We have been keeping you informed of recent actions by the US Department of Labor to advise employers of their obligations under the recently enacted Families First Coronavirus Response Act (“FFCRA”). This has included the DOL’s creation of a “Questions and Answers” webpage for both employers and employees. (Click here, here and here.) On April 1, 2020, the DOL announced the issuance of its Temporary Rules regarding implementation of the FFCRA and what employers who are subject to it must do to ensure compliance. (Click here for DOL Press Release.)

The 124-page Temporary Rule (available here is essentially the implementing regulations that were addressed in general terms by the DOL on its Q&A webpage concerning the FFCRA. The DOL also detailed its reasoning in adopting the limited “small business” exception to FFCRA compliance. It explained that it was trying to balance the competing interests in making sure that FFCRA leave was as widely-available as possible for small business employees while trying to prevent such leave from having little to no value if the company went under so that its employees had no leave entitlement and/or no jobs to which to return.

Importantly for employers, the DOL’s Wage & Hour Division will be posting a pre-recorded webinar on Friday, April 3, 2020, to provide further details concerning the FFCRA, including informing employers how to comply their FFCRA obligations for those subject to it. The webinar should be accessible at the following page on Friday:  www.dol.gov/agencies/whd/pandemic

California employers should continue to monitor our blog for future updates concerning the FFCRA and other employment developments as a result of the COVID-19 pandemic. We also remind employers that they should seek legal advice to determine whether the FFCRA applies to their business, and if so, what steps to take to ensure compliance.