While the ReedGroup Compliance team has been hard at work preparing for our upcoming presentation at the Disability Management Employer Coalition (DMEC) annual conference early next month, we’ve also collected a handful of interesting reads to keep you entertained this summer. Grab a beach towel and umbrella, head to the beach or pool, and dive into the updates below!  EEOC Updates COVID-19 Technical Guidance (Again)  On July 12, 2022, the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC) updated several Q&As in their COVID-19-related technical guidance, including adding parameters ..read more

Paid family and medical leave (PFML) legislation has certainly been trending this year; however, there seems to be another sort of trend: legislation creating a paid family and medical leave insurance (PFMLI) program. What’s the difference? Honestly, for most states, the difference is only in name – for example, Oregon’s upcoming program is called a “PFMLI” program despite being similar in structure to a statutory paid leave. However, for New Hampshire, Virginia, and Vermont, they are taking the word “insurance” literally. Specifically, both New Hampshire and Vermont have enacted a PFMLI progr ..read more

Gather around the virtual water cooler with us to see what your colleagues are talking about. ReedGroup’s most popular blog posts in 2022 so far are:  Paid Family & Medical Leave Update A summary of PFML in California, Connecticut, the District of Columbia, Massachusetts, New Jersey, New York, Rhode Island, and Washington, plus programs coming up in New Hampshire and Oregon (beginning 2023) and Colorado (beginning 2024).  FMLA Mental Health Guidance Those coping with mental illness often face barriers to care. When employers ensure staff members know about assistance, including ..read more

Starting July 1, 2022, Connecticut employers are required by the Connecticut Department of Labor to provide their employees with written notice that will describe the job-protected leaves and benefits available to them under the Connecticut Family and Medical Leave Act (CT FMLA) and the Connecticut Paid Leave Program. This notice is required at the time of hiring and annually thereafter. In an effort to provide guidance to employers, the Connecticut Paid Leave Authority drafted and published a prototype of the Employer Notice. A PDF copy of the prototype notice can be downloaded from Connectic ..read more

As the National Mental Health Awareness Month drew to a close, the U.S. Department of Labor’s (DOL) Wage and Hour Division (WHD) published new guidance regarding mental health conditions and the Family and Medical Leave Act (FMLA), including Fact Sheet # 28O: Mental Health Conditions and the FMLA and Frequently Asked Questions on the FMLA’s mental health provisions. The guidance is intended to assist employees with serious mental health conditions get the support they need, and to provide employers with the right tools to support their employees. It’s important that employers ensure their work ..read more

What are the most relatable phobias, in your opinion? Perhaps it is Arachnophobia, the fear of spiders; Acrophobia, the fear of heights; Mysophobia, the fear of germs; or maybe Trypanophobia, the fear of injections. Social anxiety disorder is one type of phobia. For one employee of Gravity Diagnostics, in Kentucky, his lunch hour went awry when his employer put him into a situation that triggered a phobic reaction. The Facts The most important fact is that phobias and social anxiety disorder are real, and by the time a person is officially diagnosed as having a disabling condition, the symptom ..read more

The Gist Paid family and medical leave is on the table in yet another state: Maryland. Although MD Governor Larry Hogan vetoed the bill, and despite the Governor’s arguments against the legislation, which establishes state paid family and medical leave program, the Time to Care Act passed with overriding votes in both the Senate and the House. In his veto letter to President Ferguson of the Maryland Senate, Governor Hogan stated “While we share the goal of providing a healthy working environment and sufficient leave time for working Marylanders to care for themselves, their families, and bond ..read more

“Long COVID” is a symptom or set of symptoms that persist for more than four weeks after a COVID-19 diagnosis, according to the CDC. Ranging from fatigue to cognitive impairment, these effects can limit some people’s ability to work in the same way they could before they got the virus. Employers should understand the ADA implications related to absence management.  The EEOC has stated that under the ADA (Americans with Disabilities Act), employers may need to accommodate qualifying employees with long COVID. So, when does the ADA cover long COVID? K ..read more

Since January, all but a handful of state legislatures have reconvened for the 2022 legislative session. With the start of these new sessions, the legislative flood gates have been opened, including a deluge of bills that would create new paid family and medical leave state programs, insurance benefits, or employer-sponsored paid leave. Although many of these bills likely won’t make it across the finish line to enactment, it is important to note the trend throughout the states, particularly as the federal paid family leave program seems to have stalled out, for now. States That Already Have PF ..read more

  Jurisdiction Agency Guidance Federal EEOC Guidance What You Should Know About the ADA, the Rehabilitation Act and the Coronavirus Federal EEOC Guidance Pandemic Preparedness in the Workplace and the Americans with Disabilities Act Federal DOL Guidance COVID-19 or Other Public Health Emergencies and the Family and Medical Leave Act Questions and Answers California Labor Commissioner’s Office Coronavirus Disease (COVID-19) – FAQs on laws enforced by the California Labor Commissioner’s Office California EDD Coronavirus 2019 (COVID-19) California EDD Coronavirus 2019 FA ..read more