Podcasts about family medical leave act

In this episode of the AJR Podcast Series on Wellness, Sherry Wang, MBBS, and Elizabeth Dibble, MD, discuss the Family Medical Leave Act and its integral role for wellness of the individual and of the health system.

As a leading cause of disability, arthritis has major impacts on employees. In this episode, we discuss the rights of workers with disabilities, and how they can get the help they need to succeed at work. *Visit the Live Yes! With Arthritis Podcast episode page to get show notes, additional resources and read the full transcript: https://arthr.org/LiveYes_Ep109 (https://arthr.org/LiveYes_Ep109) * We want to hear from you. Tell us what you think about the Live Yes! With Arthritis Podcast. Get started by emailing podcast@arthritis.org (podcast@arthritis.org). Special Guest: Laura Bouslaugh.

Discover all of the podcasts in our network, search for specific episodes, get the Optimal Living Daily workbook, and learn more at: OLDPodcast.com. Episode 2174: Explore effective strategies for financial planning and saving as a new mom in Amy Beardsley's insightful guide. Discover practical tips on managing impulse purchases, meal prepping, and leveraging health savings accounts to make the most of your budget. This empowering advice ensures you prioritize your baby's essential needs while maintaining financial stability. Read along with the original article(s) here: https://smartmoneymamas.com/save-money-new-mom/ Quotes to ponder: "Making the choice to set aside some time and energy to make a financial plan will relieve so much stress going forward." "Marketers know new mamas want the best for their children. They're especially good at pressuring you into thinking you need things you don't." "Above all, focus on your values and what your child really needs - your love, care, and comfort." Episode references: Family Medical Leave Act information: https://www.dol.gov/agencies/whd/fmla Health Savings Accounts (HSAs): https://www.irs.gov/publications/p969 Flexible Spending Accounts (FSAs): https://www.healthcare.gov/have-job-based-coverage/flexible-spending-accounts/ Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

FMLA Link: https://www.dol.gov/general/topic/benefits-leave/fmla Thank you for listening!! Don't forget to SUBSCRIBE ✅and click

Julie Hamilton has over 20 years of Human Resource Management experience and has been a Certified Fibromyalgia Coach for over 7 years. She was diagnosed with fibromyalgia in 2009. As a Human Resources Director, she knew the resources to use such as Family Medical Leave Act and workplace accommodations to help her with the tasks she was struggling with. She didn't need to worry about her job when she needed to take time off for flare days or medical appointments. She went from missing two to four days per month to missing two days or less a year. Then after relocating to Ohio, her chronic illness made it impossible for her to work. That is when she studied to become a Certified Fibromyalgia Coach and learned to manage her fibromyalgia. She has gone from being in bed 90% of her life to walking three miles a day and even participated in her first 10k. She now helps professionals who have fibromyalgia maintain their career and regain their active social life. Her goal is to help companies create an inclusive environment for the chronically ill and assisting them in implementing policies to benefit both the employee and the company. She understands what it takes to make it work and can educate the company and the employee on how this collaboration can work. Connect with Julie: www.coachingpi.comhttps://www.facebook.com/coachingpihttp://linkedin.com/in/julie-hamilton-20582769 This episode is sponsored by: DirectSuggest: ⁠⁠⁠https://www.directsuggest.com/subscribe.php?id=6992⁠⁠⁠ Use Promo Code: HumanHR Connect with Traci here: ⁠⁠https://linktr.ee/HRTraci⁠⁠ Don't forget to rate this podcast 5 stars, leave a review, and subscribe!   Disclaimer: Thoughts, opinions, and statements made on this podcast are not a reflection of the thoughts, opinions, and statements of the Company Traci Chernoff is actively employed by. --- Send in a voice message: https://podcasters.spotify.com/pod/show/hrtraci/message Support this podcast: https://podcasters.spotify.com/pod/show/hrtraci/support

When the sharp edges of loss cut through the fabric of everyday life, how does one tread the delicate path of returning to work? Claire Schwartz, a grief and trauma healing strategist with Miriamswell Healing, joins us to share her profound insights on this very challenge. In our heartfelt conversation, we unravel the intricacies of grief in the workplace, scrutinizing the current bereavement policies that often fail to provide the necessary support for those in mourning. Claire's expertise, paired with her personal narrative of loss, casts a light on the silent struggles that many face while attempting to balance their professional responsibilities amidst profound personal sorrow.Grief doesn't clock out when we swipe our badges at the office door; it lingers, often impacting our performance in ways we and our employers might not anticipate. This episode peels back the layers of emotional and physical toll that grief exacts on individuals, questioning the rationality of standard bereavement practices. We probe the deeper implications of workplace culture, the emotional intelligence of leadership, and how businesses might risk their greatest assets—their people—by not affording them the time and space to heal. Claire and I tackle the often-neglected topics, such as the stigmatized loss of a miscarriage and the convoluted intricacies of the Family Medical Leave Act, prompting a much-needed dialogue on how companies can better value their employees during life's most trying times.Wrapping up with a beacon of hope, we explore the transformative power of healing from grief and trauma. As I share my own experiences in guiding clients through their darkest hours, we discuss the pivotal role of grief coaching in fostering trust and productivity within the workplace. The "Fearless Grieving to Fearless Living" program emerges as a testament to the resilience of the human spirit, underscoring the potential for growth even in the depths of despair. We invite you to join this community of support, as we collectively navigate the complex journey of grief, bearing witness to its transformative potential in both our personal and professional lives.Support the show

Having a new child can bring immense amounts of joy, but it can also bring stress, especially when it comes to being financially prepared. This week, Valerie Escobar, senior wealth advisor, is joined by Whitney Reagan, wealth advisor. They'll discuss aspects like the Family Medical Leave Act, short-term disability and preparing your team for your leave, to help prepare before welcoming a new child.

Description: FMLA is one of our top requested topics from our 30 minute Thrive podcast subscribers. We are glad to have this opportunity to talk about the complexities of FMLA eligibility, outlining who qualifies, and exploring the spectrum of covered events. This episode will help provide some clarity on navigating leave requirements!  Resources: FMLA Toolkit  FMLA Made Simple - Training  HR and Employment Law Essentials - Training  FMLA: Tips for Tackling 5 Everyday Challenges - Training  MRA Membership  About MRA  Let's Connect: Guest Bio - Rob Lapota  Guest LinkedIn Profile - Rob Lapota  Host Bio - Sophie Boler  Host LinkedIn Profile - Sophie Boler  Transcript: Transcripts are computer generated -- not 100% accurate word-for-word. 00:00:00:00 - 00:00:21:03 Unknown Hello everybody and welcome to 30 minute Thrive, your go to podcast for anything and everything HR, powered by MRA, the Management Association. Looking to stay on top of the ever changing world of HR? MRA has got you covered. We'll be the first to tell you what's hot and what's not. I'm your host, Sophie Boler and we are so glad you're here. 00:00:21:05 - 00:00:46:09 Unknown Now it's time to thrive. Well, hello everybody, and welcome to this episode of 30 Minute THRIVE. FMLA is one of our top requested topics from our podcast subscribers, so no pressure on today's guest, but we're really glad to have this opportunity to talk about all of the complexities of FMLA eligibility, outlining who qualifies and exploring the spectrum of covered events. 00:00:46:11 - 00:01:12:21 Unknown So our goal really for today's podcast is to help provide some clarity to you on federal FMLA. So I'm joined by Rob Lapota HR director, part of MRA Learning and Development Team. Rob, you have over 30 years of HR experience. You've answered more than 15,000 member calls on the HR hotline, and you're recognized as one of the top knowledge experts on our topic for today. 00:01:12:21 - 00:01:33:09 Unknown And that's a federal FMLA scrub. I'm really excited to have you here today as the subject matter expert and thanks for joining us. Thank you for asking me to be here today. And welcome to everybody for our interesting talk. Yes, I like I like to tell people in our training program with FMLA made simple, get your notebook out because you're gonna be taking a lot of notes. 00:01:33:11 - 00:01:56:03 Unknown Yeah, absolutely. Get them out. Well, Rob, let's kind of start out with the big overarching question here, and that is what is FMLA. I know we have a lot of HR Professionals obviously, who listen to the podcast, who know what FMLA is, but some of our other listeners who may not be in that HR professional may not know exactly what FMLA is. 00:01:56:03 - 00:02:28:15 Unknown So can you kind of just give us an overarching picture? So we start out the first acronym, FMLA. First, let's talk about that Family Medical Leave Act. So that took on a federal basis, that was a law. Those passed back in 1993. And it impacts employers that have 50 or more employees anywhere in the United States. Here's a kind of like a short definition of here's what the law is all about 12 weeks of unpaid leave with no penalty to the employee. 00:02:28:17 - 00:03:01:09 Unknown Now, that sounds like a very simple one sentence definition of what is FMLA, but they're in wise the complexity, the no penalty to the employee. That's a challenging aspect of the law. And what qualifies as a reason for taking FMLA. That's the other big challenging portion. And then the overriding complexity of this law by the employee when I'm going to be off of work, I don't ask for FMLA. 00:03:01:11 - 00:03:19:15 Unknown So, for example, if you are a supervisor, I don't call in and say, Hey, Sophia, it's Rob. Last night, my daughter, she was knocked unconscious in a soccer match, but she's actually been admitted to Children's Hospital in Milwaukee. That's where I am right now. I'll give you a call a little bit later today and I'll give you an update on what's going on. 00:03:19:17 - 00:03:48:12 Unknown That said, I the employee is not mandatory under the law for me, the employee to say, and by the way, Sophia, why don't you give me some of the FMLA stuff? The way the federal law is written, it is the employer's responsibility in all circumstances to designate leave as FMLA qualifying. So therefore, because of the complexity, that's what makes it our number one call on our hotline. 00:03:48:18 - 00:04:14:22 Unknown Yeah, I was shocked. Over 20% of our calls are just on FMLA. I was just going to mention that this is one of our top calls on the HR hotline and still remains to be. Yes. And we've had some topics on the podcast on FMLA, just because it is one of our most highly requested topics. And like you said, there's so many different complexities within that, even though that one sentence you gave us seems so simple, it's not as simple as you may think for experts. 00:04:14:24 - 00:04:42:16 Unknown What factors and determine an employee's eligibility for FMLA, FMLA leave? And how does an employer ensure compliance with these criteria? So there's several criteria. And the first is I need to be working at a covered employer for FMLA. And a covered employer is one that has 50 or more employees on their payroll anywhere in the United States. And it also includes temporary employees from a temp service. 00:04:42:18 - 00:05:02:13 Unknown So if I have 25 employees that are on my payroll and I use 25 from a temp service, I actually have 50 employees for federal employee purposes. I'm covered by the law. So for an eligible employee, first of all, I have to be working for a covered employer. Then I have several other criteria that need to be met. 00:05:02:15 - 00:05:24:20 Unknown Number one, I need to be working for at least 12 months for that employer. Number two, I work at least 1250 hours in the 12 months prior to my need for leave. And third, I have to be working at a facility that has 50 or more employees within a 75 mile radius. Now, again, just like that, a little definition I can give you FMLA. 00:05:24:22 - 00:05:46:18 Unknown Well, that seems pretty straightforward, doesn't it? But there's a lot of twists and turns within those definitions. So, for example, the 12 months service on a federal level, it need not be consecutive. So I could be working, for example, as a college intern. As for an organization, let's say, in marketing and work for four summers in a row of three months each summer. 00:05:46:20 - 00:06:12:17 Unknown And we're recording this in December. So let's say that I'm graduating in December. I'm going to start with the employer January of 2024. Well, you actually cannot my three months of service going back four years because it's a seven year lookback period. Okay. So here's the strange thing. Effective January 2nd, 2024, since my official start date, I'll actually have 12 months of service for that employer. 00:06:12:19 - 00:06:38:19 Unknown The same thing goes when people leave organizations. Let's just say I worked at an employer from 2015 to 2020 and then I get rehired on January 2nd, 2024, by that same employer. Well, again, there could be up to a seven year break in service. That's well within that. So I will actually have 12 months of service on my first day of employment reemployment, I should say, with that employer. 00:06:38:21 - 00:07:04:09 Unknown Second of all, the 1250 hours that is paid time only, that does not include things like holiday pay, PTO, sick pay, self-funded short term disability payments. Those are not included. And that's it's just actual work hours. And then the third criteria, this is and again, another strange one. I work in a facility that has 50 or more employees within a 35 mile radius. 00:07:04:11 - 00:07:33:03 Unknown Well, let's just take it for plain value. Let's say that we have an organization that has three facilities. They're all within 75 miles of each other. And one employs 30, another one employees 20 and a third facility. Employees 20 there, or that's 70 employees. So if I work at any of those facilities, I'm working in a facility that has 50 employees within a 75 mile radius. 00:07:33:05 - 00:07:57:02 Unknown Now, that's also extended to include remote employees and all that's since COVID. You know, a lot of remote work going on. And still today, the little twist with that, I'm included in the headcount where I get my work instructions from. So here we are. We're in Waukesha, Wisconsin, recording our program. And this is our call, our corporate offices for me. 00:07:57:04 - 00:08:28:20 Unknown So let's say that I live in Iowa and I work remotely, but I report to my manager, who is here in the Waukesha, Wisconsin, location for the 50 employees within a 75 mile radius. I'm actually counted in the Waukesha, Wisconsin, head count for FMLA eligibility. Now, some employers don't have that. They might have facilities for example, in one state that are not within 75 miles of each other. 00:08:28:22 - 00:08:53:11 Unknown And we don't have 50 employees within that 75 mile radius. However, they still have 50 total employees. So they're covered employers under the law for now. What do you do? I'm a covered employer, but I literally I don't have any eligible employees because we don't work at a facility that has 50 employees within a 35 mile radius. What do we do? 00:08:53:13 - 00:09:14:08 Unknown Well, if I was your head of HR What i would recommend is that we treat all of our locations as though we have 50 employees within a 75 mile radius. This could also become a little bit of an employer relations issue. Let's say that one of those facilities has 125 employees, and the other ones are outside of the 75 mile radius. 00:09:14:09 - 00:09:42:14 Unknown Let's just say they have, you know, 40 employees each. Well, during employment meetings, I've had this happen before. Our plant that has 125 people that's going to be eligible employees, got 50 employees within a 75 mile radius, the location being C, we're not going to call you covered employers, eligible employees. Excuse me, because you don't work at a facility that has 50 employees within a 75 mile radius. 00:09:42:16 - 00:10:05:19 Unknown So too bad, so sad you lose. Well, for an employer relations standpoint, we need to go have your employee meetings. The employees are company B and C are going to immediately throw their hands up in the air to go. Why does everybody at location, age, how come they get FMLA and we don't get FMLA? Well, you got to understand, you don't work at a facility that's 50 employees with a 75 mile radius. 00:10:05:21 - 00:10:29:16 Unknown That's an employee relations disaster. So that's why I suggest mandatory. But I suggest you treat those locations as though they do have 50 employees within a 75 mile radius. Absolutely. And I love that you're giving those scenarios because that that helps helps a little more to, I don't know, understand. I'm sure a lot of people have these certain situations, laws to absorb. 00:10:29:18 - 00:10:54:19 Unknown So are there any common misconceptions? And with FMLA eligibility that you often encounter kind of sees or working with members in, how can these kind of be clarified? Then the biggest misconceptions for the employee eligibility portion it covers around those the areas of tribute to a seven year break in service. So the example I gave that I'm a college student working in marketing Pimp. 00:10:54:24 - 00:11:14:16 Unknown I work for you through 2020 Rehire Me. A lot of employers are not aware I have 12 months service effective on day one. And the other big misconception about eligibility, All of our members of MRA, they will work on what's called a temp to perm basis, or they'll have employees from a temporary service work for like 90 days. 00:11:14:16 - 00:11:41:11 Unknown And if they work out, they'll put them on their payroll. Well, that's a situation called Joint Employment. So for those temporary employees that we put on our payroll, effective on day one, the hours that they worked and the months of service that they worked actually do count towards their eligibility of 12 months of service and 1250 hours worked through like a walking book of knowledge, you know, like that's what they're on. 00:11:41:11 - 00:12:00:05 Unknown Tell me. Yeah. I've even had some people tell me I know a little bit too much about FMLA, I think, but that's why you're the perfect guest here. You can answer your question. So I have an advantage. I've been in here at Emory 25 years. Yes. As an instructor. We're not attorneys here, but I love the law. I read a lot of court. 00:12:00:06 - 00:12:19:11 Unknown I mean, I've read thousands and thousands of court cases. Keep up with employment blogs, Talk about FMLA. Jeff Nowak is one of the top people in the United States at his blog FMLA Insights. And yeah, I just I actually find it very fascinating. Well, that's right. And you probably get a lot of calls, too, on FMLA, where you are. 00:12:19:11 - 00:12:42:12 Unknown You want to kind of give those scenarios. And here's what I would do in that situation kind of thing. Correct. So next question here. In what situations might employees find themselves ineligible then for federal FMLA leave? And do you have any alternatives or options that may be available to them that you can suggest? So go back to the eligibility requirements. 00:12:42:12 - 00:13:00:04 Unknown I worked for you for 12 months and I have at least 1250 hours worked in the 12 months prior. And we already kind of explained that 50 employees within the 35 mile radius once we don't need to hit that one. That would be a point of ineligibility that I don't can, you know, work there. So let's focus on those first two. 00:13:00:06 - 00:13:26:24 Unknown So for the hours of work, let's say that I get what's the score? January 2nd, 2024, since it's right around the corner here. Let's say that it's my first day of work. Let's see. Then in March 2024, I'm diagnosed with cancer. They catch it early. It's not very advanced, but I do need to miss work or radiation treatments and then, if necessary, to recover from those radiation treatments. 00:13:27:01 - 00:13:50:22 Unknown Well, I still have to send me as the new employee who's only been there for three months now, I still need to get an eligibility notice from the employer. There's three mandatory notices that need to go out, so I need to get that eligibility notice. It states you're not eligible for FMLA, federal FMLA. Why You haven't been here 12 months as of the date of your need for lead. 00:13:50:22 - 00:14:15:19 Unknown This is on the eligibility notice. You've worked X months towards 12 months of eligibility, so the employer would write three months in their hours of work. If I am working part time, I could be working for you for over a year. But again, if I don't have that 1250 actual work hours, that could be our second issue, where I will not be eligible as the employee. 00:14:15:21 - 00:14:39:14 Unknown Now in our training, I always told employers, if you can't give FMLA, if it doesn't qualify, it's an issue that's not covered by FMLA. We need to be much more flexible as employers today with time off and adjusting schedules and what other policies to you have as an employer so that employee can have time off. Maybe you have a policy. 00:14:39:15 - 00:15:06:01 Unknown It's called a force substitution policy. You must use any accrued, unused PTO, whatever you're going to be missing work. Maybe that's what'll be implemented. Maybe there's a personal leave of absence that can be used now if it's for the employee's own medical issues. For example, the cancer that I gave you that's actually now going to fall under the Americans with Disabilities Act. 00:15:06:03 - 00:15:42:13 Unknown Now we have an employee who's suffering with cancer, which is considered a disability, and they're not eligible for FMLA. So we would actually need to provide unpaid leave as an accommodation under the American Disabilities Act. So I'm going to get a eligibility notice. You're not eligible for FMLA, but then I'm also going to receive a cover letter I should from the employer saying, okay, although you're not eligible for FMLA, you are covered under the American Disabilities Act and we will be providing you with unpaid leave as an accommodation under that law. 00:15:42:18 - 00:16:09:24 Unknown So it's very, very important that the employer state specifically what laws are applying during what time of their lives. Interesting. Yeah, well, that's great to know. And I know you've covered this a little bit in her past. Questions, uncertainty, examples of medical leaves. But do you have any other examples that are covered instances or events under FMLA? And are there specific nuance says for each type of leave. 00:16:10:01 - 00:16:13:21 Unknown So how much time do we have? 00:16:13:23 - 00:16:37:00 Unknown This is worth over a long problem. This is where we're getting into the nuts and bolts of the mechanics of FMLA that can get very, very complicated. We were very, very fast. So let's try to summarize this for our listeners and our viewers. So I like to refer to these as buckets of leave. So there's nine completely different buckets of leave. 00:16:37:02 - 00:16:59:23 Unknown All of them can have completely different operating orders. For example, when does that one come into impact? You know, when are we when do we apply to excuse me, I said that when do we apply that particular need for leave? How do we certify it? How long will that individual be off of work? And here's again, another big misunderstanding on employers. 00:17:00:00 - 00:17:22:15 Unknown And I hear this now. I've been doing this for 25 years. The law has been in place for over 30 years now. I will still have no, I'm not surprised. Managers and supervisors in our supervisor in the law, of course, are FMLA overview class and even HR People in our FMLA simple administration class for FMLA. So how long do you need to be off of work in order for FMLA to apply? 00:17:22:15 - 00:17:49:24 Unknown Her hands go up and they go, I know, I know, I know. You have to be out of work. Three consecutive workdays, and then when you're out for three consecutive workdays, that's when FMLA applies. The answer is, No, it doesn't. But I was like, No, nice try. No, no, it doesn't. In fact, all of the buckets of leave except for one can actually be taken in our concurrence. 00:17:50:01 - 00:18:17:11 Unknown wow. So let's talk about the one that you do need to have multiple days of absence, because this is a common one that happens in this particular book. It's called Continuing treatment. And part of this bucket of leave, i.e., the employee need to be out for four consecutive calendar days or I'm off of work taking care of the same family member for four consecutive calendar days. 00:18:17:13 - 00:18:36:21 Unknown Now, it's tricky about this bucket is that this is the only one where the employee can actually just call in and say, I'm sick and it could be FMLA. You know, the reason why we said could be FMLA once it meets these requirements for these particular buckets, well, then the employer response. Remember I said earlier, the employee doesn't ask. 00:18:36:21 - 00:19:02:15 Unknown The employer responds with all the mandatory notices, but all these absences need to be documented with a certification form. None of this is done verbally. It's all documented. So how we use that medical certification form. So, Sophia, it's Rob. It's Monday. Soviets. Rob, I'm sick. I'm not going to be in today. That's not FMLA Tuesday. Sophia, it's Rob. 00:19:02:15 - 00:19:27:07 Unknown I'm still sick. I won't be in today no matter familiar. Now, Wednesday. Sophie Last night, my wife took me to urgent care. I don't have COVID, but I've got some sort of a respiratory thing that's going around. I actually feel worse not going to be in today. We're not there yet. Again, the way the law defines this particular bucket, it says more than three consecutive calendar days of incapacity. 00:19:27:09 - 00:19:55:15 Unknown So literally what that means is I need to call in four days in a row. So now, Thursday. Hey, Sophie, it's Rob. I'm still not feeling good. I'm not going to be in today. Now use my manager. I notify our leave administrator. Could be HR Could be somebody else. Payroll, maybe. And that starts the familiar paperwork process. Okay, so once the employer's notified of my need for leave, which in this case would be Thursday. 00:19:55:17 - 00:20:20:06 Unknown Now, the employer has five business days from that date to give me the eligibility notice. Then rights, responsibilities notice a medical certification form goes along as well, and that needs to be returned within 15 calendar days. And then after that time period ends, there's a third mandatory notice called the designation notice. So this is really it's a paperwork here. 00:20:20:06 - 00:20:44:01 Unknown It really, really is. So we the employer, we act on that fourth day of absence Now for this particular bucket, in order to be covered by FMLA, the employee would have to go see a health care provider medical certification form and need to be returned within 15 calendar days. And on their certification form, it's documented. They were out for four consecutive calendar days or more. 00:20:44:03 - 00:21:07:21 Unknown They saw a doctor in person tell the visits are included in that and they got a prescription medication that's like 90% of the certain forms I've seen in the past. The other could be they saw a health care provider two times in person. When that's documented, that then would be qualified and can be marked as FMLA for that particular employee. 00:21:07:23 - 00:21:29:11 Unknown So the key there for consecutive days of absence calendar days. If I work Friday, I'm off Saturday and Sunday. Friday. So if it's Rob, I'm sick. I won't be in today. I don't work Saturday and Sunday. Monday. So if it's where I am sick, I won't be in today. Believe it or not, under the law, that's considered more than three consecutive days. 00:21:29:11 - 00:21:51:24 Unknown I mean, capacity that actually starts the FMLA paperwork process. Now, the way that the employee says I don't want FMLA. Yeah. Is they never return their medical certification form. Their employer still needs to go through all the paperwork, all those monitoring notices. But eventually you're going to get a designation notice at the end that says absences for these four days, not FMLA. 00:21:52:01 - 00:22:14:19 Unknown Why you didn't return a medical certification form. So that's that's just one bucket, the only one where you can call in sick. And these are short term illnesses and injuries. Now, there isn't a list that I can give you that does not exist, but this could be the area like colds, ear infections, pinkeye. COVID falls into this bronchitis. 00:22:14:21 - 00:22:40:08 Unknown You strange your back moving grandmas are more. Over the weekend you went skiing and you broke both of your arms and you can't work. And it's going to be about 6 to 8 weeks for your bones to heal. So these are short term illnesses and injuries. And a remember for either the employee or covered family member, which would include a spouse, children or parents and then stepparents as well. 00:22:40:10 - 00:23:08:08 Unknown So that's that's one particular bucket. Things like pregnancy covered by FMLA, even absences for prenatal visits or morning sickness, those are covered by FMLA. Anything to do with adoption or foster care placements, those are all covered by FMLA, any pre placement issues that need to happen, court medical evaluations, traveling to different countries, post adoption, post foster care placement, being with them. 00:23:08:10 - 00:23:32:03 Unknown That's covered by FMLA to stay. So let's talk now about the number one headache. And I don't mean to be a pun with that, the number one headache under FMLA is a bucket called chronic conditions. So short term illnesses and injuries, that's the continuing treatment. It's got to have at least three consecutive days. I mean, capacity, chronic conditions. 00:23:32:03 - 00:24:01:20 Unknown However, these are long term or permanent medical conditions. Okay. The employee or the covered family member are probably on some sort of a medication. And with our certification forms, it's very typical for these chronic conditions to be certified for up to a year. And what we need to look for on the certification form, it's actually the last question on the certification form, and it's the area called frequency and duration. 00:24:01:22 - 00:24:24:04 Unknown So the number one medical issue that we get in our hotline is migraine headaches. So as migraines, we send them to their health care provider, they bring back the medical certification form. We're going to go look back at that frequency and duration frequency. How many times a month is this issue going to happen? Duration? How long will any event last? 00:24:24:06 - 00:24:48:05 Unknown Well, the search form states 1 to 2 episodes per month, 1 to 2 days per episode. That means that that employee could be up to four days of FMLA per month, though. Here's why This is the most complicated bucket to deal with. And actually for managers and supervisors, the most frustrating bucket to deal with. When's that employee going to have the next migraine? 00:24:48:07 - 00:25:17:03 Unknown When is their child going to have their next seizure? You don't we don't know. And there's never a good day to be off of work. Yeah. Now, sadly, this is also the bucket where occasionally we may have an employee that will be a little bit abusive with us. For example, Fridays and Mondays is a pattern of absences days before and after paid holidays, even vacation time to make some sort of an extended period of time offering. 00:25:17:06 - 00:25:40:08 Unknown Now that does happen, but thankfully it's not a very large portion of our employees that are using FMLA, But it's going to be the most frustrating one that we have now. Please keep in mind that all these different areas that we're talking about do not require multiple days of absence. These can all be hourly, right? So I think right now it's about 10:30 a.m.. 00:25:40:10 - 00:25:59:08 Unknown I can give you a call or I can come over to you by your office and say, Hey, Sophie, I feel my IBS about to act up your irritable bowel syndrome. I need to get out here and get home. You know, I go home and if I work until 3:00, you can charge me 6 hours of FMLA. So I can charge half a million hourly increments. 00:25:59:10 - 00:26:25:21 Unknown So it's not missing holidays, chronic back parking. It could be parts of days, leaving work early, coming to work late because of that chronic condition. And again, this is why that particular area of leave, that's the most frustrating for employers. These are long term. So I've been in Emory 25 years and let's say that I have the migraines up to four days a month of FMLA. 00:26:25:23 - 00:26:48:22 Unknown Well, if I'm working 12 weeks of leave at my work schedule, that's five days per week, 12 weeks, that's 60 individual days. I work 8 hours a day. That's 480 hours of FMLA. Or if my health care provider certifies me as for four migraines a month for, you know, total days of migraines, well, four times 12 is 48 days. 00:26:48:24 - 00:27:11:12 Unknown I didn't really use up all of my FMLA that I'm eligible for. I still have 12 days left. Once I'm eligible for FMLA for the next 24 years, I could be missing 48 days for migraines, unscheduled partial days coming in late. And there's very little that you can do as an employer. That's why that's one of the most frustrating. 00:27:11:14 - 00:27:37:18 Unknown Now i always told managers and supervisors and HR People when we talk about this frustrating bucket that we take a little bit of pause here. Everyone struggles with this. They all know exactly what i'm talking about and we get upset with these employees and somehow we try to do something to make that person's life miserable. I'm leaving now of irritable bowel syndrome. 00:27:37:20 - 00:28:11:17 Unknown You look at me and you raise your eyebrows and half by suppose under the law, there's two legal things that can happen interference of my ability to take leave and retaliation for taking that leave. So a story that I had an actual event, a manager for a manufactured usual. It's the last week of the month. We do a lot to get everything out, got to get our orders shipped and we're try to get as much as possible. 00:28:11:17 - 00:28:41:22 Unknown So end of the month for a manufacturer, that's a big deal. So on the beginning Monday of the last week of the month, individual again suffered with migraines and this person typically was off at the end of the month because their migraines were stress induced. So on Monday, the manager has pre shift meetings always. So on this Monday morning meeting Cavs all the employees together and talks about the week and the jobs that they're working on right now. 00:28:41:22 - 00:29:01:09 Unknown Then at the very end of the meeting he goes now as you know this is the last week of the month we got a couple new customers. We got to make sure that we get this out the door to make these people happy. And then he looked directly at the individual with migraines right into their eyes and said, and I'm counting on everyone to be here this week. 00:29:01:11 - 00:29:26:19 Unknown Now, I do say kudos to the employee. Actually, congratulations. Employee they went right to their HR Department and they said the right thing. My manager just threatened me that i better not have a migraine this week. So i got that call on the hard line. And the member's question was, did her supervisor create any problems? Yeah. And the answer is, you bet they did. 00:29:26:19 - 00:29:51:03 Unknown They are now interfering with that person's right to take leave. I think I forgot to mention this before when I was kind of going on with another explanation that's really tell about people. The chronic bucket. You might be frustrated with your employees understand you might be here one day right now. Although my time here at MRA, I've actually had three major surgeries, two shoulder surgeries and a major back surgery. 00:29:51:05 - 00:30:15:16 Unknown So I was actually off of work and using FMLA, and none of that was held against me. The revenue lost my coworkers that need to substitute for my training aren't seats. They couldn't get booked because I was not available so that the lost revenue. None of that can be held against that employee. So again, that's that time off unpaid with no penalty to the employee. 00:30:15:16 - 00:30:37:04 Unknown That's why it's a very simple statement. But there's a lot to that implication of the workplace. So we saw the continuing treatment, the chronic conditions at school. We see a lot of her mileage when you use now the other buckets. So we have the employee who literally needs to see something medical. For example, a parent has stroke and end up in the hospital. 00:30:37:06 - 00:31:04:13 Unknown So inpatient hospitalizations, anything to do with nursing homes or hospice care, including home hospice care covered by FMLA? My mom has structures in the hospital that is way, way beyond I'm sick or opiate work today. It's very, very specific issues like dealing with end stage of life covered by FMLA. If the employee needs time off, not the bereavement part, but if I need time off to be with that family member. 00:31:04:15 - 00:31:31:13 Unknown Severe arthritis and getting treatment, for example, physical therapy. How can you dialysis reconstructive surgery after an accident or a cancer? So the reasons for leave are very, very specific medical reasons. Yeah. Now under the law, there's actually two additional military related leaves. One's got a really unusual name called military exigency leave, and the other one's called Care for Recovered Servicemember. 00:31:31:15 - 00:31:54:08 Unknown Now those are for family members of the employee of a covered employer that can take time off when that family member is either deployed on active duty or is injured or become sick because of their active duty deployment. Now, on our hotline in my training programs for the last several years, I have not had any examples of those. 00:31:54:10 - 00:32:11:02 Unknown So if you have an employee that comes in and says, Hey, my son's being deployed in the military, can I get some time off? Well then that said military exigency. You deal with that at that point. But that that's the summary for those two conditions. Basically that is the area of the coverage and a quick summary for our familiar leave. 00:32:11:04 - 00:32:35:14 Unknown All that was a lot. So I hope you all were writing the writing notes. TSA at the beginning, get your notepad out. I take a lot of notes like now would be a perfect time for a pop quiz or something. Right now, let's take a break and look at all your notes so far. But moving on here, what advice do you have for employers navigating intermittent FMLA leave requests and balancing business needs with employee rights? 00:32:35:16 - 00:32:52:23 Unknown So here again with our examples with that chronic condition is probably we're going to see that most often with the intermittent leaves, it can happen with the other areas of leave as well. Let's focus on those products. Yeah, once I'm certified by my health care provider, there's actually very little that an employer can do to manage those situations. 00:32:53:00 - 00:33:16:24 Unknown However, if we do have patterns of potential abuse, there are a few things that we can do as an employer to deal with those abuse issues, and it's a little bit too much for our little overview that we're doing today. But there's a couple things that we can do as employers other than just catching the person an outright fraud, fraudulent use of leave. 00:33:17:01 - 00:33:40:10 Unknown Yeah, it's a bunch of hurdles that we need to come to deal with that specific issues. Yeah, absolutely. Well, kind of wrapping up here, Rob, we've talked a lot a lot today about FMLA and just kind of the overarching picture. But can you end with any insights and best practices for employers to ensure smooth and fair practice regarding FMLA eligibility in covered events? 00:33:40:12 - 00:34:04:19 Unknown So, number one are HR People who are administering FMLA, you need to be trained on how to administer properly. Now that's what we here at emory. We have our FMLA made simple class where we deal with that issue for our managers and supervisors training as well. Not how to administer FMLA but understanding what do i need to listen for those buckets of leave that starts the FMLA process? 00:34:04:21 - 00:34:26:07 Unknown And then also, what does it mean that I have no penalty under the leave and also of the basic rights are under the law. So training and awareness are two big compliance tools that we need to use. Yes, absolutely. It also lets mention about training employees. I've had this brought up many, many times during my training programs on FMLA. 00:34:26:09 - 00:34:53:00 Unknown Well, Rob, this is a really complicated law, so can you come to our organization and just do like a one hour overview for our employees? Well, first of all, the law doesn't state any mandatory training for our employees. In fact, it assumes that any mandatory training for HR People are mandatory. The supervisors but unfortunately, it's not required. You're putting the posters up, responding to the requests when they come in properly. 00:34:53:00 - 00:35:15:08 Unknown That's the way that we deal with FMLA. We have to be very careful about training our employees because if we just did an explanation of what we just covered, literally, you're going to open a Pandora's box. Hey, do you know how to be off on FMLA? Here's how you do it. No, I'm not saying that with a cold shoulder or unsympathetic, but we don't want to encourage the issues. 00:35:15:10 - 00:35:35:19 Unknown We've had a lot of situations in the past where the entire shipping department all of a sudden, though, has chronic depression. because that word spreads, right? So we don't need to encourage that. But again, the majority of our cases that we deal with under FMLA, people legitimately do have medical issues of themselves or a covered family member, and they really do need that time on. 00:35:35:19 - 00:36:04:00 Unknown Yeah, that makes sense. I'm sure you've seen a lot and heard a lot of story. Well, Rob, I want to thank you for being on the podcast today and thank you for sharing your expertise on FMLA specifically, like I mentioned, this is a highly requested topic, so I appreciate you coming on the podcast today to cover that. And to our listeners, if you liked our chat and topic today, I would urge you to come and something new that you learned today or anything that you'd like to add on to this conversation. 00:36:04:00 - 00:36:27:15 Unknown We'd love to hear, hear from you. Don't forget to share out this episode. Consider joining MRA If you aren't a member already. We have all the resources you need in the show Notes below, including resources on our topic for today and training links. So check those out. And we've also included Rob's bio and LinkedIn profile. So if you'd like to connect with him, we've got the resources for you to do that. 00:36:27:17 - 00:36:50:12 Unknown Otherwise, thank you so much for tuning in and thanks again, Rob. Thanks for having me. Here's a lot of fun and we'll see you next week for this episode. Be sure to reference the show notes where you can sign them to connect. For more podcast updates, check out other Emery episodes on your favorite podcast platform. And as always, make sure to follow MRA 30 minute Thrive so you don't miss out. 00:36:50:13 - 00:36:55:05 Unknown Thanks for tuning in and we'll see you next Wednesday to carry on the conversation.  

In this episode:  Electronic vehicle rebates versus tax credits. There is an increase on retirement plan contributions for 2024. Most donated inventory may not be deducible as a charitable contribution. It's time for tax planning strategies! Delaware Family Medical Leave Act is ramping up.  Listen in for details.  We are also joined by Maggie Haass, co-owner of Evergreen Farms.  Evergreen Farms is a 22-acre working farm nestled in the countryside just outside of Dover, Delaware.   Maggie and her husband run this beautiful event venue.  Listen to what she has to say about running a business, taking leaps of faith to go after your dreams and relying on experts to help you get to your goals.  

Scenarios that arise for employers under the Americans with Disabilities Act and the Family Medical Leave Act are often complex and without simple solutions. Oftentimes, these situations hinge on a particular fact that might be unusual or unique. In this podcast, we will present a brief overview of the ADA and FMLA, look at some of these scenarios, and answer some frequently asked questions such as:  Do the federal FMLA qualifying guidelines trump state law?  Who is considered a “healthcare provider” under these laws? What are the notification requirements under the FMLA?   Listen as guest speakers, Keegan Drenosky and Claire Pariano, chat with our host, Dan Schwartz and tackle difficult fact patterns under the ADA and FMLA.

This is the first of three episodes reviewing the fundamentals of the Family Medical Leave Act. We start with the general notice. Did you know you're required to provide this information? Join Pandy as she explains the FMLA general notice and it's purpose.

Learn about your responsibilities and rights under the federal Family Medical Leave Act with attorney, Christopher Mills.

Today I want to discuss a topic that can be confusing for employers regarding the Family Medical Leave Act, known as FMLA, which is a federal law allowing certain employees the ability to take reasonable, unpaid jobs, and protect expected leave for family and medical reasons. It also requires that their group health benefits be maintained during the Leaf.Tune in to today's episode to learn if this law applies to you and if so, the guidelines to follow.BHB2024Support the show

With a new child comes more costs, so you may need more money. You may also need to take time off work to care for your child. Government and work benefits can help you adjust to your new life as a new parent. What are the ways to utilize these programs while pregnant? What exactly is the Family Medical Leave Act and how does it work? Plus, saving money with Flexible Spending Accounts and more!  Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

In this episode, Counsel Trey Cammack reviews recent opinion letters from the Department of Labor discussing the Family Medical Leave Act and the Fair Labor Standards Act as they apply to remote work. Also discussed is a recent DOL opinion letter on calculating leave that overlaps with holidays.

In episode 101, Coffey talks with Julie Hamilton about creating inclusive work environments for employees wrestling with chronic illness.They discuss the definition of chronic illness; commonly misunderstood illnesses or disabilities; stress as an illness trigger; the ADA and FMLA process when dealing with chronic illness; how leaders can navigate the conversation around performance, job descriptions, and job accommodations; common ADA accommodations; how HR leaders can respond to employee inquiries under HIPAA; the business case of why employers should go beyond legal requirements to support an employee with chronic conditions; and what policies can be in place to assist chronically-ill employees.Good Morning, HR is brought to you by Imperative—premium background checks with fast and friendly service. For more information about our commitment to quality and excellent customer service, visit us at https://imperativeinfo.com. If you are an HRCI or SHRM-certified professional, this episode of Good Morning, HR has been pre-approved for three-quarters of a recertification credit. To obtain the recertification information for this episode, visit https://goodmorninghr.com. About our Guest:Julie Hamilton has over 20 years of Human Resource Management experience and has been a Certified Fibromyalgia Coach for over 7 years. She was diagnosed with fibromyalgia in 2009.As a Human Resources Director, she knew the resources to use such as Family Medical Leave Act and workplace accommodations to help her with the tasks she was struggling with. She didn't need to worry about her job when she needed to take time off for flare days or medical appointments. She went from missing two to four days per month to missing two days or less a year. Then after relocating to Ohio, her chronic illness made it impossible for her to work. That is when she studied to become a Certified Fibromyalgia Coach and learned to manage her fibromyalgia. She has gone from being in bed 90% of her life to walking three miles a day and even participated in her first 10k. She now helps professionals who have fibromyalgia maintain their career and regain their active social life.Her goal is to help companies create an inclusive environment for the chronically ill and assisting them in implementing policies to benefit both the employee and the company. She understands what it takes to make it work and can educate the company and the employee on how this collaboration can work.Julie Hamilton can be reached at http://coachingpi.weebly.com/https://www.linkedin.com/in/julie-hamilton-20582769 https://www.facebook.com/coachingpi https://www.instagram.com/coachingpi About Mike Coffey:Mike Coffey is an entrepreneur, human resources professional, licensed private investigator, and HR consultant.In 1999, he founded Imperative, a background investigations firm helping risk-averse companies make well-informed decisions about the people they involve in their business.Today, Imperative serves hundreds of businesses across the US and, through its PFC Caregiver & Household Screening brand, many more private estates, family offices, and personal service agencies.Mike has been recognized as an Entrepreneur of Excellence and has twice been named HR Professional of the Year. Additionally, Imperative has been named the Texas Association of Business' small business of the year and is accredited by the Professional Background Screening Association. Mike is a member of the Fort Worth chapter of the Entrepreneurs' Organization and volunteers with the SHRM Texas State Council.Mike maintains his certification as a Senior Professional in Human Resources (SPHR) through the HR Certification Institute. He is also a SHRM Senior Certified Professional (SHRM-SCP).Mike lives in Fort Worth with his very patient wife. He practices yoga and maintains a keto diet, about both of which he will gladly tell you way more than you want to know.Learning Objectives:1. Identify common misconceptions HR leaders may have regarding chronic illnesses and disabilities.2. Understand the legal framework and process for accommodating employees with chronic illnesses under the ADA and FMLA.3. Develop strategies and policies to support and protect employees with chronic conditions in the workplace.

In episode 57 of Barclay Damon Live: Labor & Employment Podcast, host Ari Kwiatkowski welcomes her Barclay Damon colleague Art Marrapese to discuss medical plan coverage during a leave of absence from work. Tune in to hear a breakdown of the types of leaves employees can take under federal and state laws like the Family Medical Leave Act and the New York Paid Family Leave, where ERISA comes in, and some of the circumstances around protected and non-protected leaves, especially around health coverage issues. Art and Ari emphasize that employers can stay ahead of the game by having their plan documents and summary plan descriptions well organized so that employees know their rights. They also dig into COBRA rules and more, so listen in.

In today's episode, Teresa discusses FMLA, Family Medical Leave Act. FMLA provides federally protected leave for eligible employees for up to 12 workweeks of unpaid leave per year and certain military family leave entitlements. FMLA applies to private sector employers who employs 50+ employees for at least 20 workweeks in the current or preceding calendar year. Topics discussed: Employees must comply with the employer's notice for requesting leave or being absent. Employers are required to notify employees of their eligibility. The employer can require certification of the need for leave as appropriate based on the type of leave. Recertification Here is the site Teresa discussed in the show: https://www.dol.gov/agencies/whd/fmla Episode Timeline 00:06Introduction and Disclaimer 01:21What is FMLA? 04:19Break and Public Service Announcement 04:46More Information About FMLA 15:54Teresa's Closing Remarks

Are you unsure if your company is up to speed on Family and Medical Leave Act? Rebecca Strauss and Sarah Willey dive into some tips on how to get back into FMLA shape.

Angela's breaking down these 12 things you need to know:  Pay rules (overtime is paid daily instead of weekly.) The Sick Leave Act. The new OSHA requirements called AB 1775. California Employment Training Tax. Meal Penalties. The California Pay Transparency Law. There's also the Covid 19 Supplemental Paid Sick Leave Law. California Labor Code 64 0 9 0.6 a. SB 1343. AB five. Family Medical Leave Act. California Family Rights Act.

In this episode of the Employee Survival Guide, Mark answers questions from listeners regarding the Family Medical Leave Act (FMLA).  Mark will provide a factual example based on an employee's real life circumstance and he will interpret the potential play by play about what can happen in the case.  These are short fact examples intended to help you familiarize yourself with various aspects of the FMLA so you can spot the issue that may be happening to and how to deal with it.  This is the stuff your employer really does not want you to know about and more.  If you enjoyed this episode of the Employee Survival Guide please like us on Facebook, Twitter and LinkedIn. We would really appreciate if you could leave a review of this podcast on your favorite podcast player such as Apple Podcasts. Leaving a review will inform other listeners you found the content on this podcast is important. For more information, please contact Carey & Associates, P.C. at 203-255-4150, www.capclaw.com.

Greeting Glocal Citizens! As we ease into the last month of 2022, we're adding another country to our Glocal Citizens tour with a trip to Malawi. My guest this week is Malawian-American, Michelle Alipao Chikaonda. Michelle and I crossed paths in Accra at the sixth edition of the Pa Gya! Literary Festival (https://writersprojectghana.com/pagyafest/). She is an award winning nonfiction writer, teacher and avid traveller. A graduate student at the University of East Anglia School of Literature, Drama and Creative Writing studying biography and creative nonfiction, Michelle is currently based in the United Kingdom, and at the same time keeping an eye toward the next place she'll call "home." Michelle has won the Literary Award for Narrative Nonfiction of the Tucson Festival of Books, the Stephen J. Meringoff Award for Nonfiction of the Association of Literary Scholars, Critics and Writers, and the Archie D. and Bertha H. Walker Scholarship for writers of color from the Fine Arts Work Center in Provincetown. In 2015 she was nominated for the Pushcart Prize by the Oracle Fine Arts Review, and in 2020 she was longlisted for the inaugural Toyin Falola Prize for emerging African writers, and was published in the prize's anthology, “In the Sands of Time” (2022). In addition to being a 2019 resident at The Seventh Wave's Rhinebeck Residency, she is a Voices of Our Nations [VONA] Workshop fellow, a Tin House Summer Workshop alumna, and has presented at several Association of Writing and Writing Programs [AWP] conferences. A contributing editor for nonfiction at Electric Literature, she is also currently published at Al Jazeera, The Globe and Mail, Catapult, the Broad Street Review, Business Insider, and Africa is A Country, among others. Be sure to check out Michelle's website links so you can catch up on Michelle's works across platforms. Where to find Michelle? michellechikaonda.work (https://www.michellechikaonda.work) On Twitter (https://twitter.com/machikaonda) On Facebook (https://www.facebook.com/michelle.chikaonda) On Instagram (https://www.instagram.com/machikaonda/?hl=en) What's Michelle reading? The Myth of Normal: Trauma, Illness, and Healing in a Toxic Culture (https://read.amazon.com/kp/embed?asin=B0946LP9L8&preview=newtab&linkCode=kpe&ref_=cm_sw_r_kb_dp_HVYPKANBDZVSAJR5R27H&tag=glocalciti07e-20) by Gabor Maté MD with Daniel Maté When the Body Says No: Exploring the Stress-Disease Connection (https://a.co/axBdovL) by Gabor Maté MD In the Realm of Hungry Ghosts: Close Encounters with Addiction (https://a.co/hpZklSK) by Gabor Maté MD What's Michelle watching? The Crown (https://www.netflix.com/title/80025678) From Scratch (https://www.netflix.com/title/81104486) Other topics of interest: About Dedza, Malawi (https://www.malawitourism.com/regions/central-malawi/dedza/) About Zomba, Malawi (https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Zomba,_Malawi) About the Lobolo System (https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Lobolo) Ngoni People (https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ngoni_people) United World College (https://www.atlanticcollege.org) International Baccalaureate (https://www.ibo.org) Kusesa, sweeping (https://beingafrican.com/chewa-deaths-and-funerals/) US Family Medical Leave Act (https://www.dol.gov/agencies/whd/fmla) Song of Songs (https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Song_of_Songs) Special Guest: Michelle Alipao Chikaonda.

Greeting Glocal Citizens! As we ease into the last month of 2022, we're adding another country to our Glocal Citizens tour with a trip to Malawi. My guest this week is Malawian-American, Michelle Alipao Chikaonda. Michelle and I crossed paths in Accra at the sixth edition of the Pa Gya! Literary Festival (https://writersprojectghana.com/pagyafest/). She is an award winning nonfiction writer, teacher and avid traveller. A graduate student at the University of East Anglia School of Literature, Drama and Creative Writing studying biography and creative nonfiction, Michelle is currently based in the United Kingdom, and at the same time keeping an eye toward the next place she'll call "home." Michelle has won the Literary Award for Narrative Nonfiction of the Tucson Festival of Books, the Stephen J. Meringoff Award for Nonfiction of the Association of Literary Scholars, Critics and Writers, and the Archie D. and Bertha H. Walker Scholarship for writers of color from the Fine Arts Work Center in Provincetown. In 2015 she was nominated for the Pushcart Prize by the Oracle Fine Arts Review, and in 2020 she was longlisted for the inaugural Toyin Falola Prize for emerging African writers, and was published in the prize's anthology, “In the Sands of Time” (2022). In addition to being a 2019 resident at The Seventh Wave's Rhinebeck Residency, she is a Voices of Our Nations [VONA] Workshop fellow, a Tin House Summer Workshop alumna, and has presented at several Association of Writing and Writing Programs [AWP] conferences. A contributing editor for nonfiction at Electric Literature, she is also currently published at Al Jazeera, The Globe and Mail, Catapult, the Broad Street Review, Business Insider, and Africa is A Country, among others. Be sure to check out Michelle's website links so you can catch up on Michelle's works across platforms. Where to find Michelle? michellechikaonda.work (https://www.michellechikaonda.work) On Twitter (https://twitter.com/machikaonda) On Facebook (https://www.facebook.com/michelle.chikaonda) On Instagram (https://www.instagram.com/machikaonda/?hl=en) What's Michelle reading? The Myth of Normal: Trauma, Illness, and Healing in a Toxic Culture (https://read.amazon.com/kp/embed?asin=B0946LP9L8&preview=newtab&linkCode=kpe&ref_=cm_sw_r_kb_dp_HVYPKANBDZVSAJR5R27H&tag=glocalciti07e-20) by Gabor Maté MD with Daniel Maté When the Body Says No: Exploring the Stress-Disease Connection (https://a.co/axBdovL) by Gabor Maté MD In the Realm of Hungry Ghosts: Close Encounters with Addiction (https://a.co/hpZklSK) by Gabor Maté MD What's Michelle watching? The Crown (https://www.netflix.com/title/80025678) From Scratch (https://www.netflix.com/title/81104486) Other topics of interest: About Dedza, Malawi (https://www.malawitourism.com/regions/central-malawi/dedza/) About Zomba, Malawi (https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Zomba,_Malawi) About the Lobolo System (https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Lobolo) Ngoni People (https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ngoni_people) United World College (https://www.atlanticcollege.org) International Baccalaureate (https://www.ibo.org) Kusesa, sweeping (https://beingafrican.com/chewa-deaths-and-funerals/) US Family Medical Leave Act (https://www.dol.gov/agencies/whd/fmla) Song of Songs (https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Song_of_Songs) Special Guest: Michelle Alipao Chikaonda.

An easy going discussion with real-life experiences in our ExPat community to recognize this challenging and often stressful issue.  A few resources below to start your research on specifics for your situation. Employee Consultation Service (ECS) Among the many confidential services ECS provides, are Elder Care resources and more. Those who seriously consider a curtailment from an overseas post may wish to have ECS weigh-in to HR/CDA to provide support for a voluntary, compassionate curtailment decision.  WorkLife4You This program provides free assistance and guidance for the Foreign Service on many issues including Adult Care & Aging: Specialist@lifecare.com, http://diplopedia.state.gov/index.php/WL4Y:WorkLife4You www.worklife4you.com The Eldercare Support Group is provided as an employee service by the Employee Relations Office Work/Life Programs & the Office of Medical Services to help those who are dealing with eldercare issues. Putting Parents on Your Orders  Foreign Service employees may request that their elderly relative(s) (including step parents and legally adopted parents) be approved as an eligible family member and added to their Post Assignment Travel Orders for an overseas assignment. There are many requirements and steps needed to accomplish this.  Be sure contact your HR or Management Officer to discuss the specifics.   Bringing Parents to Post Who Are Not on Your Orders If your relatives are not financially dependent on you, they may come to post as members of the employee's household, but will receive no official support from the U.S. Government. No official support translates into no access to the U.S. embassy health unit, no airfare or allowance payments in the case of evacuation from post, and no diplomatic status with the host country. Parents who come to live overseas for an extended period of time should consider having additional medical insurance (Medicare does not cover costs related to care overseas). In addition, parents should also maintain Air Medical Evacuation Insurance. A list of companies that provide this insurance can be found on the Department of State Internet web site at: http://travel.state.gov/medical.html   Family Medical Leave Act and Family-Friendly Leave  If you think you may need to care for an elderly relative, be sure to check the provisions of the 1993 Family Leave Act on taking leave for this purpose.  For more information: t https://usdos.sharepoint.com/sites/Intranet-HR/EmployeeRelations/WorkLifeDivision/Pages/default.aspx   Eldercare Emergency Visitation Travel (Eldercare EVT)  EVT is a Department benefit that allows an eligible individual to be authorized travel at USG expense from the post of assignment to the United States or to other location in certain situations of family emergency or death. In January 2001, the Eldercare Emergency Visitation Travel (Eldercare EVT) to assist parents in declining health. To learn more, please see the ElderCare website https://usdos.sharepoint.com/sites/Intranet-HR/Workforce/EmployeePrograms/Pages/EmergencyVisitationTravel.aspx or email the Family Liaison Office (flo@state.gov) for a copy of “Questions and Answers on Eldercare Emergency Visitation Travel,” and visit http://diplopedia.state.gov/index.php/Emergency_Visitation_Travel. 

Overview of Pregnancy Accommodations (Advisory Insights Podcast, Episode 9) Are you an employer who needs to accommodate a pregnant employee? Then this episode of Advisory Insights is for you! Stuart Oberman from Oberman Law Firm shared relevant laws, such as the Pregnancy Discrimination Act, the Family Medical Leave Act, and the Americans with Disabilities Act. […]

In this weeks episode of the RD Exam Made Easy Podcast, you're gonna learn about the "Acts" - government acts that is. This episode was requested by a listener like you.  There's a lot of government acts but this episode reviews some of the most common ones regarding working conditions and expectations. I made a FREE cheat sheet for you that summarizes these laws. Download your cheat sheet here and follow along. You'll learn about: 1935: National Labor Relations Act 1938: Fair Labor Standards Act 1947: Taft Hartley Labor Act 1959: Labor Management Reporting and Disclosure Act 1963: Equal Pay Act 1964: The Civil Rights Act 1967: Age Discrimination in Employment Act 1972: Equal Employment Opportunity Act 1990: Americans with Disabilities Act 1993: Family Medical Leave Act 1996: Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act (HIPAA) 2020: Affordable Care Act These laws are long and wordy. There's a lot to them so if you want to learn more about each of these laws, I recommend you research the laws further. The goal for this episode is to summarize the laws and break them down so you have a basic understanding if you were asked a question on the RD Exam.  Be sure to listen as I give a shout-out to a listener who just passed the RD Exam. When you pass the RD Exam, I'd love to congratulate you on the podcast too. And if you have a question you want featured on the RD Exam Made Easy Podcast, please let me know. You can send me a message on instagram @jananichollrd. 

When the Family Medical Leave Act passed in January 1993, supporters hoped it was the first step to paid leave but here we are, still waiting. This week, we track the long and bumpy road to FMLA, look at what it actually offers and to whom, and try to name the five other countries that still don't offer paid leave.  Support Us  Get The Breadwinners t-shirts, stickers and more!  Episode Links   Getting Paid While Taking Time: The Women's Movement and the Development of Paid Family Leave Policies in the United States — by Megan Sholar  The World ‘Has Found a Way to Do This': The U.S. Lags on Paid Leave — by Claire Cain Miller  Paid Leave Is Incredibly Popular — Even With Republicans — by Gregory Svirnovskiy  Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

This is Stephen Schmidt from the Gazette digital news desk and I'm here with your update for Wednesday, December 29th. There should be a chance for some more snow Wednesday, mostly in the late afternoon and evening. According to the National Weather Service there will be a high near 23 degrees in the Cedar Rapids area, so the snow will stick when it falls. There is a 40 percent chance of snow predicted after 3 p.m. and a 50 percent chance of snow before midnight. Linn County and its sheriff's office are paying a former deputy and his lawyers over half a million dollars to settle his assertions that fellow deputies belittled him for taking leave to help care for his newborn son. Scott Becker initially filed a lawsuit against the county in January 2020 in Linn County District Court, but it was refiled in U.S. District Court in February 2020. In his suit, Becker said he took time under the Family Medical Leave Act to care for his child in 2018, but then faced harassment and retaliation from co-workers who didn't want to fill in for him while he was out. Under terms of the settlement, Becker will be paid $334,062 and Fiedler Law Firm in Des Moines will be paid $240,937, according to a document provided by the county According to the Associated Press, the county attorney prosecuting the case of two https://apnews.com/article/fairfield-des-moines-iowa-conspiracy-homicide-87dfe280796d778c0ad55a829e1990b5 (Iowa teens charged with murde)r in the death of their high school Spanish teacher said in court documents they surveilled her pattern of life, ambushed her along her daily walk and dragged her into the woods, returning later to hide her body. Those additional details of the death of Nohema Graber in early November were revealed in a Dec. 23 filing in the case of Jeremy Goodale, 16, of Fairfield. He is charged with murder and conspiracy to commit murder with classmate Willard Miller, also 16. Attorneys for both teens have asked a judge to https://www.thegazette.com/crime-courts/second-fairfield-teen-charged-in-spanish-teachers-killing-wants-case-sent-to-juvenile-court/ (move their case to juvenile court.) Hearings on the requests are scheduled for Jan. 27. Authorities have confirmed earlier that Graber had suffered “inflicted trauma to the head," Her body was found concealed under a tarp, wheelbarrow and railroad ties at Chautauqua Park in Fairfield. A University of Iowa student faces sex abuse charges after allegedly forcing a woman to perform a sex act at a 2021 Super Bowl party. Alexander T. Economos, 21, of Urbandale, was arrested Tuesday and faces charges of third-degree sex abuse, a Class C felony punishable by up to 10 years in prison, and assault with intent to commit sex abuse with bodily injury, a Class D felony punishable by up to five years in prison. Economos is accused of forcing a woman to perform a sex act Feb. 7 in a bathroom at a Super Bowl party in the 900 block of E. Washington Street in Iowa City. Finally, John Madden, the Hall of Fame coach who gained fame as a broadcaster whose enthusiastic calls combined with simple explanations provided a weekly soundtrack to NFL games for three decades, died Tuesday morning, the league said. He was 85. The NFL said on Tuesday that Madden had died unexpectedly and did not detail a cause. Looking to find something new to eat? Never miss a bite of the tastiest local food news by signing up for our free text alerts. Text CHEW to (319) 257-2674 for inside scoops from Gazette food writer Elijah Decious. Be sure to subscribe to The Gazette Daily news podcast, or just tell your Amazon Alexa enabled device to “enable The Gazette Daily News skill" so you can get your daily briefing by simply saying “Alexa, what's the news? If you prefer podcasts, you can also find us on iTunes or wherever else you find your Podcasts. Support this podcast

A mostly uneventful meeting of the Kewanee City Council was held on Monday evening, November 22nd, 2021. At this meeting the City of Kewanee heard from Skip-A-Long Daycare about a kids program that they are developing. The Council also did some house cleaning related to continuing a City Health Insurance contract with Blue Cross Blue Shield as well as staying current with federal and state guidelines related to the Family Medical Leave Act. The City vacated an abandoned city street in order to allow a resident to move forward with a garage addition, and the City signed off on several contracts for the destruction of decrepit buildings in the City of Kewanee. All told, six contracts were approved for the take down of blighted properties. Mayor Gary Moore talked to Wake Up Tri-Counties about the events of Monday's Kewanee City Council Meeting.

In this episode of the Employee Survival Guide, Mark provides the top ten employment tips for recent college graduates, and everyone else.  College grads are learning how to work, but college never prepared them for real actual work.  Mark can help here by explanation important topics these college grads will definitely face in their new jobs.  In this episode, Mark explores 1) The Job Search and Interview; 2) the Offer and Acceptance; 3) the At-Will Job and Internships; 4) Noncompetition Agreements; 5) Discrimination; 6) the Family Medical Leave Act; 7) Salary vs. Hourly- How to Known When You Are Entitled to Overtime; 8) Remote Work; 9) Social Media; and 10) Severance Negotiation. If you enjoyed this episode of the Employee Survival Guide please like us on Facebook, Twitter and LinkedIn.  We would really appreciate if you could leave a review of this podcast on your favorite podcast player such as Apple Podcasts.For more information, please contact Carey & Associates, P.C. at 475-242-8317, www.capclaw.com or email at info@capclaw.com.The content of this website is provided for information purposes only and does not constitute legal advice nor create an attorney-client relationship.  Carey & Associates, P.C. makes no warranty, express or implied, regarding the accuracy of the information contained on this website or to any website to which it is linked to.

GreatAmericanMail (@mail_american) interprets the events of October 19, 2021 through the lens of the Constitution and history, including:·      VA Governor's election preview and prediction·      How the VA Governor's race suggests Republicans might not re-take the House·     How Buttigeig is abusing the Family Medical Leave Act·      "Insurrection" is the Left's new trigger word·       You can be fired on campus for playing an award winning 1965 movie·      Dying mother's can't sit by her dying daughter's side because of . . . COVID

Is the employer required to hold my job if I'm injured on the job? Hello. My name is Ty Wilson. I'm a Georgia Workers compensation attorney. And our question for today is, “Is my employer required to hold my job if I'm entered? And the short answer is No. There are some programs that can come into place that can help protect you, but it's not every employer that has to fall under them. And so what I'm talking about is, there is something called the Family Medical Leave Act (FMLA ). And what is that? Well, that's a federal program but doesn't qualify that all employers are under FMLA. And so I believe the current threshold is there must be 50 or more employees for the employer to fall under the FMLA requirements. So there's less than 50 employees. The employer does not have to give you FMLA time. And something that's important with the FMLA is it's not a guarantee of any benefits other than protecting your job for up to twelve weeks. And if you've used part of your FMLA, this is twelve weeks over the course of the year. And so that's some things that you need to know about and be prepared for. If you're injured and you're going to need to be out of work for an extended period of time, FMLA  may be something you want to think about in order to keep your job available. But after those twelve weeks, if you fall under the FMLA umbrella, they do not have to keep your job open and can terminate it. If you do not fall under the FMLA or Family Medical Leave Act umbrella, they do not have to keep your job. They can terminate you. They choose to terminate you, though, and you're on light duty or you're out of work completely. The Workers Compensation Insurance company should be issuing you something called income benefits. We'll do another video on covering income benefits and how much and how often and so forth. But the long and short of it is if you are taken out of work completely or you're on light duty and your employer cannot accommodate your life duty restrictions and your employer terminates you. Well, they should be issuing you income benefits, If however, you are full duty, the employer is not required to pay you any income benefits, or the insurance company is not required to pay you any insurance income benefits, and the employer is not required to keep you employed. You could have what is called a medical only where you're only receiving medical care. And if you're full duty, that employer can terminate you and it will continue to be a medical only claim. And so we hope that this information has been helpful. And we'll see you on the next video. 

The Delta variant, a breakdown of the FDA's accelerated approval process, and how pink socks are bringing together patient advocacy groups.Hosts Dr. Bob Goldberg and guest host Kate Pecora dive into the news of the week, including where the debate on the new Alzheimer drug stands. Nick Adkins of Pinksocks Life shares the story on how the gift of pink socks turned into a worldwide movement to spark connectivity. And cancer rights attorney, Monica Bryant explains the Family Medical Leave Act and common myths and misunderstandings of the law. Hosts: Terry Wilcox, Executive Director, Patients RisingDr. Robert Goldberg, “Dr. Bob,” Co-Founder and Vice President of the Center for Medicine in the Public InterestKate Pecora, Field Correspondent, Patients RisingGuests:Nick Adkins, Co-Founder, Pinksocks LifePaul Langley, Ph.D., Director, Maimon Research LLCMonica Bryant, Chief Operating Officer, Triage CancerMelissa Talwar, Patient CorrespondentLinks:Triage Cancer: Employment Related Laws by StateLast Word: ICER's Final Evidence Report on new Alzheimer's TreatmentThe Science Is In: Our Immunocompromised Patients Need a Third DoseNeed help?The successful patient is one who can get what they need when they need it. We all know insurance slows us down, so why not take matters into your own hands? Our Navigator is an online tool that allows you to search a massive network of health-related resources using your zip code so you get local results. Get proactive and become a more successful patient right now at PatientsRisingConcierge.orgHave a question or comment about the show, or want to suggest a show topic or share your story as a patient correspondent?Drop us a line: podcast@patientsrising.orgThe views and opinions expressed herein are those of the guest(s)/ author(s) and do not reflect the official policy or position of Patients Rising.

Employees often ask about taking leave through the Family Medical Leave Act, otherwise known as FMLA. As the employer, like when you own your own practice, you need to understand FMLA and everything that goes along with it. FMLA allows employees to take an unpaid leave of absence for up to 12 weeks for medical reasons or family reasons. The first thing I want to point out is that FMLA is only applicable to employers who have 50 or more employees working at least 20 hours per week to comply with FMLA. Employees who have worked at a company for at least 1,250 hours during a 12-month period are eligible for FMLA. Realistically, many smaller medical practices aren't legally required to provide their employees with FMLA. It'a very likely that  your employees will think they're entitled to FMLA regardless of the size of your practice. This is why you need to have clear cut policies about leave and what your practice offers if you are not obligated by law to offer FMLA.1. Develop comprehensive policiesHave a written policy that defines what type and amount of unpaid leave you will be offering The policy needs to apply to all employeesInclude the policy in your employee handbook2. Define the 12-month period in which the employee can access it3. Determine the parameters of your policy Will you require your employee to exhaust all of their paid-time-off benefits before accessing unpaid leave? Or can the employee choose whether to use PTO or unpaid leave? Now you may be thinking why would any employee want to take unpaid leave if they can get paid? The whole reason is all of this is important is that you are trying to run a business. In order for your practice to run efficiently, you need to understand your staffing requirements. You need to think about how long you realistically can hold a job for someone who is out. And, of course, how you are going to staff their position during their absence. Having a well-defined policy will help prevent misunderstandings.One of the most difficult situations though, is when, near the end of their leave, the employee requests that they need a different schedule.  Under FMLA, the law states that you only have to guarantee that the employee has the same position to return to, or a similar position with the same hours and benefits. They are not obligated to accommodate a new work schedule after the FMLA leave is complete.  If you have less than 50 full-time employees, you'll still want a policy statement and I would recommend using FMLA as a guideline. For a full searchable copy of the transcript, https://www.thepracticebuildingmd.com/podcastIf you'd like to hear more tips on how to start, run and grow your practice and related medical businesses, please sign up for my newsletter at https://www.thepracticebuildingmd.com.    And, be sure to join my FB group, The Private Medical Practice Academy. Enroll in my course,  How To Start Your Own Practice and get the step-by-step process for opening your doors. Or join The Private Medical Practice Academy Membership for live group coaching, expert guest speakers and everything you need to know to start, grow and leverage your private practice.

Carolyn Moor is the founder of Modern Widows Club and also serves as its President and Development Director. After being widowed at age 37 with two young children, Carolyn soon discovered that widowhood assistance and resources were few and far between. So she began advocating for widowhood research and community resources. Carolyn has participated in the UN Commission on the Status of Women and the Global Leadership Summit community and has been featured in the Wall Street Journal and the Oprah Winfrey Show. She debuted at TEDxOakland in February 2021.   Carolyn joins me today to describe what it's like to be a young widow and why she started the Modern Widows Club after she struck out when searching for resources to help her when she was bereaved. She discusses the importance of understanding the cycle of grief and how pain is part of love, and why that's so important to know when talking to women who have lost their husbands. Carolyn also shares how the Modern Widow communities are run, the role of trained widow advocates, the organization's activities, and how they plan to support women via a new online program.   "Widowhood is a hard, hard subject to talk about. But the reality is, is actually, it's a beautiful thing to talk about because these are women who have had fulfilled marriages.” - Carolyn Moor   “Grief is a natural response to love. If you don't love, you don't get the blessing of grieving. So we see grieving as a horrible thing that someone has to go through. But in fact, it's the last part of the loving cycle.” - Carolyn Moor   “Be ready to be present, be ready to listen, and be a blessing in their life. Because that's really all they're asking for, is to have you walk this moment through with them. That's it.” - Carolyn Moor   This week on The Wow Factor: The effect of growing up in the church in Arkansas and what that taught her about dignity and integrity How a snap decision to change her degree subject marked the beginning of the rest of her life and led to her meeting her husband How the business that Carolyn ran with her late husband gave her some of the skills that served her in starting Modern Widows Club The moment that she saw her life implode and how she learned to cope with such enormous changes along with her two young daughters The loophole in the Family Medical Leave Act that doesn't take into account the bereaved and why she is advocating for that to change What are the seven pillars of a healthy widowhood and how Modern Widows structured their training program to take into account everything their members might face from financial issues to mental health The effect of COVID-19 on their community and how they are still supporting their members The three most powerful words to say to a widow and why they are so precious for a woman to hear Why it is so vital to really hear two people who are grieving to understand what they need and how you can help    Carolyn Moor's Words of Wisdom: We must look at hard things truthfully. The greatest wisdom I can give you is to please look at the truth. Go and speak to widows, find the real answers today, sit down and listen.   Connect with Carolyn Moor: Modern Widows Club Website Carolyn Moor on LinkedIn Modern Widows Club on Facebook Modern Widows Club on Instagram Modern Widows Club on Twitter Healthy Widow Healthy Woman podcast   Connect with The WOW Factor: I Like Giving: The Transforming Power of a Generous Life by Brad Formsma Words of Wisdom Website Brad Formsma on LinkedIn Brad Formsma on Instagram Brad Formsma on Facebook Brad Formsma on Twitter    

It’s no secret that being a caregiver comes with its challenges – and sacrifices. For many people embarking on this new journey, the massive pressures can come as a bit of a shock. If you’re thinking of becoming a caregiver, but are still on the fence, it’s important to know what to expect before you make a permanent decision. That way, you can know whether becoming a family caregiver really is the best decision for you and your loved one. More and more people are choosing to become family caregivers. According to a study by the Center for Retirement Research at Boston College, about 17 percent of adult children end up caring for their parents at some point in their lives. The reasons are endless. Some people choose to become caregivers to avoid paying the hefty fees for assisted living or nursing homes. Others want to help their loved one be in a position where they can stay home. Others still want to spend the extra time with their parent – keen on caring for the person who once cared for them.  Regardless of the reason you’re thinking about becoming a caregiver, it’s important to know that you will have to make sacrifices. As much as we might wish otherwise, it’s simply impossible to care for our parents while working forty plus hours a week and handling the rest of our responsibilities at home. Now, that’s not to say that you can’t work, it’s just to say that you might need to make adjustments to your schedule, or delegate some errands and other help in order to find that balance. But we’ll dive into more concrete tips later on.  Today is all about caregiver sacrifices. To learn more about the everyday stresses of caregiving – and how to cope – check out our episode on Caring for the Caregiver. We’ve also got a quick tip episode for caregivers that can help you understand what to expect in the day to day. On this episode, though, we decided to focus on the sacrifices, especially the ones that might come as a surprise. See, we hear all too often that new caregivers simply didn’t know all the sacrifices that come with caring for a loved one. Again, understanding the sacrifices is key to helping you make an informed decision about whether or not this is the right step for you. Before we get started, I just want to take a minute to acknowledge how, in spite of the sacrifices, caregiving is immensely rewarding and incredibly important. You’ll be making an enormous difference in your loved one’s life, and you’ll get to be there for all the most precious moments with your Mom or Dad. Still, unexpected sacrifices can make those rewarding moments a little more tainted. So, the more you’re aware of in advance, the better you can prepare for what’s ahead, so when you’re in the moment you can actually be in the moment. Perhaps the greatest sacrifice a caregiver can make is a life free of intense levels of stress and pressure. According to AARP, 36% of family caregivers believe their situation is highly stressful. It makes sense. A survey by the Associated Press and the NORC Center for Public Affairs Research found that 45% of caregivers have outside jobs – and have to use some or all of their vacation time for caregiving duties. That’s a tough balance to maintain. Stress can lead to health problems, depression, and exhaustion – so it’s essential that as a caregiver, you’re making time for yourself. Nothing is worth sacrificing mental stability to a point where it’s impacting your health. Remember, if you’re not energized or in good health, your duties as a caregiver could suffer. Every other sacrifice a caregiver makes – from finances to a social life and more – will contribute to the stress. That’s why stress is a more general sacrifice – because it envelops pretty much, well, everything else. And if stress can have detrimental effects on our well-being, then that means we need to tread carefully with every other sacrifice we face. As you listen to the sacrifices listed and worry that they will just be too much on you – trust that instinct. Forgive yourself if you’re not in a place in your life where you can sacrifice so much – if that’s the case there are plenty of other options available. There is absolutely nothing to feel guilty about. Together with your loved one, you can come up with the right solution for both of you. Many families – especially those whose loved one is experiencing dementia – might choose to stay at home regardless of these sacrifices. We will offer ways to help with each of these sacrifices so that you can find a way to manage if you need to step into the role. You can also think of solutions like respite care, finding extra help from other family members, and more. To learn more about your options, check out our episode on choosing the right type of care. One major sacrifice caregiver’s make is with their career. According to AARP, about 6 in 10 caregivers continue to work full time while caregiving – but it doesn’t come with zero sacrifice. Even if you are able to keep working while you care for your loved one, there’s likely to be missed deadlines, meetings, or burn out to come. You might need to take less hours, which could mean a lower income. AARP says that, “many working caregivers report health problems, depression, and lost time and lower productivity at work.” When you’re trying to focus on work after being up for hours during a particularly tough night with Mom, or you’re in a meeting and get a call that your Dad needs your help, it’s not a shock to hear that working can get a little difficult. There will be missed workdays ahead – even the important ones, where you’re supposed to meet with big clients or have a presentation for your boss. Life happens, and when you’re caring for an aging loved one, it happens more often than you’re probably used to. While there are some options, they’re not always ideal. For instance, the Family Medical Leave Act allows caregivers a three-month leave from their work, but the employers are not required to pay you during that time. Caregiver Jody Gastfriend wrote in the Harvard Business Review that, “on average, caregivers miss 6.6 workdays a year. The lost productivity adds up to a big cost to companies – to the tune of $17 to $33 billion annually. And since getting rid of children or parents is not an option, exiting the workplace is often an overwhelmed caregiver’s last resort.”   Now, there are ways that you can make this work and caregiving balance work – without leaving your job. First, check to see if your employer offers any eldercare benefits. If they do, you’ll be able to come up with a plan with your company for the future ahead. If not, look into backup care programs like adult day care facilities, volunteer services, or even friends and family with some extra time on their hands. The hard truth is that this isn’t something you can do alone, especially if you’re working. But once you have a plan in line for how your parent will be cared for when you’re away – you will be able to handle work while caregiving much more efficiently – and at less of a sacrifice to your career. Financial sacrifices are another huge burden for family caregivers. Many caregivers choose this route in order to save on money – but don’t quite realize just how much they’ll end up spending. According to the Associated Press and the NORC Center for Public Affairs Research, 41% of caregivers have been forced to dip into their personal savings, and 25% have cut back on their retirement fund. NORC also found that eight in ten caregivers spend their own money on caregiving costs. AARP found that “family caregivers spend an average of nearly $7000 a year of their own money,” on caregiving. Of course, this is still significantly less than the cost of assisted living, which is around $1000 to $5000 a month. Unexpected costs of family caregiving can come in many forms. You might need to install safety bars, wheelchair ramps, shower benches and other precautions in your loved one’s home to make it safer. You could also be hit with transportation costs, the cost of medical supplies, and the cost of feeding another person. If your loved one moves into your house, your utilities could increase. Now, if the person you’re looking after has Medicaid, you might be able to be paid for being their caregiver. Look into your state law as well as your parents’ insurance plan. Otherwise, try to balance out the new payments by seeking senior volunteer services for extra help, or seeking assistance from family friends for things like grocery runs. The financial burden can be severe, but at home caregiving is the least expensive option for many families. Socialization is another major sacrifice for family caregivers. Especially for those sandwiched between their elderly parents and their young children, who are also working full time, finding extra time to see friends can seem impossible. Socialization can do wonders for our mental health. Laughing with friends, as they say, is the best medicine. So, without the opportunity to see friends, you might feel pretty isolated. Isolation, unsurprisingly, can lead to depression – especially when it’s accompanied by the high emotional and physical stress of caring for an ageing loved one. While it might seem like less time with friends is no big deal, missing out on the nights with friends can be more painful than you might expect – especially if you have to scroll through happy pictures of your friends on Instagram. You might have to miss important events – like weddings, birthday parties, or graduations – if your back up caregiver cancels at the last minute, or your mother or father is having a tough day. Luckily, the age of Zoom has provided new opportunity for virtual socialization. Now, it’s standard to meet with friends for a morning coffee over the laptop cam – and I highly recommend it. Take advantage of the technology at your disposal to meet up with friends from time to time, if you can’t do it in person. It’s amazing how much a few minutes with a pal can help your mental health – and get you re-energized to go back to your role as a caregiver when the call is over. Another sacrifice too often made is with personal care. According to the NORC survey, one third of respondents said they have neglected dental care, health exams, and forgone medical treatments. 39% of participants said they have a physical or mental health condition that impacts their daily life – and that their health issue, combined with their responsibilities as a caregiver, makes it much more difficult to manage their own health. According to Next Avenue, “many caregivers don’t discuss the issues with their doctors, even as they make sure their loved ones’ medical needs are met.” Many doctors simply don’t know how their patients are struggling – but if they did, they might be able to offer solutions or help the caregiver come up with a plan to ease some of the pressure. When we neglect our own health, it can be detrimental. The last thing we want as caregivers, is to find out too late that we have a health issue we could have treated had we not canceled our last three doctor appointments. While it might seem selfish to spend time on our own health when our parent needs us, it’s essential. We can’t be a great caregiver if we are suffering with our health – and something as small as a tooth ache could be an indicator of a bigger problem – so never ignore your own health needs because you feel guilty or are afraid you don’t have time. This is something that you must make the time for – because sacrificing good health just isn’t worth it. In addition to neglecting health matters, some caregivers sacrifice personal hygiene or other daily care. If you’re so overwhelmed that you just don’t have time to take a shower, or change out of yesterday’s clothes, this is a big indicator that you need some extra help. Never be afraid to delegate – it doesn’t make you any less of a caregiver. No one can do everything, after all, even if we want to. And, again, when we make more time for ourselves, we will be in a better place to be there for our loved one. Now, as plentiful as the sacrifices are – it’s important to remember that this time in your life will not last forever. If you feel that you are so stressed and under so much pressure that you are unable to appreciate these precious years with your loved one, it might not be worth the sacrifice. If that’s the case – don’t feel ashamed. The earlier you can come to that realization, the sooner you and your loved one can work to find the best possible plan. At the same time, if you feel that being a caregiver is giving you a chance to spend unparalleled, meaningful time with your loved one – then it all just might be worth it. To help with the stress and bring in the reward, think about how you can make the experience more joyful for both of you. Play board games, cook fun themed dinners, invite friends over to socialize with both of you from time to time (even over Zoom). If your parent is stuck in bed, have movie nights complete with your loved one’s favorite snacks. In these ways, you’ll be giving both you and your parent a break from the stress of everyday life. You’ll be savoring the happy moments, holding onto them when they mean the most. In addition to savoring those little moments – find time to savor by yourself. Read a book when you can, go for walks, enjoy a hobby like playing an instrument or painting. The more you can do for yourself, the less stress you’ll feel. That’s because by taking time for yourself, you’re giving your brain a chance to relax, to strengthen up, so you can be ready for anything. By understanding the sacrifices – from career, to finances, to mental health and socialization – you can have a better idea of whether being a family caregiver is the best choice for you. At the end of the day, it’s a tough job physically, emotionally, and financially – but with the right preparation and tools, it can be an extremely meaningful experience. We want to thank you for joining us here at All Home Care Matters, All Home Care Matters is here for you and to help families as they navigate long-term care issues. Please visit us at allhomecarematters.com there is a private secure fillable form there where you can give us feedback, show ideas, or if you have questions. Every form is read and responded to. If you know someone is who could benefit from this episode, please share it with them. Remember, you can listen to the show on any of your favorite podcast streaming platforms and watch the show on our YouTube channel and make sure to hit that subscribe button, so you'll never miss an episode. Please join us next time as we talk about Music and Alzheimer’s.   Sources: https://journals.lww.com/cancernursingonline/Abstract/1999/08000/Stress_associated_with_tasks_for_family_caregivers.2.aspx   https://www.aplaceformom.com/caregiver-resources/articles/personal-sacrifices-of-caregivers   https://www.forbes.com/sites/nextavenue/2018/11/11/the-personal-sacrifices-family-caregivers-make-for-their-loved-ones/?sh=490bc337f798   https://www.longtermcarepoll.org/long-term-caregiving-the-true-costs-of-caring-for-aging-adults/#1   https://www.agingcare.com/articles/the-sacrifices-of-caregiving-139977.htm   https://www.brainsupportnetwork.org/how-much-should-family-caregivers-sacrifice-panel-discussion-notes/   https://caregiverhelp.com/sacrifices-of-caregiving/   https://www.alzinfo.org/treatment-care/blogs/2017/08/the-sacrifices-of-caregiving/   https://www.carolinafep.com/library/the-sacrifice-and-commitment-of-a-family-caregiver.cfm   https://www.pbs.org/wgbh/caringforyourparents/handbook/caringcaregiver/whycaregivers.html   https://www.washingtonpost.com/business/the-cost-of-caregiving-a-sacrifice-for-our-entire-family/2017/12/01/7d8c157e-d55d-11e7-a986-d0a9770d9a3e_story.html   https://www.alz.org/help-support/caregiving/caregiver-health/caregiver-stress   https://www.agingcare.com/articles/strategies-for-coping-with-caregiver-stress-135916.htm   https://www.atrainceu.com/content/6-stress-management-caregiver-0   https://www.aarp.org/caregiving/life-balance/info-2019/caregiver-stress-burnout.html   https://www.focusonthefamily.com/get-help/becoming-your-loved-ones-caregiver/   https://www.aarp.org/caregiving/life-balance/info-2019/working-caregiver-tips.html   https://hbr.org/2014/07/no-one-should-have-to-choose-between-caregiving-and-work   https://www.nextavenue.org/sacrifices-personal-caregivers/  

Can you mandate vaccinations? And if you can, should you? What are the legal considerations of doing so? What are the medical and practical considerations? Finally, what do HR experts advise in order to maximize vaccination rates among employees? These are the answers that I attempt to answer in this episode. We are going to discuss this issue from three perspectives. We’ll consider employment laws surrounding mandating vaccines, medical considerations about the efficacy and safety of the vaccine, and the HR perspective of making employees comfortable and engaging with them surrounding the notion of getting the vaccine. We are joined by three panelists today. The first is Whitney Brown (https://lehrmiddlebrooks.com/professionals/attorneys/whitney-r-brown/), a shareholder with Lehr Middlebrooks Vreeland & Thompson, P.C. in Birmingham, Alabama. Whitney represents employers in a range of employment litigation, including harassment and discrimination cases, Family Medical Leave Act, and cases involving state law claims. The second is Kimberly Cassady (https://www.cornerstoneondemand.com/company/executives/kimberly-cassady/), the Chief Talent Officer at Cornerstone OnDemand. In this role, she works to ensure all Cornerstars realize their potential through the development of a unique culture that strengthens Cornerstone’s core values and supports our employee lifecycle to attract, develop and retain our global team. Finally, we have with us Sree Chaguturu, MD and Senior VP of CVS Health and Chief Medical Officer of CVS Caremark (https://www.caremark.com/). He focuses on enhancing the quality of services provided to millions of its members and patients, while also contributing to the overall mission of CVS Health. I also mentioned a few past podcasts that cover aspects of this episode. You can find them here: HR Works Podcast COVID-19 Update: Religious Exemptions to Mandatory Vaccines (https://hrdailyadvisor.blr.com/podcast/hr-works-covid-19-update-podcast-religious-exemptions-to-mandatory-vaccines/) HR Works Podcast COVID-19 Update: Can Employers Mandate COVID-19 Vaccines? (https://hrdailyadvisor.blr.com/podcast/hr-works-covid-19-update-can-employers-mandate-covid-19-vaccines/) HR Works Podcast COVID-19 Update: Latest Coronavirus Testing Methods (https://hrdailyadvisor.blr.com/podcast/hr-works-covid-19-update-latest-coronavirus-testing-methods/)

On the season finale of the HR Scoop, Carol Sladek, Partner at Aon and founder of the firm’s Work-Life consulting division, joins Andrea to discuss the evolution of employee benefits and well-being programs, wellness trends during the pandemic, and she shares a touching perspective learned through a challenging time in her life.

Today's edition of the Accident Recovery Team podcast kicks off a new series of discussions about worker's compensation law in the State of Kansas. Todd King and Gary Albin, partners in the Accident Recovery Team will discuss the current state of law as of 2020. Prior to the establishment of a worker's compensation statute, work related injuries were treated like any other injury. However, small employer's could suffer business ending claims and conversely, injured workers could be easily ignored by large companies that controlled the accident environment. In 1911, Kansas became one of the first state to establish a workers compensation statute, that minimized the burden of proof and fault, but also established caps or limits to recover. The statute mandated employer covered insurance for workers. The Kansas Workers Compensation Act is a state statute and as such is subject to legislative change and political influence. The fluidity of the system makes it even more important to involve an attorney that is current as to the status of the law. After an on the job injury, it is critical for the injured worker to take the steps to document, initiate, and protect their rights. Immediate notice to a supervisor and completion of an accident report only the beginning. There are strict time limitations and deadlines, which if not satisfied, could destroy the workers claim forever. If injured at work, one should immediately contact an attorney to understand all the deadlines and action that must be taken. This episode will discuss the basic aspects of Kansas Workers Compensation law from jurisdiction, payroll requirements, exceptions and exclusions, and what accidents are deemed to arise out of and in the course of one's employment. Future episodes will discuss medical treatment, damages, lost wages, caps and limitations, litigation and settlement procedures, post award rights and the overlap of social security, short disability, Family Medical Leave Act and more. Don't let your employer, or their insurance company, tell you what your rights are. They do not have your best interest in mind. Reach out directly to Todd or Gary at the Accident Recovery Team for more information. With decades of experience and continuing education on this topic, you can count on them after an injury at work. The consultation is always free and you pay nothing until we win.

Joe defines himself as an accidental entrepreneur whose parents were school system workers. He grew up knowing that he had to work hard at school to get excellent grades to get a good job. However, Joe was committed to taking a different route, as we shall learn from this podcast. What You Will Learn What problems does Joe solve for his customers? How Joe started his podcast What is the core of Joe’s business? Why searching for curiosity, ideas, and information outside your field is critical for the success of your business Importance of professional branding About the Family Medical Leave Act. What does it entail, and how does it operate? How Joe generated leads Joe’s strategy for content production and SEO How does Joe leverage content from his podcast to create different materials for a wide range of platforms? Who is the Ideal Joe Sanok’s client? What is Joe's definition of the big idea? Importance of outsourcing What you should do before  Long term habits you need to succeed Joe’s lead magnet course Importance of life blocking In this Episode: Joe started his career working at nonprofit organizations and a local community college. He would later launch private practice as a side job, where together with his team they helped people solve different issues. Some of these issues were depression, marital problems, and anxiety. Along the way, Joe discovered that he had zero experience in entrepreneurship. Armed with the desire to learn and enhance his knowledge, Joe started researching and learning. The thought of starting a podcast crossed his mind during that time. What method did Joe use when starting his podcast? Listen in and find out. After operating the podcast for some time, Joe decided to quit his fulltime job gradually while paying more time to the podcast. Joe explains that many people do not know how to use their time well and only operate through the society’s manual. According to Joe, this is not always the best method of doing things. Listen to Joe as he gives further details about this concept. He also discusses the timeframes within which he transitioned from his fulltime job to podcasting. When Joe finally decided that podcasting was what he wanted to do he had to do things differently. He hired a professional to redesign his website and also had his logo professionally made to give his brand an authentic look. Joe also discusses how he catered for the medical requirements of his pregnant wife. Listen in to get comprehensive information. At some point, Joe had to quit his fulltime job entirely, and he explains how he did it in the podcast. When it comes to SEO, Joe says they have a team that has excellent copywriting skills and experience. He tells Geordie about the strategy he uses when interviewing his guests to get as comprehensive information as possible. Joe says that he only works three days a week and explains why. He mentions that before adopting any big idea, it is critical to have sufficient space to ensure employees can work comfortably and with minimal distractions. He talks about a saying that they use as their guiding principle and a course he defines as their lead magnet. Listen to the podcast to figure it out. You will also get comprehensive details on how Joe developed his MVP. At some point, Geordie seeks to figure out how he (Joe) managed to convince his clients to pay colossal amounts of money. To this, Joe says that people will be willing to pay more for implementation as opposed to information only. Joe says that entrepreneurs should invest in the implementation process to charge more. How does Joe assist clients who want software as a service models? He admits that he has no experience in matters technology but he always refers clients to techno-savvy experts. Joe says he is happy with outsourcing his client’s technology-based needs and tells Geordie why he chooses that path. Listen keenly to find out why. According to Joe, entrepreneurs should only focus on only what they can do and not tasks they can easily outsource. Find out his explanation for this from the podcast. Joe reiterates the importance of meetings, especially if a company has a new assistant. He says, not only do they create an opportunity to receive feedback, but they also help people communicate with one another effectively. “Assess how you are using your time” is Joe’s message to anyone who is looking forward to launching their big idea. References Podcast Launch School Joe Sanok LinkedIn

In this episode of the Employee Survival Guide we discuss how to apply for disability benefits through your employer if you fear for your personal safety at the workplace due to Covid-19. Whether you have an anxiety or panic disorder or you are trying to protect your vulnerability due to Covid-19, Employment Attorney Mark Carey will give you a short guide about how to apply for your employer's Short Term Disability benefits and Long Term Disability benefits under a federal statute called ERISA (Employee Retirement Income Security Act). Mark will also discuss the very important overlap with the Family Medical Leave Act, the Americans With Disabilities Act and state antidiscrimination laws. He will show you how protected you actually are against your employer unfairly terminating you for taking a much needed disability leave of absence due to Covid-19. For more information, please contact Carey & Associates, P.C. at 203-255-4150 or email at info@capclaw.com.

With just 50 days until a US election that Americans on all sides see as an existential struggle, local writer and podcaster Johan Moreno discusses with me the nuances of being a "moderate millennial" caught in the middle of a political spectrum of far-left and far-right ideologies in the United States. Johan and I also discuss our former lives as print journalists in Orange County and the best spots to eat in LA, OC, and IE. Correction: I discussed my Salvadoran family's history with the Farabundo Martí National Liberation Front (FMLN) and accidentally said "FMLA." While the Family Medical Leave Act is a progressive bill that also has revolutionary roots, it is not quite the acronym I meant to say.

In today's hot topic, I will talk about a woman who worked in a nursing home facility, requested a paid leave of absence and died later, after being denied the leave of absence. Hot topics will come from articles I find in the local or national news, yahoo news. CNN, Reuters, or other news outlets. In this hot topic, I will share with you your leave rights under Family Medical Leave Act and Families First Coronavirus Response Act. --- This episode is sponsored by · Anchor: The easiest way to make a podcast. https://anchor.fm/app

Hello! Welcome to another episode of Inside The Newsroom where today we welcome Betsy Sweet to the podcast! Betsy’s a veteran of Maine politics and is running for U.S. Senate, where she must defeat Sara Gideon and Bre Kidman in July’s Democratic primary, before taking on Republican incumbent Susan Collins. Our conversation centered around the ridiculous nature of U.S. elections that sees voters bombarded with political ads and door knocking for two years, before it all starts again for the next cycle. And we went deep into campaign finance laws and the history behind Citizens United, which allows corporations to fund candidates in the name of free speech. Up top is the podcast, down below is the post-game, but first my top stories of the week. Enjoy! ✊Picks of the WeekElon Musk — He’s back! The billionaire tech mogul appeared on Joe Rogan’s podcast for the second time, a year after smoking a blunt live on airFossil Fuel Bailout — Oil prices have tanked to their lowest in 15 years, but instead of keeping to their capitalist principles, oil firms are seeking a bailoutBibi Netanyahu — Israel’s Prime Minister is on the verge of forming a unity government delaying the country’s fourth general election in a year ❤️❤️❤️How You Like Me Now? ❤️❤️❤️Before you read on, please like this edition of Inside The Newsroom by clicking the ❤️ up top. That way I’ll appear in clever algorithms and more people will be able to read.Job CornerMore than 350 active journalism jobs, internships and freelance gigs are currently listed, with no position posted before March 1. Companies include CNN, the BBC, the NBA and Telemundo. Spread the word far and wide!Who is Betsy Sweet?There’s a saying that in order to know what a person is about, look at what they’ve done. Betsy’s been helping others for almost 40 years, whether it was writing and helping to pass the first Family Medical Leave Act in the country, getting rid of environmental toxins from building materials and children’s toys, or expanding the Human Rights Act in Maine, Betsy’s record speaks for itself. If and when Betsy wins June’s Democratic primary, she must topple Republican incumbent Susan Collins, who’s been a U.S. Senator from Maine since 1997. One of the most vulnerable Republicans in the country, Collins is against Medicare For All and the Green New Deal, and has voted with Donald Trump 67 percent of the time since he assumed office. Betsy 👇A Brief History of Maine PoliticsAs is often the case with many states, there’s a disconnect between Maine’s presidential and U.S. Senate voting history. Apart from Maine’s 2nd congressional district giving Donald Trump a single collegiate vote in 2016, the Pine Tree State has voted blue solidly since George H. W. Bush swept the country in 1988. Meanwhile, Betsy’s vying to become the first Democratic senator to represent the state since George J. Mitchell did so in 1995 — current senator Angus King has a mixed history but was elected as an independent in 2012.Credit: 270toWinThis is a massive part of U.S. politics that’s all too often glossed over, with most outlets labelling Maine a blue state, or West Virginia, for example, a red state, when in reality neither is any color other than purple. That’s why Betsy is running on a platform of issues that shouldn’t be seen as left or right, but rather up and down, supporting the average voter against big-money interests of corporations and billionaires.Where Do Campaign Contributions Go Once a Campaign Ends?It’s a question I’ve always wondered, especially on the presidential level where campaigns can be left with millions of dollars after they’re suspended. The 2020 Democratic primary field raised an estimated $2 billion million between the two dozen or so candidates, including the $1 billion Michael Bloomberg and $315 million Tom Steyer dropped on their campaigns. There are many paths candidates take. If you’re Elizabeth Warren, you might use the $11 million in hand to pay the $5.9 million monthly payment it cost to run your campaign. If you’re Beto O’Rourke, you might make donations to organizations including Everytown For Gun Safety and March For Our Lives, which champion gun control and is something Beto holds close to his heart after the El Paso mass shooting that left 20 dead last year. If you’re Mini Mike Bloomberg, you might transfer a cool $18 million to the DNC, making it the largest transfer by a presidential campaign in recent history. If you’re one of the many senators or representatives, you might transfer funds from your presidential campaign to your congressional campaign, so long as they don’t surpass limits on what donors had already contributed. Which raises the next question: How much does all the ad spending benefit local economies?Ad Spend in the Local EconomyWe know that more than $2 billion was raised by Democratic candidates in the 2020 primary race and the majority of that will have been spent in advertising. This means that early voting states such as Iowa, New Hampshire, Nevada and South Carolina felt a real cash injection from not only the increased advertising, but also from campaigns and reporters spending money on hotels, in restaurants and on rental cars for example. Research conducted by Rebecca Lessum, an assistant professor of economics at Carnegie Mellon University, and Carly Urban, an associate professor of economics at Montana State University, found that increased spending in a state around a primary can increase total per capita earnings in that quarter by up to 25 percent.If you follow elections in other countries, you’ll know that the U.S. system is an anomaly in that there’s barely a break in political campaigning. As soon as the current presidential cycle ends in November, it’ll be a few short months before activity resumes toward the 2022 midterms, if not right away. Compare that to the UK’s campaigning rules, which states that the official campaign period is limited to 25 working days. It’s why Betsy is among a growing number of people calling for limits to the campaign period in the U.S., so not to desensitize voters from the onslaught of campaign material.Citizens United IncPerhaps the main reason why U.S. presidential campaigns are so damn long is the money involved. Betsy and I discussed the need to reduce the influence money has on politicians and their policies, which in turn fuels the endless campaigning. That’s where Citizens United enters the fray, which was a landmark case in 2010 that ruled that political spending is a form of free speech protected under the First Amendment, and opened the door for corporations to spend unlimited amounts of money on political advertising. While the increased spending will inevitably benefit local economies, it reduces the power of each voter and allows lobbyists to buy candidates and elections.But it wasn’t always like this and doesn’t have to be this way. Between 1907 and 1970, a series of acts were passed limiting the influence of money in politics. And in 1971, Congress passed the Federal Election Campaign Act, which strengthened the requirement for candidates to publicly report their campaign finance and put limits on the amount they could receive in one go. But then in 2010, Citizens United paved the way for the open season system the U.S. has today. A full history can be found in the below video…Last week…#75 — Alex Schiffer (The Athletic) on the grind of making the jump from local to national journalism#74 — Major Garrett (CBS News) on the difference between asking Barack Obama and Donald Trump questions in the White House press briefing room… Next week#77 — Francesco Marconi on the future of artificial intelligence and machine learning in journalism#78 — Mark Gamaba (U.S. House Candidate OR) on his 30-year career in photo journalism and now running for national officeRelated podcasts…#73 — Nick Rubando (U.S. House Candidate OH) on winning the Democratic nomination for Ohio’s 5th district and November’s general election#68 — Mckayla Wilkes (U.S. House Candidate MD) on America’s draconian At-Will employment laws, and the need for Universal Basic Income#64 — Paula Jean Swearingen (U.S. Senate Candidate WV) on West Virginia’s toxic history with coal mining, and the impact of Alexandria Ocasio-CortezThanks for making it all the way to the bottom. Please like and share this edition of Inside The Newsroom by clicking the ❤️ below. That way I’ll appear in clever algorithms and more people will be able to read.If you haven’t already, please consider subscribing to get a newsletter about a cool news topic in your inbox every time I publish (1-2 times a week). You can find me on Twitter at @DanielLevitt32 and email me corrections/feedback or even a guest you’d like me to get on the podcast at daniellevitt32@gmail.com. Get on the email list at insidethenewsroom.substack.com

Join us as Law Talk Colorado news anchor Angeline Roles interviews employment law attorney Dave Scanga, partner with Hoskin Farina & Kampf, about new rules, guidelines, and resources for Colorado employers and employees to consider as businesses reopen in the Age of COVID-19. Scanga shares, for example, that some businesses have designated COVID-19 mitigation teams comprised of several employees to monitor guidelines and distribute the updates and company policy guidelines throughout the organization as a way to manage the rapid changes while ensuring their employees are safe. Questions of concern include: Does your business require masks per the rules? Does your organization require temperature-taking? What does that mean? How do you do it? Who does that? What are the liabilities? Where does the information go? Does the temperature-taking device touch the forehead? Are there privacy concerns? What if someone tests positive for COVID-19? What about paper? How long does the virus stay on paper? Did someone bring in paper? Discussion continues on employer responsibilities and worker rights with examples that include working remotely, Family Medical Leave Act, Cares Act and OSHA considerations, and more. Episode recorded April 30, 2020. Hoskin Farina & Kampf is headquartered in Grand Junction and has attorneys in Denver and an office in Gunnison. Thank you for listening!Helpful websites with specific guidelines referenced in this episode:Colorado Dept of LaborUS Dept of LaborEEOCADAOSHACDCSupport the show (https://lawtalkcolorado.com/support/)

On March 18, the Senate passed and the President signed into law the “Families First Coronavirus Response Act.” Among other things, this new law, set to take effect no later than April 2, 2020, creates a new paid sick leave mandate for all employers with fewer than 500 employees and expands the application of the Family Medical Leave Act to cover all employers in certain circumstances related to the coronavirus. Karen Harned and James Paretti will walk listeners through key provisions of this new law.Featuring: - Karen Harned, Executive Director, National Federation of Independent Business Small Business Legal Center- James A. Paretti, Shareholder, Littler Mendelson P.C.Visit our website – www.RegProject.org – to learn more, view all of our content, and connect with us on social media.

On March 18, the Senate passed and the President signed into law the “Families First Coronavirus Response Act.” Among other things, this new law, set to take effect no later than April 2, 2020, creates a new paid sick leave mandate for all employers with fewer than 500 employees and expands the application of the Family Medical Leave Act to cover all employers in certain circumstances related to the coronavirus. Karen Harned and James Paretti will walk listeners through key provisions of this new law.Featuring: - Karen Harned, Executive Director, National Federation of Independent Business Small Business Legal Center- James A. Paretti, Shareholder, Littler Mendelson P.C.Visit our website – www.RegProject.org – to learn more, view all of our content, and connect with us on social media.

On March 18, the Senate passed and the President signed into law the “Families First Coronavirus Response Act.” Among other things, this new law, set to take effect no later than April 2, 2020, creates a new paid sick leave mandate for all employers with fewer than 500 employees and expands the application of the Family Medical Leave Act to cover all employers in certain circumstances related to the coronavirus. Karen Harned and James Paretti will walk participants through key provisions of this new law.Featuring: -- Karen Harned, Executive Director, National Federation of Independent Business Small Business Legal Center-- James A. Paretti, Shareholder, Littler Mendelson P.C.

On March 18, the Senate passed and the President signed into law the “Families First Coronavirus Response Act.” Among other things, this new law, set to take effect no later than April 2, 2020, creates a new paid sick leave mandate for all employers with fewer than 500 employees and expands the application of the Family Medical Leave Act to cover all employers in certain circumstances related to the coronavirus. Karen Harned and James Paretti will walk participants through key provisions of this new law.Featuring: -- Karen Harned, Executive Director, National Federation of Independent Business Small Business Legal Center-- James A. Paretti, Shareholder, Littler Mendelson P.C.

In this episode we discuss the newly signed Cares Act aimed at providing aid to businesses and individuals that have been impacted by the Coronavirus and the resulting economic shut-down. The application process for the Cares Act loans will take the form of a modified 7a SBA loan and will be processed through SBA approved lenders. On this episode, we have bank representatives, employment attorney, FSU Economics professor and business leaders in the restaurant industry. A recent post re: the summary of the Cares Act:Senate Passes the Coronavirus Aid, Relief, and Economic Security Act (“CARES Act”)26 March 2020  Coronavirus Resource Center  BlogAuthors: Frank S. Murray Jr Jared B. Rifis Leah R. Imbrogno Jamie N. Class Matthew E. Sierawski Julia Di Vito Kaitlyn M. Foley As the coronavirus outbreak continues to wreak havoc on markets and industries in the United States and around the world, businesses are now confronting significant and unique challenges. Successful navigation of these challenges will require thoughtful and comprehensive planning. Foley has created a multi-disciplinary and multi-jurisdictional team, which has prepared a wealth of topical client resources (see Foley’s Coronavirus Resource Center) and is prepared to help our clients meet the legal and business challenges that the coronavirus outbreak is creating for stakeholders across a range of industries, including manufacturing, technology, solar, hospitality and travel, healthcare, food, fashion and apparel, and sports and entertainment. The Coronavirus Aid, Relief, and Economic Security Act (“CARES Act”) – Summary of Bill Language and Key TakeawaysOn March 25, 2020, the Senate unanimously passed (96-0) the Coronavirus Aid, Relief, and Economic Security Act (“CARES Act”), commonly known as “Phase Three” of coronavirus economic relief. The CARES Act provides much needed stimulus to individuals, businesses, and hospitals in response to the economic distress caused by the coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic. The bill passed on March 25 is not yet law. Until the CARES Act is passed by the House of Representatives and signed into law by the President, it is subject to revisions. The bill will now go to the House, which is currently not in session. The House may reconvene to address the bill or pass the bill by unanimous consent agreement. The House is expected to pass the bill without changes on March 27, and it will then be presented to the President for his signature.Additional information, updates, and analysis regarding the CARES Act will be posted on Foley’s Coronavirus Resource Center. Please check back frequently for updates. Foley is available to assist in interpretation of the CARES Act for your business and can help you find ways to claim and/or use available funding for your company. The CARES ActTop 10 Takeaways:Provides stimulus to individuals, businesses, and hospitals in response to the economic distress caused by the coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic.Creates a $349 billion loan program for small businesses, including 501(c)(3) non-profits and physician practices. These loans can be forgiven through a process that incentivizes companies to retain employees.Allocates $500 billion for assistance to businesses, states, and municipalities, with no more than $25 billion designated for passenger air carriers, $4 billion for air cargo carriers, and $17 billion for businesses critical to maintaining national security. The remaining $454 billion may be used to support lending to eligible businesses, states, and municipalities.Allocates $130 billion in relief to the medical and hospital industries, including for medical supplies and drug and device shortages.Expands telehealth services in Medicare, including services unrelated to COVID-19 treatments.Provides $1,200 to Americans making $75,000 or less ($150,000 in the case of joint returns and $112,500 for head of household) and $500 for each child, to be paid “as rapidly as possible.”Expands eligibility for unemployment insurance and provides people with an additional $600 per week on top of the unemployment amount determined by each state.Expands the Defense Production Act, allowing for a period of two years when the government may correct any shortfall in resources without regard to the current expenditure limit of $50 million.Provides the Secretary of the Treasury with the authority to make loans or loan guarantees to states, municipalities, and eligible businesses and loosens a variety of regulations prior legislation imposed through the Dodd-Frank Wall Street Reform and Consumer Protection Act, the Economic Stabilization Act of 2008, and others.Accompanied by supplemental appropriations to help the government respond to this pandemic.Summary of the CARES Act:Division A - Keeping American Workers Paid and Employed, Healthcare System Enhancements, and Economic Stabilization   Title I – Keeping American Workers Paid and Employed Act     Foley Title I Contacts: Jamie Class, Erin Toomey, Jessica Glatzer Mason, and Frank MurrayPaycheck Protection ProgramThe Paycheck Protection Loan Program, at a price tag of $349 billion, covers the period February 15, 2020 through June 30, 2020 and greatly expands SBA loan eligibility.  The loan program will allow businesses suffering due to the coronavirus outbreak to borrow money for a variety of qualified costs related to employee compensation and benefits, including (i) payroll costs, (ii) continuation of health care benefits, (iii) employee compensation (of those making less than $100K), (iv) mortgage interest obligations, (v) rent, (vi) utilities and (vii) interest on debt incurred before the covered period.The legislation greatly expands the number of businesses (including non-profits) that are eligible for SBA loans and raises the maximum amount for such a loan by 2.5 x the average total monthly payroll costs, or up to $10 million.  The interest rate may not to exceed 4%.Companies that employ no more than 500 employees are (or a greater number based on the size standard applicable to the industry) may be eligible.  Certain companies in the Accommodation and Food Services Industry (NAICS Code 72) may be eligible if they have no more than 500 employees per physical location. In most cases, the number of employees is counted together with all affiliates.Waives affiliation rules under 13 C.F.R.  121.103 for any business with less than 500 employees in the Accommodation and Food Services Industry, certain franchise businesses and small businesses that receive financing through the Small Business Investment Company Act.  Affiliation rules otherwise apply to determine eligibility.Waives the credit available elsewhere, personal guaranty and collateral requirements.For eligibility purposes, requires lenders to determine whether a business was operational on February 15, 2020, and had employees for whom it paid salaries and payroll taxes, or a paid independent contractor. (This is likely to be interpreted to replace the determination of repayment ability which is not possible during the crisis.)All or a portion of the loan may be forgivable and debt service payments may be deferred for up to 1 year.Entrepreneurial DevelopmentProvides funding to educate small businesses and their employees regarding (i) Federal resources available during this time, (ii) Hazards of COVID-19 and (iii) best practices around teleworking to prevent the spread of COVID-19.iii.  State Trade Expansion ProgramAllows for federal grant funds appropriated to support the State Trade Expansion Program (STEP) in FY 2018 and FY 2019 to remain available for use through FY 2021.Waiver of Matching Funds Requirement under the Women’s Business Center ProgramEliminates the non-federal match requirement for Women’s Business Centers for a period of three months. Loan Forgiveness Establishes that the borrower under the Paycheck Protection Program shall be eligible for loan forgiveness equal to the amount spent by the borrower during an 8-week period after the origination date on (i) rent, (ii) payroll costs for workers making less than $100K, (iii) interest on a mortgage, and (iv) utility payments. The amount forgiven may not exceed the principal of the loan. Incentivizes companies to retain employees by reducing the amount forgiven proportionally by any reduction in employees retained compared to the prior year.To encourage employers to rehire any employees who have already been laid off due to the COVID-19 crisis, borrowers that re-hire workers previously laid off will not be penalized for having a reduced payroll at the beginning of the period.Minority Business Development Agency Empowers the Department of Commerce, through the Minority Business Development Agency, to provide grants to minority business centers and minority chambers of commerce to provide education, training and advising related to accessing federal resources.vii. United States Treasury Program Management Authority The Department of the Treasury, consulting with the Small Business Administration and the Chairman of the Farm Credit Administration shall establish criteria to allow other lenders to participate in the Paycheck Protection Program, so long as such participation does not threaten the safety and soundness of the lender, as determined in consultation with the relevant federal banking agencies.viii.  Emergency Economic Injury Disaster Loans (“EIDLs”) For the period between January 31, 2020 and December 31, 2020 (the “covered period”) EIDL eligibility is greatly expanded to include any business with not more than 500 employees operating under a sole proprietorship or as an independent contractor, and any cooperative, ESOP and tribal small business concern with not more than 500 employees. The number of employees is determined together with affiliates.Furthermore, EIDLs may be approved solely on the bases of an applicant’s credit score or by use of alternative methods to gauge the applicant’s ability to repay. Additionally, applicants may request an advance of up to $10,000 within three days after the Administrator receives the application, subject to verification that the entity is eligible under this program. The advance may be used for any allowable purposes under §7(b)(2) of the Small Business Act and is not subject to repayment, even if the loan request is ultimately denied.Importantly, the CARES Act waives: (1) the requirement of personal guarantees for loans up to $200,000, (2) the requirement that the applicant must be in business for a year (but must be in operation on January 31, 2020), and (3) the credit elsewhere test.Establishes that an emergency involving Federal primary responsibility determined to exist by the President under Section 501(b) of the Stafford Disaster Relief and Emergency Assistance Act qualifies as a new trigger for EIDLs.Importantly, the CARES Act waives: (1) the requirement of personal guarantees for loans up to $200,000, (2) the requirement that the applicant must be in business for a year (but must be in operation on January 31, 2020), and (3) the credit elsewhere test.Subsidy for Certain Loan PaymentsFor loans under §7(a) of the Small Business Act, Title V of the Small Business Investment Act, and for loans made by an intermediary using §7(m) loans or grants, the Administrator shall pay the principal, interest, and fees owed for loans in regular servicing status for any such loans, whether on deferment or not, that were made before the enactment of the Act for the following 6-month period, and for any such loans that were made between the date of enactment of the Act and six months from such date. This does not apply to Payroll Protection loans or EIDL loans which have separate subsidy and repayment requirements.The payments shall be made not later than 30 days from when the first payment is due and shall be applied such that the borrower is relieved of any obligation to pay that amount. The Administrator shall coordinate with relevant banking agencies to request that lenders not be required to increase reserves because of these payments.The Administrator will waive limits on the maximum loan maturities for loans given deferral and extended maturity during the year following enactment. The Administrator will extend lender site visit requirement timelines as necessary because of COVID-19, to within 60 days of a non-default adverse event, and 90 days of a default. $17 billion is appropriated for the foregoing.BankruptcySection 1182(1) of Title 11 is amended to define “debtor” as persons engaged in commercial or business activities and their affiliates (excluding persons who primarily own single asset real estate) that have aggregate, noncontingent, liquidated secured and unsecured debts (at the date of petition filing or the order for relief) of $7,500,000 or less (excluding debts owed to affiliates or insiders), half or more of which arose from those activities.  Exempt from this new definition are any members of a group of affiliated debtors that has aggregate, noncontingent, liquidated secured and unsecured debts over $7,500,000 (excluding debt owed to affiliates or insiders); corporations subject to 1934 Act reporting requirements; and affiliates of an issuer under the 1934 Act.  National Emergency Act payments for COVID-19 by the President are exempted from “current monthly income” and “disposable income” when determining the power of courts to approve debtor plans rejected by trustees or claim holders. Debtors that have experienced material financial hardship due to COVID-19 can modify a plan confirmed prior to this Act’s enactment date if approved after notice and hearing, but only if that plan doesn’t provide payments more than seven years after the first payment was due under the original plan, and follows requirements of 1322(a)-(c) and 1325(a). This modification terminates one year after the enactment of this Act.Title II – Assistance for American Workers, Families, and Businesses      Foley Title II Contacts: Julie Lutfi, Ashley May, and Dick RileySubtitle A: Unemployment Insurance ProvisionsEligibilityThe law expands the scope of individuals who are eligible for unemployment benefits, including those who are furloughed or out of work as a direct result of COVID-19, self-employed or gig workers, and those who have exhausted existing state and federal unemployment benefit provisions.The only individuals expressly excluded from coverage are those who have the ability to telework with pay and those who are receiving paid sick leave or other paid benefits (even if they otherwise satisfy the criteria for unemployment under the new law).Administration of BenefitThe benefits are administered by each state and upon the state’s written agreement with the Secretary of Labor to provide the specific benefits.  States that enter into such an agreement with the Secretary of Labor will be reimbursed in whole or in part for the cost of the benefits plus administrative expensesTypes of Benefits ProvideThe law provides an increase of $600 per week in the amounts customarily available for unemployment under state law.  This increase applies for unemployment payments made from the date of the law’s enactment through July 31, 2020 (approximately four months).States can agree to provide pandemic emergency unemployment compensation to individuals who have either exhausted all of the benefits available to them under existing state and federal law or who are not otherwise eligible for benefits under existing state and federal law.  Individuals must be able and available to work and actively seeking work, unless they are unable to do so as a result of COVID-19 illness, quarantine, or movement restriction.States can agree to waive the waiting period for receipt of benefits so that individuals do not experience gaps in income.The federal government will temporarily fund short-time compensation under existing state plans.  States that do not yet have short-time compensation plans in place may agree to implement a plan, provided that employers who enter into short-time compensation plans must be required to pay to the state half of the short-time compensation paid under the planTime Periods for Expanded BenefitsThe law provides unemployment benefit assistance to covered individuals who are not otherwise entitled to benefits under existing state or federal law for weeks of unemployment, partial unemployment, or inability to work caused by COVID-19 during the period January 27, 2020 through December 31, 2020.  This includes any waiting periods for benefits under applicable state law.The total benefit may not extend beyond 39 weeks (including any unemployment benefits or extended benefits received under existing state or federal law), unless, after the law is enacted, the duration of extended benefits is extended, in which case the total benefit may extend beyond 39 weeks by that same additional period of extended benefits.The $600 weekly benefit increase will be applicable to weekly payments made through the end of July 2020.Protections Against Fraud and OverpaymentAny fraudulent intent or misrepresentations to obtain payments to which an individual is not entitled will result in ineligibility for any other unemployment compensation benefits under the new law as well as criminal prosecution. Overpayments may be clawed back by the state agencies.Social Security TreatmentThe additional unemployment compensation provided is not considered “income” for purposes of Medicaid and CHIP.Subtitle B: Rebates and Other Individual ProvisionsTax CreditsBeginning in 2020, "eligible individual" taxpayers can benefit from a tax credit equal to the sum of: (i) $1,200 for single filers ($2,400 for those filing a joint return) plus (ii) an amount equal to th eproduct of (a) $500 multiplied by (b) the number of qualifying children. However, the aforementioned tax credits will be “phased-out” by 5% (but not below 0) when such eligible taxpayer’s adjusted gross income exceeds: (i) $150,000 for joint-filers, (ii) $112,500 for heads of household, and (iii) $75,000 for all other types of filers.This means, for example, the tax credit will phase out entirely at $198,000 for joint-filers with no children.“Coronavirus-Related Distribution”A “coronavirus-related distribution,” as defined under the CARES Act, is generally defined as any distribution from an eligible retirement plan made: (i) on or after January 1, 2020 and before December 31, 2020, (ii) to an individual (a) who is diagnosed with COVID-19, (b) whose spouse or dependent is diagnosed with COVID-19, or (c) who experiences adverse financial consequences as a result of being quarantined, furloughed, laid off, had hours reduced, or other factors as determined by the Secretary of the Treasury during the COVID-19 pandemic.Tax Treatment of Coronavirus-Related DistributionsIndividuals who elect to receive a “coronavirus-related distribution” will not be subject to the traditional 10% tax penalty imposed under the Internal Revenue Code of 1986, as amended (the “Code”) for early withdrawals from eligible retirement accounts,unless the aggregate amount of such distributions from all plans maintained by the employer (and any member of any “controlled group” which includes the employer) to such individual exceeds $100,000. Coronavirus-related distributions made from both traditional eligible employer sponsored retirement plans and individual retirement accounts (“IRAs”) may be excluded from gross income.Repayments of Coronavirus-Related DistributionsAny individual who receives a coronavirus-related distribution may generally, at any time during the three (3) year period beginning on the day after the date such coronavirus-related distribution was received, make one (1) or more contributions in an aggregate amount not to exceed the amount of such distribution to an eligible retirement plan of which such individual is a beneficiary . The aforementioned repayments of coronavirus-related distributions for eligible retirement plans, will, to the extent of the amount of the contribution, be treated as having received the coronavirus-related distribution in an eligible rollover distribution,” and as having transferred the amount to the eligible retirement plan in a direct trustee to trustee transfer within sixty (60) days of distribution.Effects on the Limits on Loans from Qualified Employer PlansThe limitation on loans from any qualified employer plan made to qualified individuals will be increased from $50,000 to $100,000, and should the due date of any such loan occur between the date of enactment of the CARES Act and December 31, 2020, it will be delayed for one (1) year.Effects on Minimum Distribution ThresholdThe CARES Act temporarily waives the minimum distribution requirements for all “eligible deferred compensation plans.” This includes: (i) certain contribution plans (e.g. an employer purchased annuity contract), (ii) deferred compensation plans that are maintained by an eligible employer, or (iii) IRAs.  This applies for all distributions made on or after January 1, 2020.However, if this section applies to any pension plan or contract amendments, such pension plan or contract amendments will not fail to be treated as being operated in accordance with the terms of the plan during such period, solely because the plan operates in accordance with the CARES Act, so long as the amendment or contract in question has been in effect from its effective date until December 31, 2020.Any plan or contract amendments to which Section 2203 of the CARES Act (the section on temporary waiver of required minimum distribution rules) applies will not fail to meet the requirements of either the Internal Revenue Code or the Employee Retirement Income Security Act as a result of making such an amendment. However, this provision only applies to those amendments which are in effect during the period beginning on the effective date of the amendment until December 31, 2020.Tax Treatment of Charitable DonationThe CARES Act allows taxpayers to take an above-the-line tax deduction for charitable contributions of up to $300 for the tax year beginning in 2020.Additionally, except for certain exclusions specified below, the percentage and excess carryover restrictions on charitable and other “qualified contributions” (e.g. a contribution to a corporation, trust, a state, or an organization of war veterans, etc.) are disregarded.Exceptions to the CARES Act General Disregard of the Percentage and Excess Carryover Restrictions on Qualified ContributionsThe CARES Act treats individuals and corporations differently regarding the aforementioned exceptions, and such different treatments are described below.Qualified contributions for individuals will be allowed as deductions to the extent that the combined contributions do not exceed (i) the excess of the taxpayer’s adjusted gross income over (ii) the amount of the charitable contributions made by the individual under certain other provisions of the CARES Act (e.g., donations to a church, educational organization, private foundation, etc.). If such contributions exceed the foregoing limitation, they will be added to the qualified contribution excess, which is eligible to be treated as charitable deductions for up to the next five (5) successive tax years. Any qualified contributions made by corporations will be allowed as deductions only if these contributions do not exceed 25% of the taxable income of the corporation over the amount of all other charitable contributions allowed under the CARES Act. To the extent a corporation exceeds this limit, it will carry over the excess which will be eligible to be applied as charitable contribution deductions for the subsequent five tax years. This is provided that the excess qualified contribution amounts in question meet certain other restrictions, specifically, they must not exceed the lesser of: (i) 10% of the corporation’s taxable income or the total charitable deductions taken by the corporation during the taxable year over the sum of the contributions made in such year plus the aggregate of the excess contributions which were made in taxable years before the contribution year and which are deductible under this subparagraph for such succeeding taxable year; or (ii) in the case of the first succeeding taxable year, the amount of such excess contribution, and in the case of the second, third, fourth, or fifth succeeding taxable year, the portion of such excess contribution not deductible under this subparagraph for any taxable year intervening between the contribution year and such succeeding taxable year.iii.  Subtitle C: Business ProvisionsEmployee Retention Credit for Employer Subject to Closure Due to COVID-19Eligible employers will receive a credit against applicable employment taxes for each calendar quarter in an amount equal to 50% of the qualified wages with respect to each employee. The amount of qualified wages taken into account for each eligible employee, however, will not exceed $10,000 per calendar quarter and the credit will not exceed the applicable employment taxes owed for such calendar quarter. The aforementioned credit is not applicable if the employer is alto taking advantage of the small business interruption loan. An eligible employer is defined as any employer: (i) which was carrying on a trade or business during calendar year 2020, and (ii) with respect to any calendar quarter for which, (a) the operation of their trade or business was fully or partially suspended due to governmental order as a result of COVID-19, or (b) the  calendar quarter is within the period beginning with (1) the calendar quarter after December 31, 2019 for which gross receipts for the calendar quarter are less than 50% of the gross receipts for the same calendar quarter of the prior year and the ending with (2) the calendar quarter following the first calendar quarter beginning after the calendar quarter described in (1) for which gross receipts of the employer are greater than 80% gross receipts for the same calendar quarter in the prior year.Delay of Payment of Employer Payroll TaxesThe CARES Act will allow for most employers to defer paying their share of applicable employment taxes from the time the CARES Act is signed into law through December 31, 2020. Half of this deferred amount would be due on December 31, 2021 and the other half by December 31, 2022.Modifications for Net Operating Losses (“NOL”)There will generally be a temporary repeal of taxable income limitation including (i) in the case of a taxable year beginning before January 1, 2021, the aggregate of the net operating loss (“NOL”) carryovers to such year, plus the NOL carrybacks to such year, and (ii) in the case of a taxable year beginning after December 31, 2020, the sum of (a) the aggregate amount of NOLs arising in taxable years beginning before January 1, 2018, carried to such taxable year, plus (b) the lesser of (1) the aggregate amount of NOLs beginning after December 31, 2017, carried to such taxable year, or (2) 80% of the excess of certain taxable income.In the case of any NOL arising in a taxable year beginning after December 31, 2017, and before January 1, 2021, whereby (i) such NOL will be a net operating loss carryback to each of the five (5) taxable years preceding the taxable year of such loss and (ii) certain rules applicable to farming losses and insurance companies shall not apply.  There are additional rules that apply specifically to “real estate investment trusts” and life insurance companies.Modification of Limitation on Losses for Taxpayers Other Than CorporationsFor any taxpayer other than a corporation:For a taxable year beginning after December 31, 2017 and before January 1, 2026, subsection (j) (relating to a limitation on excess farm losses of certain taxpayers) would not apply; and ii.  For any taxable year beginning after December 31, 2020 and before January 1, 2026, any excess business loss of the taxpayer for the taxable year will not be allowed.In regard to treatment of capital gains and losses for purposes of calculating “excess business losses”: Deductions for losses from sales or exchanges of capital assets will not be taken into account.The amount of gains from sales or exchanges of capital assets taken into account will not exceed the lesser of (1) the capital gain net income determined by taking into account only gains and losses attributable to a trade or business, or (2) the capital gain net income.The amendments made in the aforementioned section shall apply to taxable years beginning after December 31, 2017.Modification of Credit for Prior Year Minimum Tax Liability of CorporationsThe corporate alternative minimum tax (AMT) was repealed as part of the Tax Cuts and Jobs Act, but corporate AMT credits were made available as refundable credits over several years, ending in 2021.  The CARE Act accelerates the ability of companies to recover those AMT credits, permitting companies to claim a refund now and obtain additional cash flow during the COVID-19 emergency.  Modification of Limitation on Business InterestThe CARES Act temporarily increases the amount of interest expense businesses are allowed to deduct on their tax returns, by increasing the 30-percent limitation (as imposed under the Tax Cuts and Jobs Act) to 50 percent of taxable income (with adjustments) for 2019 and 2020.  As businesses look to weather the storm of the current crisis, this provision will allow them to increase liquidity with a reduced cost of capital, so that they are able to continue operations and keep employees on payroll.Qualified Improvement PropertyThe CARES Act enables businesses, especially in the hospitality industry, to write off immediately costs associated with improving facilities instead of having to depreciate those improvements over the 39-year life of the building. The provision, which corrects an error in the Tax Cuts and Jobs Act, not only increases companies’ access to cash flow by allowing them to amend a prior year return, but also incentivizes them to continue to invest in improvements as the country recovers from the COVID-19 emergency. Temporary Exception from Excise Tax for Alcohol Used to Produce Hand SanitizerFor distilled spirits removed after December 31, 2019 and before January 1, 2021, such distilled spirits will be free of tax for use in or contained in hand sanitizer produced and distributed in a manner consistent with any guidance issued by the FDA related to the outbreak of COVID-19.Title III – Supporting America’s Health Care System in the Fight Against the Coronavirus      Foley Title III Contacts: Rachel O’Neil, Erin Horton, Anil Shankar, and Paul JosephSubtitle A, Part I:  Addressing Supply ShortagesProvides for the National Academies to examine and report on the security of the U.S. medical product supply chain in order to assess U.S. dependence on critical drugs and devices sourced outside of the U.S., and to develop recommendations to improve resiliency of the U.S. supply chain for critical drug and devices.Requires the Strategic National Stockpile to include certain types of medical supplies, including personal protective equipment (PPEs), and identifies respiratory protective devices as covered countermeasures for use during a public health emergency.Prioritizes the review of drug applications to mitigate emergency drug shortages.Creates additional reporting requirements for drug manufacturers to report a discontinuation and disruption of the sourcing of active pharmaceutical ingredients.Requires manufacturers of certain drugs and medical devices critical to public health during a public emergency to develop, maintain, and implement risk management plans related to shortages, creating an annual notification requirement of the same. Such manufacturers are also subject to shortage-related inspections by the Secretary of Health and Human Services (HHS).Subtitle A, Part II: Access to Health Care for COVID-19 Patients Permits group health plans and insurers to cover and reimburse providers of diagnostic testing relating to COVID-19 at pre-emergency-period negotiated rates, and sets reimbursement rates in instances without previously negotiated rates equal to the cash price for services listed on a publicly-available website or the plan or insurer can negotiate with a provider for a rate lower than such cash price. All providers of a diagnostic test for COVID-19 are required to publicize cash price for such tests. Failure to comply with these requirements could result in HHS assessing a civil monetary penalty of up to $300 per day.Requires health plans and issuers to provide for rapid coverage of “qualifying coronavirus preventative services” – an item, service, or immunization intended to prevent or mitigate coronavirus—and vaccines for coronavirus.Appropriates $1.3 billion for FY 2020 for supplemental awards to health care centers for the prevention, diagnosis, and treatment of COVID-19.Amends Section 330I of the Public Health Service Act, relating to Telehealth Network and Telehealth Resource Centers Grant Programs, and Section 330A of the Public Health Service Act, relating to the Rural Health Care Services Outreach, Rural Health Network Development, and Small Healthcare Provider Quality Improvement Grant Programs—an individual or entity affected by these grant programs should seek out an attorney to examine the effect of such amendments.Limits potential state and federal liability for volunteer health care professionals—who provide services without compensation or other thing of value—for harm caused to patients relating to the diagnosis, prevention, or treatment of COVID-19. This provision expressly preempts more restrictive state or local law.Amends certain federal regulations governing the confidentiality and disclosure of substance use disorder patient records (Part 2), including allowing certain re-disclosures to covered entities, business associates, or other programs subject to HIPAA after obtaining the patient’s prior written consent.Permits a state agency or area agency on aging to transfer, without prior approval, not more than 100% of the funds received by the agency to meet the needs of the state or area served, and provides that the same meaning shall be given to an individual unable to obtain nutrition due to social distancing as one who is homebound due to illness.Provides that within 180 days of the passage of the Act, the Secretary of HHS shall issue guidance on the sharing of patients’ protected health information (PHI) related to COVID-19, including guidance on compliance with HIPAA regulations and applicable policies.Provides that the Secretary of HHS shall carry out a national awareness campaign relating to the importance and safety of blood donation, and the need of for donations for the blood supply during a public health emergency.iii.  Subtitle A, Part III:  Innovation Provides for using competitive procedures to enter into transactions to carry out public-health emergency health related projects and prohibits canceling those contracts solely because the emergency ends.Includes new provisions to expedite the development and approval of drugs to prevent or treat diseases in animals that are could have significant adverse consequences for humans.Subtitle A, Part IV:  Health Care WorkforceApproves appropriations for a variety of health professions-related programs, with particular focus on programs serving medically underserved populations (rural and geriatric).Subtitle B:  Education ProvisionsWaives requirement for certain higher education institutions to match federal funding and allows certain institutions to transfer unexpended allotment.Permits certain higher education institutions to use their allocations of Supplemental Educational Opportunity Grants for emergency financial aid for students.Permits certain higher education loan borrowers flexibility in repaying loans or returning grants during a qualified emergency.Permits certain students to complete distance education and certain students of foreign institutions to take classes in the United States.Allows the Secretary of Education to issue waivers upon request relating to assessments, accountability, and related reporting requirements, and requirements for state and local educational agencies and Indian Tribes to receive funding.Allows the Secretary of Education to grant a deferment to an institution that received a loan under Part D of Title III of the Higher Education Act.Payments on student loans held by the Department of Education are suspended for 6 months, and the Secretary of Education shall suspend all involuntary collection activities during the period of payment suspension.The Corporation for National and Community Service can allow individuals to accrue service hours and may permit certain grants funds.Not more than 20% of the total amount allocated to a local area under 29 U.S.C. 3151 et seq. may be used for administrative costs.For the program year 2019, not more than 20% of the total amount allocated to a local area under 29 U.S.C. 3151 et seq., may be used for administrative costs of carrying out certain local workforce investment activities, if the portion of the total amount that exceeds 10% of the total amount is used to respond to qualifying emergency.  For the program year 2019, certain unobligated funds reserved by a governor for statewide activities under the Workforce Innovation Opportunity Act may be used for statewide rapid response activities, or in certain circumstances, released to local boards impacted by the coronavirus.Gives the Secretary of Education authority to waive certain eligibility requirements, wait periods, and allotment requirements under the Higher Education Act for a period of time.Authorizes the Secretary of Education to modify the required and allowable uses of funds for grants and to modify any federal share or other financial matching requirement for a grant awarded under certain provisions of the Higher Education Act to an institution of higher education or other grant recipient (not including an individual recipient of Federal student financial assistance) as a result of a qualifying emergency.Allows the Secretary of Education to modify the categories of extenuating circumstances under which a grant recipient may be excused from fulfilling a portion of a service obligation under title IV of the Higher Education Act and must consider teaching service that is part-time or temporarily interrupted due to the emergency to be full-time service.  Requires the Secretary of Education to waive certain years of teaching service requirements under the Higher Education Act in certain circumstances.Subtitle C: Labor ProvisionsPaid Public Health Emergency Leave MinimumsEmployers may, but are not required to, pay any more than $200 per day and $10,000 in the aggregate for each employee for public health emergency leave under section 110(b)(2)(B) of the Family & Medical Leave Act of 1993 as amended by the Emergency Family and Medical Leave Expansion Act.Rehire Eligibility for Paid Public Health Emergency Leave EmployersFor purposes of public health emergency leave under the Emergency Family and Medical Leave Expansion Act, an eligible employee is an employee who has been employed for at least 30 calendar days by an employer with respect to whom leave is requested. The employee must be employed for at least 30 calendar days, which includes an employee who was laid off by that employer on or after March 1, 2020, had worked for employer for not less than 30 of the last 60 calendar days prior to the employees layoff, and was rehired by the employer.Emergency Paid Sick Leave MinimumsEmployers may, but are not required to, pay any more than:$511 per day or $5,110 in the aggregate for each employee when taking emergency paid sick leave if the employee is subject to a federal, state or local quarantine or isolation order related to COVID-19, the employee has been advised by a health care provider to self-quarantine due to concerns related to COVID-19, or the employee is experiencing symptoms of COVID-19 and seeking medical diagnosis; or $200 per day or $2,000 in the aggregate for each employee when taking emergency paid sick leave if the employee is caring for an individual who is subject to a federal, state or local quarantine order, or is caring for an individual who has been advised to self-quarantine due to concerns related to COVID-19, the employee is caring for the employee's son or daughter, if the child’s school or childcare facility has been closed or the child’s care provider is unavailable due to COVID-19 precautions, or the employee is experiencing any other substantially similar condition specified by HHS in consultation with the Department of the Treasury and the Department of Labor.Advance Refunding of Payroll Credits for Required Paid Sick Leave and Required Paid Family LeaveEmployers can apply a credit in the amount calculated under subsection (a) of section 7001 or 7003 of the Family First Coronavirus Response Act, subject to the limitations placed by subsection (b) of section 7001 and 7003, both calculated through the end of the most recent payroll period in the quarter. In anticipation of a credit, the credit may be advanced according to forms and instructions to be provided by the Secretary of Labor. The Act ensures employers that the Secretary of Treasury shall waive any penalty under section 6656 of the Internal Revenue Code of 1986 for failure to make a deposit of the tax imposed under section 3111 (a) or 3221(a) of such Code if failure was due to anticipation of credit allowed.vii. Subtitle D: Finance CommitteeAn additional safe harbor provision is added to section 223(c)(2) of the Internal Revenue Code, providing that a plan shall not fail to be treated as a high deductible health plan (HDHP) by reason of failing to have a deductible for telehealth and other remote care services.  Section 223(c)(1)(B) of the Internal Revenue Code is adjusted to include “telehealth and other remote care.” This addition allows an individual to have an insurance plan (for plan years beginning on or before December 31, 2021) that includes telehealth and other remote care without disqualifying the individual from owning an HDHP.Inclusion of Certain Over-the-Counter Medical Products as Qualified Medical ExpensesMenstrual care products are now included under the term “qualified medical expenses.” Increasing Medicare Telehealth Flexibilities During Emergency Period The amendment removes some limiting qualifications to section 1320b-5(b)(8), which allows for the Secretary of HHS to temporarily waive or modify the application of portions of the Social Security Act in the case of a telehealth service furnished in any emergency area during an emergency period.  The provision that sets out the defined term “qualified provider,” which limited 1320b-5(b)(8), is removed in its entirety. Enhancing Medicare Telehealth Services for Federally Qualified Health Centers and Rural Health Clinics During Emergency PeriodA new provision is added under Section 1834(m) of the Social Security Act (42 USC 1395m(m)), enhancing payment for telehealth services furnished via a telecommunications system by a federally qualified health center (FQHC) or rural health clinic (RHC) during an “emergency period” notwithstanding that the FQHC or the RHC providing the telehealth service is not at the same location as the beneficiary.  Payment methods for FQHCs or RHCs that serve as distant sites shall be based on payment rates similar to the national average payment rates for comparable telehealth services under the physician fee schedule under section 1848.Temporary Waiver of Requirement for Face-to-Face Visits Between Home Dialysis Patients and PhysiciansAmended section 1395rr(b)(3)(B) to allow the Secretary of HHS to waive the requirement that individuals with end stage renal disease receiving home dialysis must receive certain periodic face-to-face (non-telehealth) clinical assessments in order to be eligible to receive end stage disease-related clinical assessments via telehealth. Use of Telehealth to Conduct Face-to-Face Encounter Prior to Recertification of Eligibility for Hospice Care During Emergency PeriodSection 1395f(a)(7)(D)(i) is amended to allow a hospice physician or hospice nurse practitioner during an “emergency period” to conduct a face-to-face encounter via telehealth to determine recertification for continued eligibility for hospice care.Encouraging Use of Telecommunications Systems for Home Health Services Furnished During Emergency PeriodDuring an emergency period, the Secretary of HHS shall consider ways to encourage the use of telecommunications systems.Improving Care Planning for Medicare Home Health ServicesCertain Medicare sections are expanded from being limited to the services of a physician to include services of nurse practitioners, clinical nurse specialists, and physician assistants that provide home health services.Adjustment of SequestrationA temporary suspension of Medicare sequestration put into effect during the period of May 1, 2020 through December 31, 2020. The Medicare programs under title XVIII of the Social Security Act shall be exempt from reduction under any sequestration order during the period.Medicare Hospital Inpatient Prospective Payment System Add-On Payment for COVID-19 Patients During Emergency PeriodThe Secretary of HHS will increase the weighting factor for coronavirus-diagnosed patients discharged during the emergency period. The weighting factor is used by the Secretary of HHS to reflect the relative hospital resources used with respect to discharges for a particular group compared to discharges within other groups.Increasing Access to Post-Acute Care During Emergency PeriodDuring the emergency period, the Secretary of HHS will waive the requirement that patients of inpatient rehabilitation facilities receive at least 15 hours of therapy per week.  For long-term care hospitals furnishing services during the emergency period, the Secretary of HHS will further waive discharge percent requirements and the general application of site neutral payment rates.Revising Payment Rates for Durable Medical Equipment Under the Medicare Program Through Duration of Emergency PeriodThe Secretary of HHS shall apply the transition rule, described in 42 C.F.R. § 414.210(g)(9)(iii), to items and services furnished in rural areas and noncontiguous areas as planned through December 31, 2020, and through the duration of the emergency period.  For areas other than rural and noncontiguous areas, the Secretary of HHS shall apply the transition rule described in 42 C.F.R. § 414.210(g)(9)(iv) through the remainder of the emergency period.Coverage of the COVID-19 Vaccine Under Part B of the Medicare Program Without Any Cost-SharingThe term “medical and other health services” is expanded to include “COVID-19 vaccine and administration.”  The deductible described in section 1395l(b) shall not apply with respect to a COVID-19 vaccine and its administration.Requiring Medicare Prescription Drug Plans and MA-PD Plans to Allow for Fills and Refills of Covered Part D Drugs for up to a 3-Month SupplyDuring the emergency period, a prescription drug plan or MA-PD plan shall permit a part D eligible individual reenrolled in such plan to obtain a single fill or refill the total day supply prescribed for such individual for a covered part D drug.Providing Home and Community-Based Services in Acute Care HospitalsThe prohibition that nothing in section 1395a allows the Secretary of HHS authorization to limit the amount of payment that may be made under a plan for home-and-community care is expanded to include home and community-based services, self-directed personal assistance services, or home and community-based attendant services.  The provision is also expanded to clarify that the section shall not be construed to prohibit receipt of any care or services specified in paragraph (1) in an acute care hospital, provided certain requirements are met.Clarification Regrading Uninsured Individuals The Families First Coronavirus Response Act, enacted last week, added subsection (ss) to section 1396a, which defined “uninsured individual” as those not described in section 1396a(a)(10)(A)(i) and not enrolled in certain health care programs. The CARES Act amends this definition to exclude subsection VIII if the individual is a resident of a state that does not furnish medical assistance as described.    Clarification Regarding Coverage of COVID-19 Testing ProductsThe Families First Coronavirus Response Act, enacted last week, added COVID-19 testing to section 1396d, which provides medical assistance payments under certain conditions. The CARES Act amends this section by removing the requirement that the in-vitro diagnostic products administered are approved, cleared, or authorized under sections 510(k), 513, 514, or 564 of the Federal Food, Drug, and Cosmetic Act.Amendment Relating to Reporting Requirements with Respect to Clinical Diagnostic Laboratory TestsThe CARES Act extends the dates by one year for the reporting periods in section 1395m-1(a)(1)(B).  The applicable prohibition that payment amounts determined under section 1395m-1 shall not result in a reduction in payments, as defined by the subsection, for a clinical diagnostic laboratory test is expanded to 2017 through 2024.   The applicable percentages used to determine the limits on reductions in payment defined in 1395m-1(b)(3)(A) are adjusted to include a new clause for 2021, which makes the new applicable percentage zero (0) for 2021.Expansion of Medicare Hospital Accelerated Payment Program During the COVID-19 Public Health EmergencyMandates that the Secretary of HHS expand the accelerated payment program to hospitals experiencing significant cash flow problems during the “emergency period.” Exception for Certain States from Enhanced FMAP Requirements Provides that states may receive the temporary increase of Medicaid Federal Medical Assistance Percentage (FMAP) (authorized under the Families First Act enacted last week) notwithstanding the requirement to not impose premiums on beneficiaries, for a period of 30 days.viii.  Subtitle E, Part I: Medicare ProvisionsExtension of Funding for Quality Measure Endorsement, Input, and SelectionThe Social Security Act is amended to increase the amount allotted for this fiscal year ending on October 1, 2020 from $4,830,000 to $20,000,000 and for the period beginning on October 1, 2020 and ending on November 30, 2020, the amount equal to the pro rata portion of $20,000,000. Extension of Funding Outreach and Assistance for Low-Income ProgramsThe amount allocated for state health insurance programs shall be $13,000,000 for this fiscal year. For the period beginning on October 1, 2020 and ending on November 30, 2020, the amount available will be equal to the pro rata portion of $13,000,000.The amount allocated for area agencies on aging shall be $7,500,000 for the fiscal year of 2020. For the period beginning on October 1, 2020 and ending on November 30, 2020, the amount available will be equal to the pro rata portion of $7,500,000.The amount allocated for aging and disability resource centers shall be $5,000,000 for fiscal year 2020. For the period beginning on October 1, 2020 and ending on November 30, 2020, the amount available will be equal to the pro rata portion of $5,000,000.The amount allocated for grant or contract with national center for benefits and outreach enrollment is now $12,000,000 for the 2020 fiscal year ending on October 1, 2020. For the period beginning on October 1, 2020 and ending on November 30, 2020, the amount available will be equal to the pro rata portion of $12,000,000.Subtitle E, Part II: Medicaid ProvisionsExtension of the Money Follows the Person Rebalancing Demonstration ProgramThe Deficit Reduction Act of 2005 section 6071(h)(1)(G) is amended to allocate $337,500,000 for the period beginning on January 1, 2020 and ending on September 30, 2020. For the period beginning on October 1, 2020 and ending on November 30, 2020, the amount available will be equal to the pro rata portion of $337,500,000.Extension of Spousal Impoverishment ProtectionsExtends the protections through November 30, 2020.Allows the State to disregard the income of a spouse and conduct an analysis solely on an individual’s eligibility for medical assistance on the basis of reduction of income.Delay of DSH ReductionsThis section removes the $4 billion DSH reductions for federal fiscal year 2020 and delays the cuts from taking effect December 1, 2020. Extension and Expansion of Community Mental Health Services Demonstration ProgramExpands the Protecting Access to Medicare Act of 2014.According to this section not later than 6 months after the date of enactment, the Secretary shall select two states, in addition to the eight States already listed, to participate in two-year demonstration programs that meet the requirements of this subsection.The requirements are states that:Were awarded planning grants, Applied to participate in the demonstration programs under this subsection but were not selectedThe Secretary shall use the results of its evaluation of the state’s original application and shall not require the submission of any additional application.If a state is selected it is required to: Submit a plan to monitor certified community behavioral health clinics under the demonstration program to ensure compliance with certified community behavioral health criteria during the demonstration period; and Commit to collecting data, notifying the Secretary of any planned changes that would deviate from the prospective payment system methodology outlined in the state’s demonstration application, and obtaining approval from the Secretary of any such change before implementing change.The Federal matching percentage applicable to amounts expended by states participating in the demonstration program under this subsection shall apply to amounts expended by the state during the fiscal period that begins on January 1, 2020 if the state was participating in the demonstration program as of January 1, 2020 and shall apply to amount expensed by the state during the first fiscal period the state participates if the state was selected pursuant to the expansion. Subtitle E, Part III: Human Services and Other Health ProgramsExtension of Sexual Risk Avoidance Education ProgramSection 510 of the Social Security Act is amended to extend the time through 2020 instead of ending in May 22, 2020 and to change the fiscal year to 2021. Extension of Demonstration Projects to Address Health Professions Work-Force NeedsActivities authorized by section 2008 of the Social Security Act shall continue through November 30, 2020. Extension of the Temporary Assistance for Needy Families Program and Related ProgramsActivities authorized by part 1 of title IV and section 1108(b) of the Social Security Act shall continue through November 30, 2020. Subtitle E, Part IV: Public Health ProvisionsExtension for Community Health Centers, the National Health Service Corps, and Teaching Health Centers that Operate GME ProgramsThe amount allocated for community health centers under the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act is increased to $4,000,000,000 for fiscal year 2020 and $668,493,151 for the period beginning on October 1, 2020 and ending on November 30, 2020.The amount allocated for the National Health Service Corps is now $310,000,000 for fiscal year 2020 and $51,808,219 for the period beginning on October 1, 2020 and ending in November 30, 2020.The amount allocated for teaching health centers that operate graduate medical education programs now extends through fiscal year 2020 and $21,141,096 is allocated for the period beginning on October 1, 2020 and ending on November 30, 2020.Diabetes ProgramsThe amount allocated under the Public Health Service Act for Type I will extend through the fiscal year of 2020 and $25,068,493 will be allocated for the period beginning on October 1, 2020 and ending on November 30, 2020.The amount allocated under the Public Health Services Act for Indians will extend through the 2020 fiscal year and $25,068,493 will be allocated for the period beginning on October 1, 2020 and ending on November 30, 2020.xii. Subtitle F, Part I: Over-the-Counter DrugsAmends Chapter V of the Federal Food, Drug, and Cosmetic Act (FD&C Act) to insert a new section regulating certain nonprescription drugs that are marketed without an approved drug application under section 505 of the FD&C Act.  This new section primarily achieves two goals: (1) reforms the regulatory process for over-the-counter (OTC) drug approvals permitting the FDA more flexibility to make changes administratively, rather than through the time-consuming full notice and comment rulemaking process; and (2) incentivizes pharmaceutical companies to research and manufacture innovative drug products by providing an 18-month market-exclusivity period to reward investments for new OTC drugs.Amends Section 502 of the FD&C Act, to clarify that an OTC drug which does not comply with the requirements of its OTC monograph, which is essentially an approved recipe for a drug product, is considered misbranded.  The FD&C Act prohibits the introduction of misbranded drugs into interstate commerce.Clarifies that nothing in the CARES Act will apply to drugs previously excluded by the FDA from the Over-the-Counter Drug Review under the original 1972 Federal Register document.Clarifies that sponsors of sunscreen ingredients with pending orders have the option to see review in accordance with the Sunscreen Innovation Act (SIA) or to see review under the new monograph review process.  The election must be made within 180 calendar days of the date of enactment of the CARES Act. Provides an annual procedure to update Congress on the appropriate pediatric indication for certain OTC cough and cold drugs for children under the age of six.  The evaluation consists of conditions under which nonprescription drugs are generally recognized as safe and effective.Makes technical corrections to the FDA Reauthorization Act of 2017 (Public Law 115-52).xiii. Subtitle F, Part II: User FeesDeclares that the fees paid pursuant to this section will be dedicated to FDA review of over-the-counter monograph drugs as set forth in the goals section and in letters from the Secretary of HHS to certain congressional committees.Establishes a new FDA user fee to allow the agency to hire additional staff members to ensure there is adequate agency oversight to approve changes to OTC drugs.Title IV – Economic Stabilization and Assistance to Severely Distressed Sectors of the United States Economy      Foley Title IV Contact: Christopher SwiftTitle IV of the Coronavirus Aid, Relief, and Economic Securities Act provides the Secretary of the Treasury with the authority to make loans or loan guarantees to states, municipalities, and eligible businesses and loosens a variety of regulations created in the Dodd-Frank Wall Street Reform and Consumer Protection Act, the Economic Stabilization Act of 2008, and others.ii.Subtitle A – Coronavirus Stabilization Act of 2020Emergency Relief and Taxpayer ProtectionsThe Act authorizes the Treasury Secretary to make up to $500 billion worth of loans and loan guarantees to eligible businesses, states, and municipalities. The term “eligible business” includes passenger air carriers or any other business that has not already received adequate economic relief in the form of loans or loan guarantees under other provisions of the Act. The Act reserves $46 billion to support passenger air carriers, air cargo carriers, and businesses important to maintaining national security. The Act establishes a $454 billion credit facility for Federal Reserve programs designed to support lending to eligible businesses, states, and municipalities. This program contemplates various loans and loan guarantees for distressed businesses.Businesses that receive loans through these Federal Reserve programs are prohibited from paying dividends or repurchasing stock (or other outstanding equity interests) while the loan or loan guarantee is outstanding, as well as for the 12 months following repayment. These businesses are subject to the same employee compensation restrictions as listed for air carriers, air cargo carriers, and businesses deemed important to maintaining national security. Although the Treasury Secretary can waive these restrictions, he must identify and explain the rationale for such waivers in testimony before Congress.Businesses that receive loans or loan guarantees through these Federal Reserve programs can only make loans (or other advances) to business that are incorporated in the United States. Transfers to subsidiaries and affiliates incorporated outside the United States are prohibited.The Act directs the Treasury Secretary to establish a program to provide low-interest loans for eligible businesses (including nonprofit organizations) with between 500 and 10,000 employees. Although these loans will require no repayment for at least six months, businesses and non-profit organizations seeking this support must provide a good-faith certification that they meet the following criteria:The company intends to maintain at least 90 percent of their current workforce;The company will not pay dividends or repurchase stock (or other equity securities);The company will not outsource or offshore jobs during the loan period or two years thereafter;The company will not abrogate existing collective bargaining agreements with labor unions; and The company will remain neutral regarding current or future union organizing activity.Limitation on Certain Employee CompensationThe Act also imposes certain compensation caps for officers and employees at companies  receiving loans or loan guarantees.  Under these caps, officers or employees that received $425,000 or more in total compensation in 2019 will have their future compensation capped at the amount they received that year.  This cap applies while the loan or loan guarantee is in effect, as well as to the 12 consecutive months after the loan or loan guarantee is no longer outstanding. The same restriction also applies to severance payments or other compensation received upon termination from businesses participating on the loan and loan guarantee programs.Additional caps apply for officers and employees whose total compensation exceeded $3,000,000 in 2019.  Under the Act, these individuals may receive compensation up to $3,000,000 plus 50 percent of the excess over $3,000,000 of the total compensation received by the officer or employee in 2019. For example, an officer or employee whose total 2019 compensation was $3,000,010 would be restricted to total compensation of $3,000,005 in subsequent years. Like the lower cap discussed above, this restriction applies while the loan or loan guarantee is in effect, as well as to the 12 consecutive months after the loan or loan guarantee is no longer outstanding.Continuation of Certain Air ServicesThe Secretary of Transportation may require any air carrier receiving loans or loan guarantees under Section 4003 to maintain scheduled air transportation services as the Secretary deems necessary to maintain service to any destination the carrier served before March 1, 2020. The Secretary of Transportation is to consider the needs of “small and remote communities” and “health care and pharmaceutical supply chains” when enforcing this portion of the Act.Suspension of Certain Aviation Excise TaxesThe Act suspends the imposition of aviation excise taxes as otherwise required under the Internal Revenue Code through December 31, 2020.Debt Guarantee AuthorityIn order to backstop solvent depository institutions, it appears that the CARES ACT allows the FDIC to establish a program to insure these institutions without regard to a maximum amount.  All such guarantees are to last at least until December 31, 2020.Temporary Government in the Sunshine Act ReliefIn the event that unusual and exigent circumstances continue to exist, the Board of Governors of the Federal Reserve System may conduct meetings with less restrictive and formal meeting notification and record-keeping requirements until December 31, 2020.  Temporary Hiring FlexibilityWithout regard to certain statutory hiring requirements, the Secretary of Housing and Urban Development and the Securities Exchange Commission are given flexibility to recruit and appoint candidates for temporary and term appointments as necessary to prevent, prepare for, or respond to COVID-19 during the “covered period” of the CARES Act.Temporary Lending Limit WaiverEnlarges exception to requirement on the maximum amount of loans and extensions of credit by a national banking association to include a nonbank financial company (as defined in Section 102 of the Financial Stability Act of 2010) and allows the Comptroller o

As we head into times of uncertainty people are wondering how they are going to pay their bills. Congress has recently passed a bill that will modify the existing Family Medical Leave Act to help families who have lost their jobs due to the mandated lock down. On today's episode we dig into an article published by The Hartford to help answer some questions about the new law and how it can help many Americans through these tough times. Below is a link to the article. https://www.thehartford.com/paid-family-medical-leave/federal-emergency-paid-sick-leave?cmp=EMC-GB-PFML-83761989 Show Sponsors: DroneQuote.net/businessbros www.CasanovaFishTacos.com www.ItsAllAboutTheKids.org Business Bros Merchandise: https://teespring.com/stores/businessbros Contact James for all your Insurance needs 619-884-0045 or James@SiasFirst.com OR CLICK ON THE LINK BELOW!!! GET A HOME OWNERS POLICY FAST!! www.businessbros.biz/homeowner JOIN THE BUSINESS BROS NETWORK www.businessbros.biz Are you EXP CURIOUS??? text: 123exp to 31996 for a 7 minute video on what it is all about. Want to be on an episode of Business Bros the #1 Podcast in San Diego? Call 619-884-4915 or Send us an email BusinessBros@SiasFirst.com so we can get in touch with you ASAP. Join the conversation or catch the podcast live on our social media feeds @BusinessBrosPod Facebook, Instagram and Twitter. You can listen to past episodes on our website www.SiasFirst.com. www.bensound.com

The world is facing a global crisis as the World Health Organization has declared the Coronavirus disease a pandemic. Besides it affecting the health sector, it has great impacts on the economic industry, with countries in enforcing lockdown measures, and businesses suffering greatly because of these. There is also rampant speculation and misinformation going around, particularly in workplaces that have caused confusion among employees and employers alike. In this episode of Walking Papers, attorney Josh Van Kampen of Van Kampen Law discusses the various laws and regulations that are currently in place that can guide workers and businesses during this time. While there is no specific statute that addresses the Coronavirus, employees can refer to current laws in place. One of which is the Occupational Safety Health Administration Act 02:49 which allows you to refuse to report to work if there is risk of imminent death or serious injury. Another is the Family Medical Leave Act, affording you protection and compensation when you decide to not report for work. 09:51 While there’s still a lot of gray area in terms of the law, it would be best to pay close attention to government announcements and interventions that would ultimately guide you to the best course with regards employment. Connect with us: Our website:  www.ncemploymentattorneys.com (http://www.7mileadvisors.com/) Follow us on (https://www.youtube.com/user/vankampenlaw) . For more information on how Van Kampen Law can help you, call 704-247-3245 or contact the us online by filling out our confidential online intake form (https://www.ncemploymentattorneys.com/client-intake-form/) . The Walking Papers is a bi-weekly podcast by Van Kampen Law, a plaintiff-side employment law firm based out of Charlotte, NC, This podcast aims to give listeners, who are on the wrong side of some sort of situation at work, practical advice on how to turn the tables on their employers. This podcast is just an educational resource. It does not constitute legal advice and is no substitute for consulting an employment attorney about your unique situation before making legal decisions. Visit our website for more online resources and videos at NCemploymentattorneys.com, or better yet, call (704) 247-3245 for a free initial intake interview so Van Kampen Law can evaluate your case.

Dove Men+Care is one of the few brands in the world that takes a definitive stance on a significant political and social issue. They put money and promotional power behind passing the Family Medical Leave Act. Jordan Lewis, Dove Men+Care brand manager, talks to Jason Falls about the company's position, its thoughts on influencers and marketing success.  Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Top FMLA mistakes: “Deeming” when you shouldn'tIn this episode, Ellen McCann explains how employers often incorrectly deem eligibility for the Family Medical Leave Act in two major ways. She offers best practices and advice on what to do if you're unable to deem employees eligible for FMLA.  Top takeaways:It's important you understand why you cannot deem an employee eligible for FMLA if they are not eligible [01:34]Employers tend to violate this rule in two major ways: 1) Deeming an employee eligible who hasn't met those strict eligibility requirements, and 2) saying a leave event is FMLA when it isn't covered [03:34]If you wish to be more generous for employee eligibility or types of leave, the solution is to craft a corporate leave policy. [04:25]Make sure you're doing the employee evaluation for all employees applying for FMLA: Resist the temptation to be more generous without doing your homework. Count the hours worked, the number of employees in the office the employee is reporting into. [07:18]About the Speaker:Ellen McCannAssistant Vice President, Legal Counsel, Unum's Employment Law GroupEllen McCann is an acclaimed, national speaker on leave management issues including FMLA and ADA. She is also a certified trainer for SHRM and CE credit. As Assistant Vice President, Legal Counsel for Unum's Employment Law Group, Ellen advises Human Resources on all employment-related legal issues. She also provides daily legal support to Unum's Absence Management Center, which provides leave administration services to its customers. Presently, Unum's leave administration product includes administration of over 200 state leave laws in addition to FMLA and covers over 2.2 million lives. Resources: Download our FMLA Handbook here.What state laws apply to your business? Get the facts. Get in touch: hrtrends@unum.com(207) 200-6685

Scott Hickman and J. Baugh continue their HR discussion, this time with a focus on employment classification and the impact on pay, comp time, and the Family Medical Leave Act as well as how to address harassment in the workplace. To see this episodes show notes or to get more information, go to SVMIC.com.

With a new child comes more costs, so you may need more money. You may also need to take time off work to care for your child. Government and work benefits can help you adjust to your new life as a new parent. What are the ways to utilize these programs while pregnant? What exactly is the Family Medical Leave Act and how does it work? Plus, saving money with Flexible Spending Accounts and more!  Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

The guys are getting comfortable in the new studio! This week, the Podfather Mike Miles & Jersey Ed (Ed Chionchio Sr) want to discuss the in’s and out’s of FMLA. What is it? Who can use it? How does it all work? The Family and Medical Leave Act (FMLA) offers up to 12 weeks of unpaid job protection for certain types of employees. FMLA covers time off for the birth of a child, the illness or death of a family member, and the illness of an employee. Taking time off to receive treatment for mental health or substance use is covered by FMLA. Your employer wants you to be healthy! It costs much more to hire and train a new employee than it does to invest in the health and wellness of your experienced staff members. The alternative to taking the time to get treatment NOW is losing that job and employer-sponsored health plan. Short-Term Disability benefits can help to cover your salary while you are in treatment. Genesis House is one program that does a great job guiding clients through this process. They handle the paperwork and communicate with Human Resources as needed and requested by the client. The Podfather shares some details about how his friends, colleagues, and loved ones came together to support his treatment and early recovery. FMLA, Short-term Disability, and Employee Assistance Programs are incredibly valuable resources, but many employees just aren’t sure how to get started. If you are struggling and need help, go to the professionals. Give Jersey Ed or the Podfather a call to ask questions. Jersey Ed’s Podcast Pick of the Week: The Recovery Elevator Podcast hosted by Paul Church. https://www.recoveryelevator.com/podcasts/--The Friends in Recovery Podcast is brought to you by Genesis House Recovery (800-737-0933) and produced by Sweets' Podcast Studio in Beverly, Massachusetts. Inquiries and interested speakers can reach us at help@friendsinrecoverypodcast.com.Reach out to Mike Miles, MSW at Therapy Services in Chelmsford, Massachusetts at 978-459-4884. There are many ways to help someone that is suffering from addiction. There are professionals here to help you from staging an intervention to getting counseling as a family member and anything in between. If you or a loved one needs help, reach out to our panel at help@friendsinrecoverypodcast.com. National Suicide Prevention Hotline: 1-800-273-8255

Employee Well Being & Wellness and the new FMLA This week, join guest host Patrick Haraden, Employee Benefits and Risk Management Strategist at Arthur J. Gallagher (ajg.com/locations/massachusetts/boston-longfellow/ ) for a discussion of Employee Well-Being and the new Family Medical Leave Act.
 McNamara Financial is an Independent, family-owned, fee-only investment management and financial planning firm, serving individuals and families on the South Shore and beyond for over 30 years. COME SEE WHAT IT'S LIKE TO WORK WITH A FIDUCIARY. http://mcnamarafinancial.com/ Be sure to check out the new McNamara on Money website at: https://mcnamaraonmoney.com

Employee Well Being & Wellness and the new FMLA, Part 1 This week, join guest host Patrick Haraden, Employee Benefits and Risk Management Strategist at Arthur J. Gallagher (ajg.com/locations/massachusetts/boston-longfellow/ ) for a discussion of Employee Well-Being and the new Family Medical Leave Act.
 McNamara Financial is an Independent, family-owned, fee-only investment management and financial planning firm, serving individuals and families on the South Shore and beyond for over 30 years. COME SEE WHAT IT'S LIKE TO WORK WITH A FIDUCIARY. http://mcnamarafinancial.com/ Be sure to check out the new McNamara on Money website at: https://mcnamaraonmoney.com

Today, we’re talking to Alan Mosden.  Alan is the father of several children with special needs, who wrote a comment letter that addresses how the Family Medical Leave Act applies to IEP Meetings. In today’s episode, we discuss what a comment let is, and how FLMA applies to school care meetings, petitioning the government to get things done, and advocating for our kids.   Special Note: Nether Alan nor I are lawyers. So, although we talk about legal matters in this episode, do not take any of it as legal advice.  Consult your legal representative before implementing anything discussed in this episode.   Learn About & Register For The ADHD Essentials Online Parent Coaching Groups Here!   Guest Links: The Comment Letter (FMLA2019-2-A) discussed in this episode, in which the DOL concluded that FMLA covers an employee’s attendance at a school meeting where their child's IEP will be discussed.   Additional Links: The article written by Jeff Nowak about Aelan's Comment Letter mentioned in today's episode.   ADHD Essentials Links: Learn about & Register for the next round of The ADHD Essentials Online Parent Coaching Groups  Check out the ADHD Essentials Homepage Contact Brendan at brendan@ADHDessentials.com Join Our Facebook Community

When David Milender’s son was born he asked his employer for his 12 weeks off that the Family Medical Leave Act allows. They said he didn’t qualify because he’s a dad! He helped them realize that’s not true and he got his 12 unpaid weeks at home. He truly enjoyed his time at home and also thinks we can do better when it comes to time off for a growing family.

Do you worry that your job could be in jeopardy due to your struggle with fibromyalgia? Did you know that the Family Medical Leave Act can protect your job while you take time away to heal? Julie Hamilton is an expert on FMLA and has used it with her clients and in her own healing journey with fibromyalgia. She joins us today to detail exactly what the FMLA requires in order for you to take advantage of it, and to describe what situations the Act may cover on your own healing journey as a valuable employee.   Key Points "I used to be a good employee until fibromyalgia came along." There may still be ways for you to be that employee again, through using things like the Family Medical Leave Act (FMLA) to take some time off, to heal, and to feel better. Healing can be a full-time job in itself! The FMLA can cover your time away from work, and it also guarantees your job after your return to work. You do not have to be a full-time employee in order to use the FMLA. The Family Medical Leave Act also protects your confidentiality. There are a lot of rules and guidelines, both for the employee and the employer, in order for you to use the FMLA. Julie can help you understand these requirements. It is CRITICAL that you know how to navigate the rules and guidelines, otherwise your FMLA claim may be denied and your wages unrecoverable.   About Julie Hamilton Julie is a Certified Fibromyalgia Coach, Life Coach and Youth Life Coach. She has over 20 years experience as a Human Resources Director and Manager, with the last nine years in healthcare. In her role as an HR Director and Manager, she educated her coworkers, particularly nursing professionals, on the treatment and management of living with fibromyalgia.  Julie has worked with the Family Medical Leave Act (FMLA) since its inception in 1993, knows the requirements, and can effectively advise individuals on the necessities when working with their employer when they have a chronic disease. Julie’s specialty is helping young professionals who are frustrated with their health to excel in their career and regain their active social lives.    Links & Resources FibromyalgiaPodcast.com is the digital companion to this audio magazine, where you can find full show notes, links to the studies referenced in this episode, submit your questions for Tami Stackelhouse, and schedule a free consultation with a Fibromyalgia Coach. Get a free copy of Tami’s book, Take Back Your Life: Find Hope and Freedom From Fibromyalgia Symptoms and Pain at FibromyalgiaPodcast.com/books. The FMLA checklist walks you through all of the requirements and deadlines that you need to follow when applying to use the FMLA. Email Julie directly at JHamilton@CoachingPI.com for a copy. Julie also has an assessment tool to help you understand whether or not you need to request special work accommodations, if you need to use the FMLA, or if you need to file for disability. You can get that assessment on Julie's website: CoachingPI.com.

In this episode of our HR Law 101 series, attorney Tawny Alvarez discusses the Family Medical Leave Act or FMLA. In part 1, we discuss the federal act generally, including who it is applicable to, what rights an employee has, and how different terms in the statute are defined.

This week, Roqayah and Kumars are rejoined by Katy Slininger, a former postal worker and DSA organizer who recently chronicled her personal experience of pregnancy discrimination and unemployment in an article for Popula.com. Katy was a member of the ad hoc steering committee for the Boston chapter of DSA before moving to Connecticut, where she started a DSA organizing committee in the rural Northeast, known as Quiet Corner DSA. Katy fills Roqayah and Kumars in on what she’s been up to and why she left DSA, then details how she suffered as a result of the US Post Office management’s disregard for pregnant workers’ health and the failure of existing union and welfare state protections like the Family Medical Leave Act to help her. She goes on to describe being forced to quit and undertaking the grueling process of applying for jobs given the grossly inadequate protections of pregnancy discrimination legislation for blue-collar and service workers. The gang ends on a practical note, examining Katy’s call for more radical unions and considering what organizers need to do differently to ensure that freeing reproductive labor is a priority on the left. Follow Katy on Twitter @itsbreadtimebch, and read her piece ”Alienated Labor”. A transcript for this episode will be provided upon request. Please send an email to deleteuracct @ gmail to get a copy sent to you when it is completed. If you want to support the show and receive access to tons of bonus content, subscribe on our Patreon for as little as $5 a month. Also, don't forget to subscribe, rate, and review the show on iTunes. We can't do this show without your support!!!

Jeanne talks about the measles outbreak hitting unvaccinated kids and interviews Jessica Mason with the National Partnership for Women & Families about the 26th anniversary of the FMLA. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

The Family Medical Leave Act works for everybody. It also confuses a lot of people. The FMLA protects employees who are dealing with crisis situations in their immediate family from losing their jobs. And it protects employers from having to give PTO to everyone who darkens their door. The standards are strict, the rules complex, and keeping everyone in compliance is the job of HR experts like Sandy Krauer. If you have questions about your rights and responsibilities, either as an employer or an employee, Krauer has the answers on: What is FMLA? Who has to offer FMLA? Who can take FMLA? What constitutes a FMLA event? What happens after someone comes back from FMLA leave?

The Family Medical Leave Act works for everybody. It also confuses a lot of people. The FMLA protects employees who are dealing with crisis situations in their immediate family from losing their jobs. And it protects employers from having to give PTO to everyone who darkens their door. The standards are strict, the rules complex, and keeping everyone in compliance is the job of HR experts like Sandy Krauer. If you have questions about your rights and responsibilities, either as an employer or an employee, Krauer has the answers on: What is FMLA? Who has to offer FMLA? Who can take FMLA? What constitutes a FMLA event? What happens after someone comes back from FMLA leave?

Today we're talking with Erica Peterson, the founder of Moms Can: Code.When she became pregnant during her studies at West Virginia University, Erica was told that this ‘life choice' did not fit with her career progression as a graduate student.Instead of accepting that pregnancy and parenthood can hold someone back from professional achievement, Erica eventually created Moms Can: Code, a global community of moms who are learning to code and a training program to teach moms to code both online and in their local communities.This is an important conversation about the role of women and parents in the (tech) workplace, and one that shows why it shouldn't be a black or white decision between choosing to work or being there for your family. Enjoy!Topics Discussed in This Episode:[00:01:44] How Erica came to found Moms Can: CODE[00:07:03] What Erica did after receiving negative feedback about becoming pregnant during her graduate program[00:08:39] How difficult the decision was to leave her graduate program[00:10:11] How long it took Erica to apply for a new lab position[00:12:24] How long Erica thinks is the right amount of time to wait before going back to work after having a baby[00:16:05] What happened when Erica decided to take time off from the lab she worked at after having her baby[00:21:16] The Family Medical Leave Act and how it affects mothers[00:24:00] How doing science activities with her son and other parents and children helped lead to Erica founding Moms Can: CODE[00:25:52] How the culture affects the way employers think about family leave[00:36:51] Why being there for your family is as important as being there for your work[00:38:25] How Erica launched Moms Can: CODE[00:45:52] What happens when someone becomes a member of Moms Can: CODE[00:48:10] How the creation of the airbag demonstrates why women need to be involved in STEM[00:53:19] Why fathers need to take parental leave[00:57:54] The resource that Erica thinks will help people understand the need for a family-inclusive culture[01:02:53] How people can find out more about Moms Can: CODE

Episode 002- [Grief Unplugged Podcast] - Give Yourself Permission to Grieve Hello & welcome to the Grief Unplugged podcast. I am your host, Heather D. Horton.  Grief Unplugged is a podcast that frees professional women from the blockages of grief to find purpose in their pain.  This episode is fundamental to your grief journey - giving yourself permission to grieve.  I will explore and unpack what is grief and the grieving process, identify the many faces of grief, and validate the uniqueness of your grief experience. How do you keep going when you would rather stop waking up or crawl into a ball and never come out?  Give Yourself Permission to Grieve.  Grief is an inevitable part of life.  Remember that we live in a fallen world, where blessings and sorrows intermingle freely.  Grief knows no zip code.  It touches us all at some point in our lives in more ways than we realize or recognize.  It is unpredictable.  It is not mental illness or a sign of weakness.    It is the normal and natural response to trauma and loss. It is an act of love and compassion to ourselves when you allow yourself to work through it.  Trauma, includes not only serious injury to the body, as a result of physical violence or an accident, but also experiences that causes severe anxiety or emotional distress or that causes great disruption or suffering in our lives.  Loss is similarly defined as the condition of being deprived or bereaved of something or someone.   Grief is like the trunk of tree, but it has many, many branches – they are endless.    You may have recently experienced the loss of a loved one, be it a family member or friend, or years may have passed since the death occurred.  You may have just lost a job or been unemployed for some time.  You may be going through a divorce, just ended a relationship or need to end a relationship.  You may have now have an empty nest as you children/child went off to college or got married.  You may have a special needs child or be serving as the caregiver for a parent with dementia or cancer.   For any of you with children, do you remember your first-born’s reaction when the next sibling came along?  Maybe something caused you to lose sight of a dream you once held and you no longer can envision a way to get back there.  These are some of the many faces of grief – again, they are endless.  The most notable time where I had to give myself permission to grieve occurred after my mother and I were involved in a car accident 13 years ago.  I touch on that more in the first two episodes of my podcast that detail my story.  I suffered severe non-life threatening injuries but she succumbed to her injuries almost immediately.    I will be even more transparent and tell you the latest thing that I had to give myself permission to grieve over – leaving my job to become an entrepreneur.  Although I knew that God had called me to help individuals navigate through the wilderness of grief, I had to adjust to no longer doing what I loved which was being a lawyer and working to create more diversity and inclusion to elevate others within my organization.  It was a great disruption to all of a sudden leave what I knew for the last 13+ years but I realized once I accepted that my feelings were normal and natural, I was able to see my greater purpose in being able to elevate others in a different way, a way that could save lives, empower communities and change the world.  I was able to give up the hope that things would have happened differently and focus on taking action to move forward and embrace my new normal.   I need you to give yourself permission to grieve.  Your family needs you to give yourself permission to grieve.  Your workplace needs you to give yourself permission to grieve.  Your community needs you to give yourself permission to grieve.  The world needs you to give yourself permission to grieve.  I say that because I truly believe that the mass shootings, murder-suicides and other violence manifesting itself in the world on what seems like every day no is because we as humans are walking around with so much unresolved grief.  Why do we grieve?  We grieve because we loved the person or that thing or situation that added value to our lives.  No one can tell you when or how long to grieve because your grief journey is unique to you.    Often you hear that there are 5 stages of grief that everyone must go through as if you go through those 5 stages and it is over.  1. Denial; 2. Anger; 3. Bargaining; 4. Depression; 5. Acceptance.  The Kübler-Ross model, or the five stages of grief, theorized a series of emotions experienced by terminally ill patients prior to death.  Most times the stages don’t occur in order.  Some people never experience depression. Or they are angry before you may work through denial.    Some losses/trauma may require the person to work through shock before denial.  There is no right order; your journey is unique to you.  No one knows the relationship you had with that person or thing but you.  Has anyone ever taught you how to grieve?  I believe the answer is No; why, because we live in a grief avoidance society.  A prime example is when I tell people that I’m now a grief coach versus being a lawyer, people look like they want to run from me.  When someone close to us dies or we can’t get out of bed because our spouse has asked for a divorce, you may only get a few days to plan and/or attend the funeral, or you start to exhaust your leave because you can’t deal with the pain.  However, when someone has a baby or needs to take off to care for a loved one, the mother and the father are allowed to take off work for months, or the caregiver can take leave under Family Medical Leave Act.  On average, it takes about 5 to 8 years to recover from the loss of a loved one.  With the way society views grief, avoidance mode, you may ask how does one get past grief.  The only way out of grief is through it; you must take action and work through your grief to overcome it.  We want grief to be linear, but it is like a maze with dead ends and crooked paths.  Sometimes we minimize grief itself, but I would submit for your consideration that at least 2% of unresolved grief can affect every area of your life – physical, psychological, spiritual, and emotional.    So how do you give yourself permission to grieve?  The Triple A Effect - Acknowledge, Acceptance and Action.  The first step is to acknowledge that you are grieving; that all of the emotions and all the feelings associated with your trauma/loss are normal and natural.  It is okay to feel the way you are feeling and no one can rush you through those feelings.  Your grief journey is unique to you.  The second step is to accept the reality of the death of the person, thing or situation – this may take awhile and that is okay. In order to accept the reality, Author Corinne Edwards said it best, you must give up the hope for a different or better yesterday. (REPEAT)  What I didn’t say is forget the cherished memories of your loved one or that thing.  I didn’t say deny those feelings or band aid the situation.  I am simply saying stop hoping that things would have happened differently.  You can’t change the past.  Think about it.  All you have is the gift of Now.  After you’ve have time to acknowledge the emotions, and accept the reality of the death/loss, then you must take action to move forward to living in the present.  Why?  Because grief never goes away – it is never eradicated, it is always there.  However, your reaction to grief changes as you start to work through your emotions.  20 years from now you can have grief bursts –uncontrollable, unpredictable outbursts of tears, some event may trigger you or there may be no trigger at all, and they seem to come at the worst of times.  That’s okay, I still have them myself.  The latest one was on mother’s day.  But know that crying is a miracle that leads to healing.    You have an obligation to live your life for the rest of your life.  CPC Dora Carpenter lives by this mantra, Everything in life is temporary, including life itself (repeat).  Once you give yourself permission to grieve, you will start to focus less on the hole in your heart and more on honoring the life and legacy left with you.  In my coaching sessions, we take as long as necessary to walk through the acknowledgement and acceptance phases of you giving yourself permission to grieve. Imagine being free to move through the limiting blocks of unresolved grief in your life to a place of gratitude.   I want to thank you for listening to this episode. I hope you will join us for our next episode of the Grief Unplugged podcast.  To stay engaged with the podcast or learn more about my products and services, access my website at www.heatherdhorton.com. Also, please subscribe to the podcast so you know when the next episode is available and feel free to post a review, let me know what topics you want to hear discussed and share the podcast with your tribe.  In the future, we will feature episodes with guests who will share their part of their grief journey from a professional as well as personal perspective.  Until next time, keep moving forward.

Michelle, Aubrey, and Jennifer discuss their maternity leaves which range from 7 to 12 weeks and their experiences with the time they took off. Under the U.S. Family Medical Leave Act, a new mom can take up to 12 weeks in unpaid maternity leave, but did you know in Germany, a parent can take up […]

Devon sits down with Vicki Shabo, Vice President of National Partnership of Women and Families to discuss the Family Medical Leave Act, or FMLA. This week marks its 25 anniversary since being signed into law. They discuss what FMLA has done for American workers, who is left out and where they want to see family and medical leave go next.  Before the interview, Devon goes deep into the Trump administration's domestic violence problem and why rape culture is so pervasive. Please check out our sponsor, The Night Call, a new audioBoom podcast available now.

In this episode, Richard Celler dives deep into the topic of common wage violations. Specifically, how tip crediting works, why you need to track your employee's tips, qualifying factors of paying someone a tip credit, the amount of non-tip credit work your employees are allowed to do (20%), tip pooling, whos allowed to share in the tip a pool, and what you need to know about off the clock and pre/post shift work.    Richard Celler is the Managing Partner of Richard Celler Legal, P.A.,  a/k/a the Florida Overtime Lawyer. Mr. Celler's practice focuses on all areas of the employment context from discrimination, harassment, Title VII, the Family Medical Leave Act, and other employment-related statutes. Additionally, Mr. Celler represents individuals in whistleblower and wage and hour litigation.

It doesn’t matter if you are guilty or not, an employment discrimination claim is going to cost you. EPLI stands for Employment Practices Liability Insurance. The free report available on our website, smallbizbrainiac.com, called “8 Steps to Lowering Your Employer Liability”, is all about buying EPLI insurance. The very process of preparing the complete the application will put you in a great position. So go get a copy of that report. What is EPLI? EPLI protects you, your company, its directors, officers and both current and former employees from claims and lawsuits filed by….well, your current and former employees as well as employment candidates. Some policies will also cover claims made by third-parties, like customers, clients and vendors. It covers the cost of defending you against claims or lawsuits related to your employment practices. It will also pay any judgment entered against you. At least up to the limits of the policy. It’s important to understand that the defense costs apply to the limit. So, if the policy limit is $500,000 and the legal costs are $200,000 that leaves $300,000 to pay settlements and judgments. EPLI covers you against employment discrimination claims, sexual harassment claims, wrongful termination claims and violations of the Family Medical Leave Act and other mandatory leave violations. It usually does not cover you against wage and hour claims or violations of the National Labor Relations Act. For example, if your terminate someone after they complain about sexual harassment, and they sue for retaliatory discharge, your EPLI insurance will pay the defense costs and any settlement or judgment amounts. On the other hand, let’s say you misclassify an employee as salary exempt and you don’t pay them overtime. Your EPLI policy will not cover a claim for backpay. It won’t pay for bodily injury or property damage or intentional or dishonest acts either. Not all policies are the same so it’s important to understand what you’re getting. Notice of Right to Sue: If an employee wants to sue you for discrimination on the basis of race, color, religion, sex (including pregnancy, gender identity, and sexual orientation), national origin, age, disability, genetic information, or retaliation, they have to file a complaint with the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission, or EEOC, first. After the EEOC has investigated the complaint, they may issue a Notice of Right to Sue. After that, your employee has 90 days to file a lawsuit. If your employee wants to file a lawsuit before the EEOC has completed their investigation, they may ask for a Notice of Right-to-Sue. If more than 180 days have passed from the filing, then the EEOC is required to give them the notice. If it’s been less than 180 days, they won’t issue the notice unless they’ll be unable to finish their investigation within 180 days. Employees don’t need a Notice of Right to Sue if they’re suing for age discrimination, but they still have to file a complaint with the EEOC, and must wait 60 days before suing. If they want to file a claim under the Equal Pay Act, they don’t have file a complaint with the EEOC. Instead, they can head straight to court, but they must file with 2 years. If the discrimination was willful, then they have 3 years to file. There were 91,503 discrimination charges processed by the EEOC in fiscal year 2016. They resolved 97,443 charges and collected over $482 million. So, they were able to gain some ground on their case backlog. Almost 46% of charges included retaliation claims. After that, the most popular are race, disability and sex...

The Family Medical Leave Act is a federal law that applies to all employers with 50 or more employees in a 75 miles radius. Tune in to learn the qualification criteria for employees to take this leave, how premium payments should be handled, and what to do if the employee can't or doesn't return at the end of leave.

When I was married to a good man suffering from this disease, I went to the bookstore on a regular basis looking for books about how to help my husband get sober. What I found was tons of stories and memoirs about brave men and women who have struggled with addiction and found a way to get sober. But there were no stories about the women who loved them. So late one night when I was in the bookstore, I made a promise to God that if I ever found the answers, I would spend the rest of my life teaching other women.   And that’s exactly what I have been doing for over six years.   My three online, do-at-your-own-pace programs are designed just for wives, girlfriends, and mothers who love someone who suffers from alcoholism or substance abuse. Today we are going to talk about something a little bit different: rehabilitation. I get asked questions like, "Does rehab really work?" and "What makes a good rehab?" all the time. But before I tell you the top ten things you need to know about rehab, I want to share my experience with getting my ex-husband into a rehabilitation program. I go more into detail about it in the Love Over Mistakes program, but I'll keep this story short. Several years ago, at one of my many trips to the bookstore, I came across a book written by a man who started his own fancy rehab center based on extensive research. His approach was dramatically different than most 12-step rehabs, and there was something very persuasive about his writing. The more I read his book, the more I was convinced that I needed to get my husband to Malibu so he could experience the breakthrough this author was promising. I spent days dreaming of what it would be like to have him sober for good. How he would be the loving, supportive husband I always knew he could be. My children would finally get the engaged dad who was sober and loving all the time. Our vacations and holidays would not be centered around his next drink. But there was an issue: this rehab cost $60,000. We were in our twenties at the time and coming up with that kind of money seemed impossible because we lived paycheck to paycheck. I called our health insurance agency, and they told me they would pay for some of it. Then I called our family and my father kindly offered to take out a second mortgage on his apartment. I drained our bank account, plus his family agreed to pay a portion as well. After a month of planning, the money was there. Now it was time to fill him in. I planned on hosting an intervention, but (since God had a better idea) the night before our intervention was going to take place, he overdosed on drugs. I’m not sure what kind of drugs he took, but he came into my bedroom and was talking really fast and acting crazy. I’ve never seen anything like it. He had always done his drugs away from the house. It scared me to the core. I was watching a stranger in my bedroom who had absolutely no resemblance to the man I married. I prayed that the kids would stay asleep so they would not witness his paranoid behavior and hours later he settled down.   I told him that we had planned for him to leave, take a month off of work, and attend a rehab. That everything had been taken care of for him. I didn’t know how he would react and I was prepared for the worst. But then he looked at me and said he was tired of living like this. He agreed to go just four hours before his scheduled flight to the rehab center. Like I said, I go more into what happened in the next month in the Love Over Mistakes program. But for now, I want to share with you the top ten tips that you will find helpful when considering rehabs. I wish I had these tips all those years ago. He will NOT lose his job if he goes to rehab. The Americans with Disabilities Act and the Family Medical Leave Act guarantee that addicts and alcoholics who wish to undergo treatment for substance abuse will be given the time they need to do so by their employers and that their jobs will be saved for them while they are away. These laws do not guarantee a paycheck while they are gone. Some employers will pay a certain percentage of their paycheck, some will not. Rehab success rates can be misleading. According to the National Center on Addiction and Substance Abuse, the rehab community claims a 30% success rate, but they only count people who complete the programs. 70-80% have dropped out within 3-6 months. I am not sharing these numbers to discourage you or put down the rehab industry. But if you're thinking, like I did, that just getting them to rehab will be the solution, you might need to adjust your expectations. 12-step programs are usually part of the aftercare suggestions. Eventually, your partner will be encouraged by the rehab to attend a 12-step aftercare program. If he or she attended rehab and graduated, but doesn’t feel comfortable attending 12-step, higher-power programs on a consistent basis, they don't have a lot of other choices for aftercare treatment other than therapy. Many rehabs don’t follow up with alumni. Once you graduate from the program, you’re pretty much on your own. Of the rehabs that I know of, most do a decent job of trying to suggest ways to manage your aftercare. But when you walk out those doors, it’s up to your loved one to work their own recovery. Look for a rehab that practices EBT. EBT stands for Evidence-Based Treatment. 12-step programs have saved many lives, but studies have shown that we need to also include a medical model for treatment. A medical model includes an assessment from a psychologist or psychiatrist who is trained in addiction medicine, an intervention, therapy, psychopharmacology (a fancy word that means medication), and an inpatient program or outpatient program that offers quality care. You can go to the American Society of Addiction Medicine for a directory. Rehab is expensive. Even non-profit rehabs usually cost over $20,000 for 30 days. Recovery information you read on the internet is often published by a rehab, not a research-based institute. If you’re on a website reading about addiction and they have a 1-800 number or any ads for a rehab, chances are, the website is published by a rehab. I’m not saying there isn’t good information out there on the internet to read about addiction but know the source. Sometimes what looks like well-written articles are just marketing websites. They might tell you relapse is part of his recovery. According to the National Institute on Drug Abuse, a government-funded program, relapse in addiction resembles relapse in other chronic diseases. You may have heard people compare the disease of addiction to diabetes. Well, if you're a type-1 diabetic and you’re getting successful treatment, you have a  30-50% chance of relapse. If you suffer from addiction you have a 40-60% chance of relapse. If you suffer from asthma, your chances of relapse are even greater at 50-70%. Just because they attend rehab, doesn't mean there isn't a good chance they will relapse just like any other chronic disease. When that happens, we don’t need to think of it as a failure. Rather, a treatment needs to be reinstated or readjusted or another treatment needs to be introduced. You need to recover too. You have been hurt, damaged, and lied to by this disease. Getting your loved one help is good. But if he or she refuses or agrees, you need to find support and answers too. If you’re anything like me, when my ex-husband went to rehab, I was left feeling lonely, angry, and worried. I needed to work my own program and get educated on what I needed to do when he came back. If you’re interested and you want to learn about our online, do-at-your-own-pace programs, you can click here. If they don’t want help, you won't be able to change their heart. I know that’s hard to hear, but if you really want them to get sober, they have to want it too. However, you don’t need to wait for them to get sober for you to start to feel better. You can take control of your decisions and reactions and your recovery. I believe in you. You’re not powerless over this disease. You don’t need to wait for them to get sober to start to feel better. We are in this together.   P.S. I hope you will join me in one of our programs. You have lifetime access, they are private and confidential, and, remember - you need recovery if he gets sober or not.

Barry Kluger is a veteran public relations executive and writes for The Huffington Post and 165 CityBrand Media sites. He and fellow grieving Dad, Kelly Farley, began an effort to add loss of a child to the Family Medical Leave Act, which led to The Sarah Grace-Farley-Kluger Act, currently being considered in Congress. http://opentohope.s3.amazonaws.com/wp-content/uploads/2016/08/11054705/Barry-Kluger-MP3-for-Audio-Podcasting.mp3  

Click the podcast player button above to listen or subscribe to the show on iTunes. “Do you ever wonder what might happen if you chose not to work late on a deadline because you need to take care of your family? Do you ever daydream about working part time, but wonder how it may impact your career? Do you ever wonder what it would be like to stay home on Fridays with you little baby or to leave work early every day to get your kids off the bus or to leave early most days to see your kid's soccer games, or swim meets, or baseball practice? How would these impact your career? Maybe others would think that you couldn't travel anymore, or maybe you wouldn't be given the premier projects because others think that you're less available'. And maybe they'd be right   is that going to delay your career progress? And does it matter?” https://entrearchitect.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/03/family-200x300.jpg ()Above is a quote from a recent entry at the new blog, http://www.archimom.com (Archimom.com). Do you ever wonder? Do you ever wonder what life would be like if the profession evolved to universally accept flex time and remote studios? Do you ever wonder what life would be like if our professional cultures throughout the world put a priority of raising families over making money? Do you ever wonder what could happen when one person recognizes a problem and decides to take the lead to find a solution. This week on the Entrepreneur Architect Podcast, I am speaking with the founder of ArchiMom.com. Amy Kalar is one such person who has decided to stop watching from the sidelines. She is a leader in our profession and is pushing us all to wonder. Please review this podcast on iTunes. Referenced in this Episode http://themissing32percent.com/blog/2014/11/17/ywxapidswxsntrgnzoajv7xn17oa7t (Building the Business Case for Equity in Architecture) (presentation) https://www.linkedin.com/groups/Women-in-Architecture-Design-Twin-6583805 (Women in Architecture & Design – Twin Cities) http://www.aia-mn.org/get-involved/committees/women-architecture/ (AIA Minnesota Women in Architecture Committee) http://themissing32percent.com/equity-by-design-10-18-14/ (The Missing 32% Project: Equity by Design Symposium) http://archimom.com/category/amazing-archimoms/ (Amazing ArchiMoms) (blog post series) http://archimom.com/2015/03/do-you-ever-wonder/ (Do You Ever Wonder?) (blog post) http://airmailapp.com (Air Mail App) https://www.mailboxapp.com (Mailbox App) http://www.boomeranggmail.com (Boomerang for Gmail) https://support.office.com/en-in/article/Delay-or-schedule-sending-e-mail-messages-026af69f-c287-490a-a72f-6c65793744ba (Scheduling email using MS Outlook) http://www.dol.gov/whd/fmla/ (Family Medical Leave Act) http://www.archimom.com (ArchiMom.com) http://www.twitter.com/amykalar (Contact Amy on Twitter) Please visit our Platform Sponsor: http://www.freshbooks.com/architect (Freshbooks) Join us in Atlanta: https://entrearchitect.leadpages.net/one-day-atlanta-2015/ (EntreArchitect One Day Live Event) The post https://entrearchitect.com/podcast/entrearch/ea068-solutions-architect-moms-dads-archimom-com-founder-amy-kalar-podcast/ (EA068: Solutions for Architect Moms (and Dads) with ArchiMom.com Founder Amy Kalar [Podcast]) appeared first on https://entrearchitect.com (EntreArchitect // Small Firm Entrepreneur Architects).

Nasir and Matt get into the story that may rethink your decision for terminating someone for having a headache (migraine). They also answer the question, "I want to hire an employee from a competitor but I think he may have signed a non-compete. What can I legally do to steal him?" Full Podcast Transcript NASIR: Welcome to Legally Sound Smart Business. This is Nasir Pasha. MATT: This is Matt Staub. NASIR: Welcome to our business legal podcast where we cover business in the news and also answer some of your business legal questions that you have graciously sent in to our podcast at ask@legallysoundsmartbusiness.com, including a question from someone we know that is in San Diego that… oh, wait. MATT: That’s not today, though. Well, if they’re listening, they know we’ll address their question later in the week. NASIR: Oh, that’s true. Yeah, they sent in a question – not by email, though – which I guess they can do. They can stop us and write a note and fold it and then hand it to us. That’s one way to do it. MATT: Well, it wasn’t a note, but he or she just said, “Hey, I have a question for you,” and I said, “Okay.” They told me it and it was actually last week. It was actually, like, three weeks ago, I think – the last time I saw them. NASIR: Three weeks ago? MATT: And then, I said to them, “Hey, you know what? I’m going to actually use your question this week, if you’re fine with that. I’ll keep you anonymous,” and they said, “Yeah, that’s fine.” So, that wasn’t a great story. NASIR: We should give a clue of who it is. Like, we should give a clue that it’s a male in San Diego. MATT: Well, maybe. We’ll decide on how we want to handle it when we get to Friday. NASIR: Okay, all right. Let’s just go to Friday now. MATT: Ah NASIR: So excited. MATT: Well, we have something that’s less exciting I guess to talk about today. This deals with the FMLA which, for you those of you that don’t know, is the Family and Medical Leave Act. Basically, what this story comes down to is you can make an FMLA claim and it typically deals with, I think probably one of the biggest issues of this is usually pregnancy leave or things like that NASIR: Yeah. MATT: I mean, that’s usually when the FMLA gets brought up. But this deals with headaches and specifically migraine headaches. So, I don’t think I’ve ever had a migraine headache so I don’t know how bad it is for people. NASIR: Have you known anyone with migraines? MATT: Well, that’s what I was going to say. I know people that have had issues with it and I guess, when they get the migraine headaches, they just can’t really do anything. But, like I said, in my shoes, it’s hard to figure out how bad it is because I don’t think I’ve ever had one. NASIR: Yeah, I’ve only experienced it through other people as well, but I know someone that gets it probably – I’d have to ask them but I would estimate – maybe once a month. When he gets them, he literally shuts himself off from the world, turns off all the lights because, you know, it creates a huge amount of sensitivity to light – you know, you can get nauseous and so forth, depends on how severe it is – and takes the medicine or whatever and just kind of sits there the whole day until it goes away and there’s not much they can do besides that. You know, he’s tried a number of different things but I’m just trying to highlight that the Family Medical Leave Act does provide for medical leave only to certain conditions. Obviously, a mere headache is not enough but the Department of Labor has considered migraines as to be covered under FMLA as a covered medical condition. MATT: Yeah, and that’s basically what this is despite the fact that the picture is of a dog with an icepack on its head. I thought migraines were only for dogs until you just informed me. NASIR: Well, yeah, it’s for people, too. And FMLA doesn’t cover dogs, I don’t believe. We’ll have to check into that. MATT: Yeah, we’ll look into that.

Get a job! Not so easy if you've got cancer. Gaps in your resume, talking to HR, FMLA and wrongful termination. Oh what fun it is. Join us as we delve into this subject matter with Rebecca Nellis (VP, Programs and Strategy at Cancer and Careers) and Monica Bryant (Cancer Rights Attorney and Co-Founder/COO at Triage Cancer). Survivor Rahib Kinit in the spotlight.

Get a job! Not so easy if you've got cancer. Gaps in your resume, talking to HR, FMLA and wrongful termination. Oh what fun it is. Join us as we delve into this subject matter with Rebecca Nellis (VP, Programs and Strategy at Cancer and Careers) and Monica Bryant (Cancer Rights Attorney and Co-Founder/COO at Triage Cancer). Survivor Rahib Kinit in the spotlight. See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

Star Bobatoon is an accomplished attorney, dynamic trainer and award-winning speaker. The book, "I HATE Muscular Dystrophy!" Loving A Child w/ a Life-Altering Disease... is Star's recent life's BIRTH in the JOURNEY. On tonight's show, we will have a phenomenal conversation, in which our spirits will be awkened to love, compassion, self-worth, and confidence to go beyond life's greatest fears.  For you'll know again that there is nothing too hard for you to do...for if you are chosen for the task, ... you will indeed make it through! However, YOU must CHOOSE to accept, acknowledge, and release.  It's really up to you...to MAKE the CHOICE to move beyond this point. Her greatest accomplishment is being the proud parent of ‘two of the most beautiful children in the history of children.” Her youngest is her daughter Xanthia and her eldest is her son Hurricane. Hurricane has Duchenne Muscular Dystrophy and is the inspiration for this book. Star has trained with and shared the stage both nationally and internationally with world-renowned motivational icon Les Brown. As former Program Manager for Les Brown’s speaker training program, Star created programs, facilitated training and coached new speakers. Star trains and speaks on many legal topics including diversity, discrimination and harassment and Family Medical Leave Act. Her passion, however, is empowering and inspiring adults and young people in the areas of leadership, personal development and communication. For more on Star Bobatoon:  http://starbobatoon.com Get the BOOK and read now!  http://ihatemd.com

Kelly Farley, lost two babes, Katie Elizabeth and Noah James, in an 18 month period due to severe genetic and chromosomal fetal anomalies.  In response to his grief Kelly was surprised to find that people did not feel comfortable with an openly grieving dad.  This realization inspired him to reach out and establish the Grieving Dads Project and co-sponsor the Farley-Kluger Amendment to the Family Medical Leave Act of 1993 which will extend benefits to parents that experience the death of child.”