According to Georgia Code 21-2-404, employers must allow up to two hours of time off for employees to vote within any municipal, county, state or federal political party primary or election where they are qualified and registered to vote. Employers are not required to provide paid time off. In the instance where polls are open for two consecutive hours before or after the employee’s work shift, time off does not need to be granted. Learn…
Employers with employees who receive part of their compensation in the form of tips must provide oral or written notice to their employees that they are taking a tip credit. With the understanding that most tipped employees make up the difference of the minimum wage of $7.25/hour through tips, employers are allowed to use the “tip credit” to pay employees $2.13/hour. An employer who fails to provide the required information to their employee cannot use…
Georgia passed HB 1090 on August 5, 2020, which requires employers to provide reasonable break time to working mothers who desire to express breast milk at their worksite during working hours. The new law also requires employers to provide working mothers with a private location, other than a restroom, where they can express milk. And in contrast to existing Federal Fair Labor Standards Act (FLSA), it requires that the lactation breaks be paid at the…
Earlier this summer the Georgia legislature came together in support of businesses to craft much-demanded legislation to protect business owners from the liability associated with claims that customers and employees contracted COVID-19 in their place of business. The Georgia COVID-19 Pandemic Business Safety Act (GCPBSA) went into effect last Friday, August 7, and expands upon language originally extended to healthcare professionals and healthcare facilities. Protection is now provided for nearly all public, private, sacred or…
On April 1, 2020, the U.S. DOL enacted a temporary rule operational through the EOY that provides direction for administration of the Emergency Paid Sick Leave Act (EPSLA) and the Emergency Family and Medical Leave Expansion Act (EFMLEA). With schools opening this month we anticipate more employers having questions about obtaining credits related specifically to EPSLA (due to contagion) and EFMLEA (due to school closings). Please know that in instances where claims are made for…
Employees are taking their employers to task for a myriad of COVID-19 related employment and workplace issues. With 463 lawsuits filed thus far this year, it comes as no surprise that population dense states like California, Florida and New Jersey lead the way in terms of number of lawsuits filed. (Meanwhile only seven have been recorded in Georgia.) This handy Employment Litigation Tracker, published by Fisher Phillips, tracks and allows users to pivot on one…
On June 26, the Georgia legislature passed the much-anticipated law extending the liability protection provided to healthcare institutions, facilities and workers in the Governor’s Executive Orders dated April 14, 2020, to most all Georgia businesses. Except in cases of “gross negligence, willful and wanton misconduct, reckless infliction of harm or intentional infliction of harm,” the legislation allows business to provide notification to individuals entering their premises that the individual and not the business are responsible…
Below are two briefs from our labor attorneys that cover the Families First Coronavirus Response Act (FFCRA) and the recent change in the GA DOL’s reporting of partial Unemployment Insurance Claims. BRIEF #1: Congress Finalizes COVID-19 Coronavirus Response Act: Prepare to Provide Paid Sick Leave and FMLA BRIEF 2: Emergency Changes to Georgia Unemployment with Harsh Penalties for Employers In Response To COVID-19 If you are reducing the hours of full or part-time staff, these…
After years of debate, the Department of Labor (DOL) issued a final rule on September 24 that increased the salary threshold for an “exempt” employee under the Fair Labor Standards Act (FLSA) to $684 a week ($35,568 annually) from $455 a week effective January 1, 2020. As a reminder, unless exempt, employees covered by the FLSA must receive at least time and one-half their regular pay rate for all hours worked over 40 in a…
National Public Radio (NPR) recently featured the topic of the ‘gender pay gap’ on one of its news programs, and I happened to be listening in. I was reminded of a conversation I had with my sister about pay inequality between men and women. The gender pay gap is confusing to me because the Equal Pay Act of 1963 has been around for more than 50 years. Salary differences between men and women may indeed…
MarathonHR Helps Thomas Eye Center Focus on Patient Care and Service