DOL Issues Notice Poster of Employees’ Rights Under the FFCRA and Guidance Regarding the Non-Enforcement Period

Click here to view a .pdf version of the alert.

On March 25, 2020, the Department of Labor (DOL) released its notice poster for the Families First Coronavirus Response Act (FFCRA), which goes into effect April 1, that employers will be obligated to “post and keep posted in conspicuous places at the workplace.” The poster can be found at the following link and is enclosed at the end of this alert: 

https://www.dol.gov/sites/dolgov/files/WHD/posters/FFCRA_Poster_WH1422_Non-Federal.pdf 

The DOL also posted a “Frequently Asked Questions” regarding the posting of this notice, which provided the following key points: 

• All employers covered by the FFCRA (public agencies and employers with fewer than 500 employees) must post this notice in a conspicuous place on its premises. 
• Employers are only required to give notice to current employees and new hires. Employers do not need to provide notice to recently laid-off employees or new job applicants. 
• If employees are teleworking, an employer may satisfy the notice requirements of the FFCRA by emailing or directly mailing this notice to employees, or by posting this notice on an employee information or external website. 
• This notice is not required to be posted in multiple languages, but the DOL is working to translate this notice into additional languages. 
• Copies of this notice can be obtained free of charge by (1) contacting the DOL’s Wage and Hour Division at 1-866-4-USWAGE (1-866-487-9243); or (2) downloading and printing a copy of the notice from the DOL’s website: https://www.dol.gov/agencies/whd/posters 
• – The DOL may revise this notice and has advised employers to check the Wage and Hour Division’s website for up-to-date information. 

The DOL also issued Field Assistance Bulletin No. 2020-1. This Bulletin provides guidance regarding the DOL’s temporary non-enforcement period applicable to the FFCRA. This Bulletin provides that the DOL will not bring enforcement actions for violations of the FFCRA that occurred between March 18, 2020, and April 17, 2020, so long as the employer has made reasonable and good faith efforts to comply with the Act. An employer acts reasonably and in good faith when it: (1) remedies any violation; (2) does not willfully violate the Act; and (3) provides the DOL with a written commitment to comply with the Act in the future. Employers are cautioned that the DOL has reserved its rights to bring enforcement actions during this temporary non-enforcement period if the employer is found to have not acted reasonably or in good faith.