COVID UPDATES From the Desk of Julie Muller, Executive Vice President of SMACNA-WW

Labor Department Clarifies When Closures of Summer Camps and Programs Trigger Expanded Leave Rights Due to COVID-19 The Department of Labor (DOL) has issued a new  Field Assistance Bulletin   addressing how the closure of summer camps and programs affects an employee’s entitlement to Expanded Paid Sick Leave (EPSL) or Expanded FMLA (EFMLA) under the Families First Coronavirus Response Act (FFCRA). With so many summer camps and programs having announced their closure due to COVID-19 before children began attending, or even enrolling, questions arose as to whether those programs were considered places of care whose closure triggered the right to leave under the FFCRA. Read more .

With COVID-19 cases rising, Washington puts a pause on Phase 4 of reopening Gov. Jay Inslee announced Saturday that the Washington Department of Health would be putting a pause on all applications from counties looking to move into Phase 4 of reopening. Counties in Phase 4 would effectively operate without any restrictions related to COVID-19. With new cases rising across the state, such a scenario has now been deemed “impossible at this time.” Read more .

Inslee releases plan to restart higher education in the fall Gov. Jay Inslee was joined today by presidents of Washington colleges and universities to unveil the  guidance for reopening  in-person instruction at higher education institutions in the fall. Today’s announcement comes with a  proclamation  providing specific health guidance for four-year public and private institutions, as well as two-year community and technical colleges, apprenticeships and private career schools. Read more .

16th Weekly Crisis-era Message to Contractors from: Dr Tom Schleifer Preparing for the Next Construction Market Cycle It is almost impossible to run a business when the world economies are crashing around us for reasons so unique that there is no precedence. Our country and our industry have gone through 16 weeks of extraordinary uncertainty about the economy and about what might happen next. The suddenness of the crisis, stay-at-home orders, project interruptions, postponements, and cancellations seemingly at random created such confusion that how or when to react was inexplicable. With new and sometimes conflicting information daily from Washington and the media, the only choice for many seemed to be to wait and see what develops. Read more .

How the pandemic will shape the new future | TED2020

Bill Gates talks best (and worst) case scenarios for the coronavirus pandemic in the months ahead, explaining the challenges of reducing virus transmission, providing an update on promising vaccine candidates, offering his thoughts on reopening and even taking a moment to address conspiracy theories circulating about himself. Stay tuned for his critical call to fellow philanthropists to ramp up their action, ambition and awareness to create a better world for all. (This virtual conversation, hosted by head of TED Chris Anderson, was recorded June 29, 2020.) Watch here .

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Julie Muller, Esq. Executive Vice President SMACNA - Western Washington jmuller@smacnaww.org | 425-289-5010

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