New Issues for Business Owners in the Age of Covid-19

Some unique work-related issues are developing in the age of Covid-19--or, if not unique, are certainly taking up more focused attention. Here are just three:
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(1) Now that many employees are working remotely, are they all-of-a-sudden entitled to overtime pay because they are working at 10:00 P.M. from home?

Paying certain employees overtime probably was never on your mind before the business shutdown, but now that many workers may still be working from home, it may be time to reassess whether or not they are entitled to overtime pay even if they were not receiving overtime before. The Department of Labor does not take kindly to misclassifying employees, so, pull out those job descriptions and see if your exempt workers can still be considered exempt, or whether they should be reclassified as hourly employees. Then, your options are: (a) you can change their job descriptions to retain their exempt status, or (b) you can tighten-up their remote working rules so that they cannot claim to be working overtime.

(2) If an employee has used up all of her paid sick leave, vacation time, and other paid leave time, is she still entitled to more leave time this year as a result of having to quarantine because of Covid-related symptoms?

Best to make sure you are familiar with the Families First Coronavirus Response Act (FFCRA) provisions before saying, "no." Under the FFCRA, specifically the provisions for Emergency Paid Sick Leave, most employers are required to provide paid sick leave up to 80 hours to any full time employee (regardless of days of employment) for reasons associated with COVID-19. This is in addition to any other leave time that the employee is or was entitled to. 

(3) If employees become involved in altercations at work over politics or wearing a mask, can they be fired?

Tensions are high in the workplace, as everywhere, as a result of the pandemic, the elections, the state of the City, you name it. And many employees are very vocal about their anxieties and their opinions, which often creates clashes. Employers should know that political speech is not a First Amendment right in the workplace. They have the right to limit such discussions and to limit what employee's wear, be it "Make America Great Again" hats or "Black Lives Matter" pins. The trick is to do it consistently and even-handedly. It may be a good time to check your employee handbook to address employee conduct in the workplace in this new Age.

The Bottom Line: Business owners, as always, need to be vigilant about new laws, but also about what new situations create possible new issues.