Labor & Employment Law Update

On August 28, the IRS issued Notice 2020-65 providing brief guidance on the payroll tax deferral announced in a Presidential Memorandum issued on August 8th. The Memorandum directed the Treasury Department to issue guidance for a deferral of the withholding and payment of the employee portion of Social Security taxes to be “made available” to employers.  The IRS Notice, with very limited details, establishes the ability of an employer to defer the payroll tax, but leaves many questions unanswered.

Is it Required or Voluntary?

Under the Presidential Memorandum and IRS Notice ...

On August 19, 2020, U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) announced that due to delays in production of certain Employment Authorization Documents (EAD’s – Form I-766) that employees may use Form I-797, Notice of Action as valid List C #7 document for Form I-9 purposes. To be valid, the Notice of Action must have a notice date on or after December 1, 2019 through and including August 20, 2020. If an employee presents a Form I-797, Notice of Action as a List C document, then the employees MUST also present a List B document. The Form I-797, Notice of Action is NOT evidence of ...

In August 2019, SB0075  – the Workplace Transparency Act – was signed in Illinois.  The Act created a number of new requirements for employers including, but not limited to, a new reporting requirement regarding adverse judgments and administrative rulings related to sexual harassment or unlawful discrimination brought under the Illinois Human Rights Act (IHRA), Title VII of the Civil Rights Act of 1964, or any other federal, state, or local law prohibiting sexual harassment or unlawful discrimination.

This new reporting obligation begins on July 1, 2020 for the period ...

On Monday August 10, 2020, Judge Ethan Schulman of the California Superior Court issued an injunction against Uber and Lyft ordering them to classify drivers as employees and not as independent contractors. The order follows a preliminary injunction lawsuit filed this spring by the State of California, along with a number of large cities in the state, where it was alleged that Uber and Lyft were in violation of California’s Assembly Bill 5 (“AB5”). A new state law that went into effect on January 1, 2020, AB5 codified what is known as the “ABC” test, which is commonly used ...

As our readers know, the Families First Coronavirus Relief Act (FFCRA) requires employers with less than 500 employees to provide paid leave to employees who are unable to work (or telework) for a variety of COVID-related reasons (including caring for children not in school due to COVID) though December 31, 2020. On April 6, the U.S. Department of Labor (DOL) issued a final rule implementing the FFCRA. Shortly thereafter, the State of New York filed suit claiming the regulations unduly restrict employees’ right to paid leave. This week a federal judge in the Southern District of New ...