Cal/OSHA has promulgated emergency regulations for preventing COVID-19 transmission in the workplace (the “Emergency Standard,” or the “Standard”). The Emergency Standard became effective immediately upon approval by the Office of Administrative Law on November 30, 2020, and will remain in effect for six months. It may be extended or converted to permanent regulations by Cal/OSHA. The Emergency Standard, now codified in Title 8, sections 3205; 3205 ...
As California continues to move through Stage 2 of its Resilience Roadmap, “Lower-risk workplaces,” where retail (curbside and delivery only), related logistics and manufacturing, office workplaces, limited personal services, outdoor museums, childcare, and essential businesses can now open with modifications, California employers should continue to be vigilant in assessing and complying with up to date health and safety guidance from the Occupational Safety and Health Admini
On September 17, 2020, Governor Gavin Newsome signed AB 685 into law. Effective January 1, 2021, AB 685 makes several changes to the California Labor Code regarding occupational exposure to COVID-19. This includes authorizing Cal-OSHA to essentially shut down a workplace if it determines that the risk of COVID-19 exposure constitutes an imminent hazard to employees ...
On March 19, 2021, Governor Gavin Newsom signed Senate Bill No. 95 (SB95) and revived California’s COVID-19 Supplemental Paid Sick Leave. By March 29, 2021, employers of more than 25 employees must provide Supplemental Paid Sick Leave for covered employees who are unable to work or telework due to concerns related to COVID-19 through at least September 30, 2021 ...
Overview of the Program California created the Employment Training Panel (“ETP”) cash grant program in 1982 to provide funds to California businesses for job-related vocational skills training for businesses creating new jobs or retraining current workers. The program is funded by the Employment Training Tax (a payroll tax) paid by California employers. Since its inception in 1982, the ETP has provided over $1 billion to California employers ...
Cal-OSHA’s COVID-19 regulation remains in effect after the trial court rejected a motion for a preliminary injunction filed by a coalition of employers. This included challenges to: (1) compensation for employees excluded from work; (2) mandated testing; and (3) health and safety requirements for employer-provided housing and transportation. Therefore, employers must continue to abide by the requirements of the emergency regulation ...
September 16, 2021 By: John Epperson The COVID-19 pandemic will likely to be a concern and challenge for employers for longer than anyone had hoped or anticipated. As businesses adjust to what seems to be a “new normal” it is worth a reminder that COVID-19 infection can be a recordable illness on an employer’s Occupational Safety & Health Administration (“OSHA”) 300 Injury and Illness Log. OSHA’s recording criteria under 29 CFR 1904 ...
By: Joshua M. Robbins, Michael C. Flynn, and Robert S. Gillison The past decade has taught lenders much about regulatory enforcement risk. In the fallout of the 2008 financial crisis and collapse of the housing and related markets, the Department of Justice and other agencies aggressively stepped up investigations of lenders seen as complicit in the misconduct of borrowers and others ...
U.S. Trademark laws are based on the premise that rights in a trademark exist so long as the mark is continuously used in interstate commerce. Once you cease use of the mark without an intention of resuming such use, the mark may be subject to cancellation or abandonment by a third party ...
San Francisco’s Department of Public Health (“SFDPH”) issued yet-another update to its Shelter-in-Place Order, C19-07, on September 14, 2020 (now up to version “i”). This order has been frequently modified to reflect changes in other state and local directives, as more is learned about the disease and as more businesses are allowed to re-open ...
On June 7, 2021, the Department of Managed Health Care (“DMHC”) issued an All Plan Letter (APL-21-016) to the health care service plans it regulates, announcing that health care service plans must continue to cover certain COVID-19 testing for their enrollees beyond the now-expired DMHC’s emergency regulation[1] (“Emergency Regulation”) ...
On July 23, SBA announced that lenders may begin submitting PPP loan forgiveness requests to SBA on August 10. To assist lenders, SBA issued a Procedural Notice with new guidance regarding lenders’ reviews of forgiveness applications. The Notice may be found here: https://www.sba.gov/sites/default/files/2020-07/5000-20038.pdf The Notice reaffirmed forgiveness guidance and rules previously issued ...
On July 28, the Federal Reserve announced that many of its emergency lending facilities, including the Main Street Lending Program’s New Loan Facility, Priority Loan Facility, Expanded Loan Facility, Nonprofit Organization New Loan Facility and Nonprofit Organization Expanded Loan Facility, are being extended to December 31, 2020. The facilities were previously scheduled to be available until on or about September 30, 2020 ...
As more workers begin to return to the workplace, it is expected that there will be an increase in the number of lawsuits related to employee contraction of the virus in the workplace. While the general rule in most states is that the workers’ compensation system provides the exclusive remedy for work-related injuries and illnesses, claimants and their attorneys are eyeing exceptions to the workers’ compensation system in order to maximize their potential recovery ...
On October 8, Treasury issued a new Interim Final Rule Re Additional Revisions to Loan Forgiveness and Loan Review Procedures Interim Final Rules (new IFR), along with a new Loan Forgiveness Application Form 3508S and Instructions for the new Form, addressing applications for forgiveness of PPP loans of $50,000 or less. Links to the new IFR, the new Form 3508S, and the new Instructions for Form 3508S are set out below ...
November 5, 2021 By: John Epperson The U.S. Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) published its much-anticipated Emergency Temporary Standard (ETS) regarding COVID-19 vaccination and testing on November 5, 2021. The ETS went into effect immediately upon publication in the Federal Register with requirements phased in over 30 to 60 days ...
By a near-unanimous 417-1 vote, the House has passed the PPP Flexibility Act, which if enacted would, among other things, extend the time to utilize Payroll Protection Program (PPP) loan proceeds and obtain forgiveness, allow more time to rehire employees, and allow more of the proceeds to be used for other forgivable costs besides payroll costs. The Senate will now consider the bill and may vote on it next week. A copy of the bill may be found here: https://docs ...
On January 25, the State of California lifted its previously enacted emergency stay-at-home order for all 58 counties. The stay-at-home orders were put in place at the beginning of December and were designed to help ease the burden on ICUs throughout the state, which were becoming increasingly inundated with new COVID-19 patients ...
On Thursday, May 28, San Francisco Mayor London Breed announced a preliminary timetable for the reopening of San Francisco businesses, restaurants, and offices. The multi-phased plan, which can be found here (“Order”), is designed to comply with the timeline and guidelines previously announced by Governor Gavin Newsom ...
In an update to our client alert from November 30 regarding the San Francisco commercial eviction moratorium previously passed by the Board of Supervisors, we note that, following our publication of the client alert, the Board of Supervisors, on December 1, amended the moratorium to clarify previous language on a retail tenant’s right to terminate its lease that was ambiguous ...
On November 17, 2020, the San Francisco Board of Supervisors unanimously approved an extension to the commercial eviction moratorium that had been previously enacted and extended on a month-to-month basis by mayoral declaration. The new commercial eviction ordinance (the “Ordinance”) keeps the majority of the terms of the current moratorium in effect, while providing a new four-tiered system for qualified tenants for repayment of deferred rent ...
On October 20, 2020, San Francisco County was upgraded to the “minimal” tier within the California COVID-19 tracking system, meaning it has the fewest restrictions on reopening all businesses as promulgated by the State of California. In order to qualify for the “minimal” tier, a county must have an infection rate of less than one daily new positive COVID case per 100,000 residents and have a positive test rate of less than 2% for two consecutive weeks ...
On October 20, 2020, San Francisco County was upgraded to the “minimal” tier within the California COVID-19 tracking system, meaning it has the fewest restrictions on reopening all businesses as promulgated by the State of California. In order to qualify for the “minimal” tier, a county must have an infection rate of less than one daily new positive COVID case per 100,000 residents and have a positive test rate of less than 2% for two consecutive weeks ...
By: John Epperson San Francisco’s Board of Supervisors passed an Emergency Ordinance on July 7 entitled “Cleaning and Disease Prevention Standards in Tourist Hotels and Large Commercial Office Buildings” (the “EO”). The EO is expected to be signed by the Mayor and go into effect soon ...
