Employment Law Chronicle for Virginia & the District of Columbia

More than a year after the D.C. Council passed a paid sick leave law for employees in the District of Columbia, the Mayor's office is expected to issue regulations soon. Regulations are needed to clarify ambiguities so that employees know their rights and employers know their obligations, which exist already. A recent Washington Post article illustrates the need for regulations concerning D.C.'s sick leave law, now. Yesterday, in a Letter to the Editor, a writer highlighted the urgent need for regulations. I concur.

For more information about the District of Columbia's paid sick leave law, see my prior posts here and here.

Click here for the Department of Labor's Model COBRA notices for compliance with the provisions of the American Recovery and Reinvesment Act (the stimulus bill).

In November 2008, I summarized ASSLA, which is the District of Columbia’s new paid sick leave law. Since then, I have received several inquiries about workplace posting requirements. For the revised employer poster, please see the District of Columbia’s Minimum Wage Poster, which has been modified to include the ASSLA. The full text of the ASSLA is in Title 32 (Labor) of the D.C. Code.

In addition to provisions expanding unemployment compensation benefits and limiting executive pay, another key employment-law provision of the stimulus bill signed by President Obama this week provides a 65% COBRA premium subsidy for certain laid-off workers for up to 9 months.

The Department of Labor has a useful summary of the COBRA subsidy with links to the provisions of the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act (the stimulus bill). This provision needs to be read and understood by employers and employees alike.

In another sign of the economic times, today's Washington Post has an article about the increase in the number of employers challenging employees' requests for unemployment compensation.

Effective November 13, 2008, the District of Columbia's new sick leave law requires employers to provide employees with up to seven days (varies based on employer size) of paid sick leave for absences due to the employee or family member's medical condition, domestic violence or sexual abuse. While the Federal Government has paid sick-leave policies for federal employees, for now, no other jurisdiction in the Washington Metro area (Maryland or Virginia) requires employers to provide paid sick leave.

The Mayor is expected to issue rules implementing the new sick leave law within 60 days of the effective date. It is my hope that the regulations will clarify the following two issues that are, at best, ambiguous in the law: (a) whether the ASSLA applies only to employees who satisfy the DCFMLA's time and hour restrictions; and (b) the employer's control over an employee's use of carryover sick leave.

Please see the following Questions & Answers for highlights of the new law:

Continue reading "D.C. Employment Law: District of Columbia Accrued Sick and Safe Leave Act ("ASSLA") Takes Effect Providing Employees With Paid Sick Leave" »

As a courtesy to employers and employment lawyers, The Employment Law Chronicle provides links to the text of key Federal, Virginia, and District of Columbia labor and employment laws published on government sites.

The FMLA permits eligible employees of covered employers to take up to 12 weeks of job-protected, unpaid leave during any 12-month period. The National Defense Authorization Act (NDAA) for FY 2008 amends the FMLA to provide for additional categories of job-protected leave relating to members of the military.

Continue reading "Family Medical Leave Act of 1993 (FMLA): 29 U.S.C. §§ 2601 et. seq. " »

As a courtesy to employers and employment lawyers, The Employment Law Chronicle provides links to the text of key Federal, Virginia, and District of Columbia labor and employment laws published on government sites.

The Displaced Workers Protection Act of 1994, as amended by the Way to Work Amendment Act of 2006, requires certain new contractors who employ 25 or more people to retain eligible displaced food service, janitorial, building maintenance, non-professional health care, and security workers who performed similar services under a prior contract.

The full text of the DWPA, as amended, is found in Title 32 (Labor) of the D.C. Code.