With the start of the New Year, employers are no longer required to provide FFCRA paid sick leave for COVID-19 related illness or school closures. Congress declined to extend the FFCRA paid sick leave and emergency family and medical leave mandates into 2021. This means covered employers, those with 500 or fewer employees or public employers, will not be required to provide paid sick leave for COVID-19 related illnesses or leave to care for a child due to school or daycare closures in 2021.
However, employers may voluntarily offer such paid leave and receive tax credits until March 31, 2021. Covered private employers can continue to receive a tax credit for the leave provided to employees. These benefits do not apply to public employers as they are not eligible for tax credits.
Although the FFCRA leave was not extended into 2021, employers should consider voluntarily extending their paid leave policies because the virus is still active in many communities across the country and providing leave will help mitigate the spread of the virus within a company’s workforce. Employees are still vulnerable to COVID-19 and may need to take a leave of absence to deal with the virus.
To learn more about the expiration of the FFCRA and how employers can properly mandate the COVID-19 vaccine, join partner Daniel N. Ramirez while he discusses the FFCRA and mandating vaccines in the workplace during a Virtual Round Table Discussion hosted by Blakeman & Associates scheduled on Thursday, January 7th, at 12:00 p.m.
