Two days ago the Emergency Family and Medical Leave Expansion Act (the E-FMLA) was passed to provide relief to families affected by the coronavirus.  We’ve been flooded with dozens of calls each day from worried parents and employees. Here’s what you need to know.

But please call us, free, at 800-663-7999 if you have questions. In the short time since this law was passed, it is clear that most employers are in the dark about your rights and their obligations. We can fix that for you, by providing you specific guidance on how to inform your employer and how to request this leave.

The law takes effect April 2, 2020.  Be ready to enforce your rights.  We’re here for you.

1. You’re elgible for E-FMLA relief if you work for the government or if your private-sector employer has fewer than 500 employees.  And you’re covered if you’ve been employed for at least 30 calendar days with your current employer.  Those are sharp differences from the regular FMLA, which applies to any employer with 50 or more employees and which requires you to have been on the job for at least a year.
2. The E-FMLA Provides for the right to take up to 12 weeks of protected leave, if you are unable to work or telework because you need time off to care for your child under the age of 18, if your child’s school or caregiver is closed, or if the caregiver is unavailable due to a coronavirus emergency.
3. The first 10 days of E-FMLA leave is unpaid, although you can use accrued paid leave during this period.  After that first 10-day period, your employer must pay you at two thirds your regular rate of pay for the hours that you would have otherwise been scheduled to work. There’s a formula your employer will use to calculate this.  This is a sharp difference from regular FMLA leave, which is always unpaid. Here, you are capped at $200 per day in earnings while using E-FMLA leave, and the maximum you can be paid is $10,000.00.
4. As part of this relief, Congress also passed the Emergency Paid Sick Leave Act, which requires employers in the same category to provide you with up to 80 hours of paid sick time, if you are unable to work or telework (a) because of a government quarantine, (b) because of a physician-prescribed self-quarantine, or (c) if you are seeking a medical diagnosis because you show signs of the coronavirus.
5. The Emergency Paid Sick Leave Act contains many other forms of relief for both full and part-time employees who are infected, who are caring for someone who is infected, or who are caring for children that are unable to attend school or a regular care program.

Questions? Please call us at 800-663-7999 for a free consultation. It might just take us minutes to explain your rights and to answer your questions, but the federal government has just provided you valuable rights and it’s important that you be able to take full advantage of them.

Categories: Accommodations, Coronavirus COVID 19, Family & Medical Leave Act Of 1993, FMLA Leave