The U.S. Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals recently ruled that the federal Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) doesn’t require an employee to have long-term medical issues in order to establish a disability. The employee in this case was a newly hired HR generalist who was approved for an eight-week leave of…
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Question: Last year during the I-9 process, a new hire showed me a Form I-766 (Employment Authorization Document) as proof of eligibility to work. The card is expiring soon and I’ve asked for updated documentation to reverify their authorization to work, but they say they don’t have any new documents. Will I have to…
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The Oregon Bureau of Labor and Industries (BOLI) has made a permanent rule that expands the reasons for Oregon paid sick leave to include time off related to emergency evacuation orders as well as unhealthy air quality or high outdoor temperatures. The permanent rule is identical to the temporary rule…
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The Washington legislature passed a handful of changes to the Paid Family and Medical Leave (PFML) program, which were signed into law by Governor Jay Inslee on March 30, 2022 (SSSB 5649). These key changes are effective June 9, 2022: Family leave may now be used for bereavement for seven calendar…
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Question: We have an employee with terrible attendance who’s now asking for 4 weeks off to have surgery in Korea, although we suspect she just wants to take time off to see family. Can we apply our attendance policy if she takes the trip and doesn’t come to work? Answer: These kinds of…
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The California Labor Commissioner has published updated FAQs about the COVID-19 2022 Supplemental Paid Sick Leave (SPSL) law, which applies to employers with 26 or more employees. As we previously reported, the 2022 SPSL law (SB 114) took effect on February 19, 2022, requiring covered employers to provide SPSL to…
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Question: One our employees called in sick, saying he had COVID-19 (coronavirus) symptoms. We approved the sick day. His coworker showed us a video of the “sick” employee on a road trip. He lied to us! Can we fire him? Answer: Be careful when questions arise about the legitimacy of an employee’s request for time…
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Question: An employee working remotely from her home in Seattle is demanding a raise because the Seattle minimum wage increased this year. Our company doesn’t have any locations or other employees in the city, so Seattle’s laws don’t apply to us, right? Answer: If you have even one employee who works within the Seattle city…
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Question: Early in the pandemic, we didn’t discipline for absences related to COVID-19 (coronavirus). With all that’s changed since then, can we return to our regular attendance policy? Answer: Not so fast. In any state, if an employee quarantines or isolates due to a workplace exposure, the employee may have protection under state…
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If you employ 26 or more employees, we recommend that you notify any California employees how you will handle retroactive requests for 2022 COVID-19 Supplemental Paid Sick Leave (SPSL). As we reported in a recent Alert, the 2022 COVID-19 SPSL law (SB 114) takes effect on February 19, 2022, but…
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