By Alicia J. Samolis and Michael A. Gamboli As most employers know, the Families First Coronavirus Response Act (FFCRA) went into effect in April of 2020 and required employers with less than 500 employees to provide certain forms of paid COVID-related leave to eligible employees. Specifically, the FFCRA provided for 80 hours of emergency paid...
Client AlertsEmployment & LaborThe End of Mandatory COVID-19 Related Leave (For Now)
January 20, 2021
By Alicia J. Samolis and Michael A. Gamboli In a further attempt to alleviate the adverse economic impact caused by the COVID-19 pandemic, on December 21, 2020, Congress passed a $900 billion stimulus bill, which the President signed into law on December 27, 2020. While the stimulus bill declines to extend the Families First Coronavirus...
On December 21, 2020, Congress passed an approximately $900 billion coronavirus relief bill, which, if signed into law, would extend certain unemployment insurance (UI) provisions found in the CARES Act that was passed in March. A portion of the new bill labeled the “Continued Assistance for Unemployed Workers Act of 2020” would extend the following...
Client AlertsEmployment & LaborCoronavirus Relief Bill Renews and Brings Changes to PPP and EIDL Programs
December 22, 2020
On December 21, 2020, Congress passed an approximately $900 billion coronavirus relief bill, the largest since the CARES Act was enacted in March. If signed into law, a portion of the bill labeled the “Economic Aid to Hard-Hit Small Businesses, Nonprofits, and Venues Act,” would provide for a second round of PPP and EIDL loans,...
Client AlertsEmployment & LaborCongress Reaches a Deal on a $900 Billion Pandemic Relief Bill
December 21, 2020
United States Senate and House leaders have reached an agreement on an approximately $900 billion relief bill in response to the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic. If passed, this would be the largest relief package since Congress passed the CARES Act in March of this year. The full text of the relief bill has not yet been...
Employment & LaborPress ReleasesRhode Island Bar Association COVID-19 Employment Law CLE
December 10, 2020
PS&H Employment & Labor attorneys Alicia Samolis and Joshua Xavier will lead a live continuing legal education webinar hosted by the Rhode Island Bar Association on COVID-19 in the workplace. The webinar will take place from 11am to 1pm on Thursday, December 10, 2020. The program will provide an overview of the latest legal issues attorneys...
Client AlertsEmployment & LaborCDC Expands the Definition of “Close Contact” for Purposes of Quarantine and Contact Tracing
October 22, 2020
The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (“CDC”) recommends quarantine for those who have been in “close contact” to a person who tested positive for COVID-19. Local health departments (and employers) typically rely on the CDC guidance in performing contact tracing and notifying exposed individuals. Yesterday, the CDC broadened the definition of “close contact” from...
By Alicia J. Samolis Employers are beginning to contemplate if they should require employees to take the COVID vaccine, once it’s developed. PS&H partner, Alicia Samolis, was asked recently to give her thoughts on this arising dilemma that employers face. Her insights are featured in a recent Rhode Island Lawyers Weekly article titled, Anticipating COVID Vaccine,...
Client AlertsCorporate & BusinessEmployment & LaborSBA Issues Guidance on Treatment of PPP Loans in Mergers and Acquisitions
October 7, 2020
On October 2, 2020, the SBA issued guidance under a procedural notice (the “Notice”) providing information concerning the required procedures for changes of ownership of an entity that has received a Payroll Protection Program (“PPP”) loan (such entity, a “PPP Borrower”). Under the guidance, if a change of ownership occurs in a PPP Borrower, prior...
Client AlertsEmployment & LaborRhode Island Minimum Wage Increases to $11.50 Per Hour
September 30, 2020
By Alicia J. Samolis Beginning October 1, 2020, the minimum wage that employers must pay Rhode Island employees increases to $11.50 per hour. All employers must pay this minimum wage regardless of the employers’ size and revenue. Employers should update their workforce posters accordingly. It is important for employers to note that failing to pay...
