All posts by stu

Contagious disease, Coronavirus, Employee Illness, Employee Policies, HR Compliance, Human Resources, Safety

CDC Changes Return to Work Guidance for Employers

Last week, the Centers for Diseases Control (CDC) issued important changes to its guidance to employers, including modifying the criteria used to determine when an employee can be allowed back to work after testing positive for COVID-19.  Employers should immediately change its COVID-19 plans and modify its return to work policies accordingly.  Here are the important updates:

  • The “symptom-based” strategy for discontinuing isolation and precautions for individuals with COVID-19 changed. For non-healthcare setting, the CDC now recommends that individuals with COVID-19 remain in home isolation until:
    • At least 10 days* have passed since the onset of symptoms; and
    • At least 24 hours have passed since the resolution of the last fever without the use of fever-reducing medications; and
    • Other symptoms have improved
  • Before the change, the CDC had recommended at least 72 hours pass from the moment the fever resolved without the use of medication. The CDC also removed the word “respiratory” from the requirement to address the expanding list of symptoms associated with COVID-19.
  • Although the CDC still recommends a 10 day period lapse from symptoms onset before returning to work, the CDC added an exception of recommending isolation period for up to 20 days after symptom onset for individuals with severe to critical illness or who are severely immunocompromised.
  • The CDC also de-emphasized the use of the “test-based” strategy. It does not recommend using a test-based strategy except under the following circumstances.
    • To discontinue isolation of individuals who are severely immunocompromised; or
    • To discontinue isolation (or other precautions) earlier than would occur using a symptom-based strategy.
  • The CDC explained its recommendation to rely on symptom-based strategy rather than the testing-based strategy for ending isolation is based on the lack of evidence that clinically recovered individuals with persistently detectable COVID-19 have transmitted the virus to others.
  • In practice, the test-based strategy may be impractical anyway, given the delays in COVID-19 test results.
Construction, Employee Policies, Employment Poster, Human Resources, New Hire, Safety

(new) Florida Contractors HR Set Up Manual

Attention Florida Contractors and Construction companies!  We have worked with Florida contractors and construction firms for almost twenty (20) years and have been a regular presenter at Carmen Ciricillo’s (the Construction Comic) Contractors Educational Services seminars since 2016.   Due to repeated requests from Florida Contractors, we designed and created a Manual of the most critically important HR forms, checklists, posters and documents for small/mid contracting businesses.  This package is ideal for #GeneralContractors, #PoolContractors, #RoofingContractors, #HVACContractors, #SheetMetalContractors, #PlumbingContractors, #ElectricalContractors, #MechanicalContractors, #SiteDevelopment companies, #UtilityContractors, #DrywallContractors, #PaintingContractors, #MasonryContractors, #ConcreteContractors and other Specialty Contractors.

  • All Forms are updated for 2020
  • Complete hiring package
  • Drug and Criminal Screening consent forms
  • Florida Contractor Safety Manual (use to qualify for 2% WC premium discount)
  • Drug Free Workplace Policy
  • Safety Equipment form and Safe Driving
  • OSHA 300 log template (and Recordkeeping guidance)
  • Injury Documentation
  • Employee Accountability forms
  • Employment forms
  • Mandatory workplace posters (federal and Florida, including Spanish versions if available)
  • New Spanish new hire forms

Click here for the one page Florida Contractors HR Set Up package flyer and download the Order Form for the materials.  We will also help you get it set up correctly. Discounted pricing is available through August 31, 2020!

Compensation, Employee Handbook, Employee Injury, Employee Misconduct, Risk Management, Safety, Termination, TPD Benefits, Workers Compensation

Terminating an Employee for Misconduct While They Receive Florida Workers’ Comp

We were recently asked by a client about whether or not an employee on workers’ compensation can be terminated for misconduct. I said yes, but explained that to cut off workers’ compensation benefits the “misconduct” must meet a special definition.  An employee with a workplace injury is expected to follow company policy and cooperate with the reasonable requests of the claims adjustor from the workers’ compensation carrier. However, if an employee receiving temporary partial disability (TPD) benefits commits “misconduct”, Florida Statutes allow the employer to terminate the employee and stop paying TPD benefits. It is an affirmative defense, and the employer has the burden of proving termination by a preponderance of the evidence. This changes the normal Florida “at-will” employment principles.

What is misconduct? FL Statutes, section 440.02(18) states that “misconduct” includes but is not limited to, the following: (a) conduct evincing such willful or wanton disregard of an employer’s interests as is found in deliberate violation or disregard of standards of behavior which the employer has the right to expect of the employee; or (b) Carelessness or negligence of such a degree or recurrence as to manifest culpability, wrongful intent, or evil design, or to show an intentional and substantial disregard of an employer’s interests or of the employee’s duties and obligations to the employer.

Further, courts have said that violation of employer policy may constitute misconduct but repeated violations of explicit policies, after several warnings, are usually required.  A single isolated act of negligence does not constitute disqualifying misconduct.  In a recent case, an employee was running an industrial machine used for cutting metal (plasma machine) without using a mandatory safety device (fume extractor).  There were disputed facts about the verbal safety warnings given to the employee prior to being sent home for not using the fume extractor.  The employer had not given written warnings for the prior safety warnings.  Despite safety meetings and verbal warnings about the requirements to use the fume extractor, the employee did not commit “misconduct” because it was the first written warnings.

Lesson learned.  Multiple written warnings may be required. Although an employee’s conduct (for example, a single instance of failing to use the fume extractor while working on the CNC plasma machine) may amount to a good cause for termination of his employment, it did not meet the more stringent standard of “misconduct” used in the Florida workers’ compensation statute. Read JCC decision.  As a result, an injured employee who does not have a series of written warnings (safety, conduct or performance-related) would likely be entitled to continue to receive TPD benefits for the duration of their claim; unless the single incident was extreme and substantial.

Commercial Motor Vehicle Driver, Construction, Contagious disease, Coronavirus, Department of Labor, Employee Illness, FFCRA, General HR Questions, Joint Employer, Temporary Employee

Are Temporary Employees entitled to Paid Sick Days under FFCRA?

Many companies use temporary employees to supplement their workforce.  Employees remain the employee of the temporary staffing agency for a period of time, and the agency controls their overall employment.  During the pandemic, what happens if a temporary employee notifies your company that they have COVID-19 symptoms, or have had close contact with a person that tested positive for COVID-19?  Are they eligible for the paid days under the Families First Coronavirus Response Act (FFCRA)?

In most cases, the answer is no.  After a Tampa based construction client asked me the question this week, I located the FFCRA Frequently Asked Question (FAQ) #90 provides the answer.  If the temporary staffing agency has more than 500 employees, it is is not required to provide employees with paid sick leave or expanded family and medical leave.  The FFCRA does not cover companies with more than 500 employees.  However, if the business where the temp employee is working employs less than 500 employees, it is covered by the FFCRA and must provide those benefits.

Employers using temp employees are only required to offer FFCRA benefits if it is a joint employer.  If the second business directly or indirectly exercises significant control over the terms and conditions of the temporary work, then it is a joint employer and must provide FFCRA paid benefits.  If the second business does not directly or indirectly exercise such control, then it is not an employer and is not required to provide paid leave to a temp.  To determine whether the second employer exercises such control, the Department of Labor would consider whether it exercises 4 factors: (1) the power to hire or fire you, (2) supervises and controls your schedule or conditions of employment, (3) determines your rate and method of pay, and (4) maintains your employment records. The weight given to each factor depends on how it does or does not suggest control in a particular case.  So, in most cases, the temporary staffing agency will maintain the employment file, decide pay rate and methods of pay, supervise the overall delivery of services and has the ability to hire, fire and reassign temp employees.  Therefore, the secondary employer is not a joint employer and not required to pay FFCRA paid sick leave benefits (and would not be able to be reimbursed by the federal government for any benefits paid to the temp employee).

Although not covered by the FFCRA paid leave, both the temporary staffing agency and the second business are prohibited from discharging, disciplining, or discriminating against a person for taking such leave, even though it is not required to provide you with paid sick leave.

Americans with Disabilities Act, Contagious disease, Coronavirus, Disabilities, EEOC, Employee Illness, Employee Policies, HR Compliance, Medical Exams

Can Employers Require COVID Testing of Returning Employees?

As employers reopen businesses across Florida, many are wondering if they can require a negative COVID-19 test before an employee is allowed back to work.  As background, there are 2 types of COVID-19 testing – a test to determine the presence of COVID-19 virus (viral test) – and a test to determine if an employee has COVID-19 antibodies (antibody test).  Medical testing of employees is regulated by the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) which states that any mandatory medical test of an employee must be “job-related and consistent with business necessity.”  Due to the current COVID-19 pandemic, the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC), the federal agency that enforces the ADA in the workplace, has issued guidance that COVID-19 viral testing of employees is allowable.  If done, employer testing must be conducted in a non-discriminatory manner.   So, an employer may choose to administer COVID-19 viral testing to employees before they enter the workplace to determine if they have the virus.

However, employers may not require COVID-19 antibody testing for employees returning to work, according to the EEOC.  After the Centers for Disease Control (CDC) issued interim guidelines that antibody test results should not be considered when returning employees to the workplace, the EEOC issued an FAQ on June 17 and disallowed the use of antibody testing before permitting employees to re-enter the workplace.

Antibody testing looks for signs in the blood that a person developed antibodies to fight the virus, meaning that a person was exposed to the virus. Antibodies are the body’s way of remembering how it responded to an infection so it can attack it again if exposed to the same pathogen.  An antibody test constitutes a medical examination under the ADA. In light of the CDC’s Interim Guidelines, the EEOC determined that an antibody test does not meet the ADA’s “job related and consistent with business necessity” standard for medical examinations or inquiries for current employees. Therefore, requiring antibody testing before allowing employees to re-enter the workplace is not allowed under the ADA.

It is also important to note that accurate testing only reveals if the virus is currently present; a negative test does not mean the employee will not acquire the virus later.

Other than testing, employers may also take other actions to protect employees and customers, including requiring workers to wear masks, checking employee temperatures, installing protective barriers, mandating social distancing and requiring COVID-19 symptom questionnaires daily.

300 Log, Construction, Department of Labor, HR Compliance, OSHA, Record Keeping, Risk Management, Safety, Workers Compensation

OSHA Changes Enforcement – When to Report COVID-19 Cases at Work

On May 19, OSHA updated its enforcement guidance to employers (and Compliance Officers) with respect to the recording of occupational illnesses, specifically coronavirus disease (COVID-19) cases. In mid-April, OSHA previously advised that most employers (except healthcare employers) did not have an obligation to analyze whether an employee’s COVID-19 case was work-related, and could assume it was not work-related. OSHA’s new guidance, effective May 26, states that employers must follow three-steps to determine if a COVID-19 case of an employee must be recorded on the OSHA 300 log (following the general recordkeeping regulation 1904). A case must be recorded to your OSHA 300 log if the case is:

  1. Confirmed as COVID-19;
  2. Work-related; and
  3. The case meets one of the general recording criteria (i.e. missing work, beyond first aid).

Obviously, with a communicable disease, it is very difficult to determine if the virus was picked up at work, or during social and nonwork-related sources.  If there is an OSHA inspection, it will be up to an OSHA compliance officer to evaluate the facts and circumstances of the COVID-19 case, and evaluate the following guidelines to determine if it is work-related.  If the case should be recorded (and is not), an OSHA Citation may be issued for a recordkeeping violation.  OSHA will ask the following:

  • Was the employer’s investigation reasonable into the circumstances? Employers should ask some basic questions to aid its’ decision, such as: ask the employee about the possible source; ask about general work and non-work activities to assess potential exposures; and review workspace and if any co-workers in close contact have been diagnosed positive.
  • What evidence was available to the employer? Was it acted upon? If information changes over time, the obligation to record may be impacted, and a case may need to be added/deleted from the OSHA 300 log.

What kind of evidence would support a decision that an employee’s COVID-19 case was “work-related?” (1) Other workers in close proximity have been diagnosed with COVID-19 and there is no alternative explanation; (2) a vendor, customer or facility person was in close proximity to the employee and tested positive for COVID-19; and (3) their job required frequent, close contact with the public in a location where COVID-19 was prevalent. OSHA advises that work-relatedness is not likely if the employee worked outside, closely or frequently associated with a family member or acquittance who has COVID-19 (not co-worker) and exposes employees at a time period when they are of infectious.

After its investigation into work-relatedness, an employer should not enter the case on its OSHA 300 log if it cannot determine whether it is more likely than not that exposure in the workplace played a casual role with respect to a specific employee’s COVID-19 illness. Whether a case occurred at work or not, employers have a responsibility to protect workers from exposure to COVID-19.

COVID-19 cases are coded as respiratory illnesses on the OSHA 300 log. An employee may voluntarily request not to have their name put on the OSHA 300 log because it is an illness.

Business Expenses, Compensation, Contagious disease, Coronavirus, Employee Policies, Human Resources, Paycheck Protection Program, SBA

SBA Publishes the PPP Loan Forgiveness Application

The U.S. Small Business Administration (SBA) just released the Paycheck Protection Program forgiveness rules through the publishing of the PPP Loan Forgiveness Application. With worksheets and instructions, the SBA has given employers a better understanding of how the forgiveness application process will go.

So, what did we learn?  Here are the big takeaways.

  • Payroll and non-payroll costs may be incurred or paid during the covered period or alternative payroll covered period. Under the CARES Act and prior FAQs, it required that to be forgiven, expenses had to be incurred and paid during the period.  So, payroll costs and non-payroll costs may be paid outside of their applicable periods as long as they are paid on or before the first applicable due date immediately following the end of the applicable period for such costs.
  • The process to request forgiveness is spelled out. A borrower will submit its PPP Loan Forgiveness Application to its SBA lender (probably an online process), along with various supporting documentation (i.e. PPP Schedule A, Calculation form, documentation verifying cash compensation and non-cash compensation benefit payments for each employee, documentation of full-time equivalent employees during the covered period and proof of non-payroll cost arrangements in place prior to February 15, 2020, and amounts paid).
  • Demographic information is requested (but voluntary).
  • Documentation from the PPP Loan process must be retained for 6 years after the date the loan is forgiven or repaid in full.
  • The Alternative Payroll Covered Period only applies to payroll costs (not non-payroll costs).
  • It is likely advantageous to wait until after June 30, 2020, to submit a PPP Application for Forgiveness since the salary/hourly wage reduction safe harbor and FTE reduction safe harbor are calculated as of June 20, 2020.
  • Your loan forgiveness amount can be calculated using the Worksheet attached to the Loan Forgiveness Application, and the Worksheet can be used to determine if the salary/wage safe harbor of the FTE reduction safe harbor are met.

Will forgiveness be reduced if employees refuse to return to work?

  • No, but an employer needs to make a good faith written offer to rehire during the covered period and the employee needs to reject the offer. Also, employees that voluntarily resign, request reduced hours, or are fired for cause, are entered as FTE reduction exceptions and they will not reduce your loan forgiveness.

Stay tuned for more information published by the SBA on this important topic.

Accommodation, Contagious disease, Coronavirus, EEOC, Employee Policies, General HR Questions, Human Resources, OSHA, Safety

New Updated CDC Guidelines for Reopening Workplaces

Late last week, the Centers for Disease Control (CDC) released updated information and a new tool to assist employers in making (re)opening decisions during the COVID-19 pandemic, especially to protect vulnerable workers.  First, a Workplace Decision Tree advises employers to first review state and local orders and directions to determine the most appropriate actions that meet any unique needs and circumstances of the local community. Florida employers have guidance from the Governor’s Safe, Smart, Step by Step Plan for Florida, and your county/city may have other guidelines.

The CDC’s Decision Tree recommends to:

  • Put certain Health and Safety actions in place to include: hygiene practices, handwashing, wearing face coverings, cleaning/disinfecting, social distancing, modifying business travel and training; and
  • Implement ongoing monitoring, including procedures to check for signs and symptoms of employees coming to work, encourage sick employees to stay home, a procedure for sick employees, monitor updates from local employers, and monitor employee absences.

There are additional decision tree tools on Cleaning and Disinfecting for workplaces and businesses – and the steps to keep common surfaces clean and disinfected.

Second, there were also updates to the Interim Guidance for Businesses and Employers Responding to Coronavirus Disease 2019 (COVID-19), May 2020.  As an employer, if your business operations were interrupted, resuming normal or phased activities presents an opportunity to update your COVID-19 preparedness, response, and control plans. All employers should implement and update as necessary a plan that:

  • Is specific to your workplace,
  • identifies all areas and job tasks with potential exposures to COVID-19, and
  • includes control measures to eliminate or reduce such exposures.

Some of the highlights of the recommended actions to include in your plan are:

  • Sick employees should follow the CDC-recommended steps. Employees should not return to work until the criteria to discontinue home isolation are met, in consultation with healthcare providers.
  • Consider conducting daily in-person or virtual health checks (e.g., symptom and/or temperature screening) of employees before they enter the offices.  Employers may use social distancing, barrier or partition controls, or personal protective equipment (PPE) to protect the screener.
  • Conduct a thorough hazard assessment to determine if workplace hazards are present, or are likely to be present, and determine what type of controls or PPE are needed for specific job duties.
  • Remind employees and customers that the CDC recommends wearing cloth face coverings in public settings where other social distancing measures are difficult to maintain.
  • Maintain policies and practices for social distancing.
  • Give customers, guests and visitors what they need to clean their hands and post signage to cover mouths during sneezes and coughs.
  • Follow the Guidance for Cleaning and Disinfecting to develop, implement, and maintain a plan to perform regular cleanings to reduce the risk of exposure to COVID-19.
  • Minimize non-essential business travel  and follow recommended guidelines for essential travel

Read the entire guidance by clicking here.  Here are the top 10 tips for preparing your small business and its employees for the effects of COVID-19.

Consultstu is developing a template COVID-19 Preparedness, response, and control plan for small businesses.

Commercial Motor Vehicle Driver, DOT, E-Verify, Executive Order, Hiring, HR Compliance, I9 Form, Immigration, Record Keeping, USCIS

Can We Accept Expired List B documents for Form I-9 during COVID-19?

On May 1, 2020, the U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services announced a temporary policy due to the COVID-19 pandemic. Many areas are under stay-at-home orders and some online renewal services have restrictions and employees may experience challenges renewing a state driver’s license, a state ID card, or other Form I-9, List B document. Until further notice, employers may accept expired List B identity documents to complete Form I-9, Employment Eligibility Verification. Read the Temporary Policy.

Any Identity documents found in List B set to expire on or after March 1, 2020, and not otherwise extended by the issuing authority, may be treated the same as if the employee presented a valid receipt for an acceptable document for Form I-9 purposes.

How are expired List B documents noted on the I9 Form?

When your employee provides an acceptable expired List B document that has not been extended by the issuing authority you should:

  • Record the document information in Section 2 under List B, as applicable; and,
  • Enter the word “COVID-19” in the Additional Information Field; and
  • Within 90 days after the termination of this temporary policy, the employee will be required to present a valid unexpired document to replace the expired document presented when they were initially hired.
  • When the employee later presents an unexpired document, you should record the document number and other required information in Section 2 of the Additional Information field, the initial and date the change.

How to handle the I9 Form if the Issuing Authority extends the acceptance of expired documents?

  • Enter the document’s actual expiration date in Section 2;
  • Enter “COVID-19 EXT” in the Additional Information Field; and
  • (optional) Attach a copy of a webpage or other notice indicating that the issuing authority has extended the documents.  In Florida, the Department of Highway Safety and Motor Vehicles (FLHSMV) issued an emergency order to extend the expiration of drivers’ licenses for various time periods.  Click here to review.

How do we handle E-Verify checks for accepted expired List B documents?

E-Verify participating employers should use the employee’s expired List B document number from Section 2 of the Form I-9 to create an E-Verify case as usual within three days of the date of hire.

 

Commercial Motor Vehicle Driver, Contagious disease, Coronavirus, Employee benefits, Florida rules, Human Resources, Unemployment

Florida Unemployed must Re-certify Every 2 weeks

Governor DeSantis announced over the weekend that unemployed Floridians are required to login to the DEO CONNECT Reemployment portal every two weeks to recertify that they are eligible for benefits. This has caused some confusion from furloughed and laid off employees, because the requirement to search for work was extended to May 30, but this is a separate requirement.

On the DEO Reemployment Claimant’s portal, there is an FAQ on this topic. On page 9 of the Reemployment Assistance Resource Guide – COVID-19, it states: “In order to better serve you, Governor DeSantis suspended the bi-weekly reporting requirement until May 9, 2020. However, to comply with federal law, weeks beginning May 10, 2020, claimants will be required to return to the CONNECT system every two weeks to request their benefits or “claim their weeks.” In doing so, the claimants will confirm that they are still unemployed and acknowledge that they are able and available for work should it be offered.”

If you need help claiming reemployment benefits, Florida residents should download the Guide for Claiming your Reemployment Assistance Weeks on the DEO website, and follow the step by step instructions.

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