data must be raised – in particular within the context of work life. In this article, we touch on some of the most important aspects employers should consider when processing employees’ personal data. A few days ago, the Swedish Data Protection Authority also published its guidance on the coronavirus and personal data. The guidance is available here (only in Swedish) ...
At Patterson Belknap we continue to diligently monitor the outbreak of the COVID-19 coronavirus and assess the potential legal and business issues that may arise relating to the virus. The situation is fluid, and best practices and guidelines are evolving in real time. We are closely monitoring the situation as it unfolds, and share our latest perspectives on the legal issues relating to COVID-19 below ...
The recent outbreak of 2019-nCOV, a flu-like respiratory illness better known as the Coronavirus, is causing employers to ready themselves for a variety of responses to the spread of the virus. Human Resources professionals are seeking guidance on how to promote a safe and healthy working environment without violating the rights of ill or potentially ill employees. We have some tips to help strike the right balance ...
In the current situation, employees who come into contact with other employees may be diagnosed with COVID-19. What is an employer’s obligation to notify other potentially exposed employees? Employers have a general duty to provide a safe workplace under Cal/OSHA and federal OSHA ...
On March 16, seven Bay Area counties issued "shelter-in-place" restrictions, which create compliance issues for cannabis operations licensed as dispensaries or as delivery services ...
In the early hours of Saturday, March 14, 2020, the United States House of Representatives passed the Families First Coronavirus Response Act (FFCRA), which is designed to expand relief in response to the COVID-19 outbreak, through access to free testing, enhancing food assistance, increasing Medicaid funding, and providing paid sick leave and unemployment benefits to workers ...
The Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC) issued a public statement on its website on Wednesday, March 18, 2020, providing updated guidance on acceptable employment practices in light of the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic. The statement highlights common questions employers may have regarding how to manage employee issues related to COVID-19 and provides guidance ...
A panel of Bradley labor and employment and cybersecurity attorneys discuss coronavirus-related issues facing employers, including: How should you talk with your employees about the rapidly changing situation with the coronavirus and what it means for them as employees? What are the wage and hour, benefits and data security issues implicated by employees working remotely? What are the options for maintaining or reducing your workforce when the coronavirus results in supply chain int
So long as COVID-19 remains a pandemic, every employer must face the new reality that there is a good chance an employee will test positive for COVID-19. Employers should consider the following checklist when handling an employee testing positive for COVID-19: Treat positive test results and “suspected but unconfirmed” cases of COVID-19 the same. If the source of infection is known, identify if it was at the workplace or outside ...
As employers weigh their measure of response to COVID-19, the employers must recognize that The General Duty Clause of the Occupational Safety and Health Act (OSHA), 29 U.S.C. § 654(a)(1), requires employers to furnish each worker with “employment and a place of employment, which are free from recognized hazards that are causing or are likely to cause death or serious physical harm ...
As employers react to the spread of coronavirus (COVID-19), they must be aware of the potential for unlawful discrimination based on an employee’s race or national origin. The CDC has issued this guidanceto employers regarding COVID-19: “To prevent stigma and discrimination in the workplace, use only the guidance described below to determine risk of COVID-19 ...
