Ask the Attorney Archives

Q: “If an employee is going out for surgery but is ordered by her physician that she needs to quarantine for 14 days prior to her scheduled surgery, is she eligible to receive compensation under the Emergency Paid Sick Leave law?” – Cecilia, Ca.

Q: We have mostly hourly, part-time, shift-based employees. We instituted a once per year small discretionary loyalty bonus. If the amount is fixed, for example $100 per year of employment, some people tell us we need to recalculate the overtime rates for all 26 prior periods (which will amount to pennies, but cost us hours to do). It is impractical in a very small (12-18 employees). We are looking at calculating the bonus at 0.2% of total past year compensation. For example, for one employee, it will be $86.13. Can we round it with a discretionary bonus of $13.87 to get a round number bonus of $100.00? Are there other options to give a reward without the whole pain of overtime recalculation? – Alan, Tx.

Q: “Is it the responsibility of the employer to furnish masks to employees returning to work?” – Denise, District of Columbia

Q: “Due to the coronavirus, our organization reduced our workforce to better adhere to social distancing guidelines. Our company is small and went from 15 employees to 10. Those who were laid off were able to apply for and collect unemployment. Our plan was to recall them after the stay-at-home order was lifted. However, we have found that the company in fact performs more efficiently with the reduced staff. How can we legally terminate our employment relationship with these people?”– Susan, Wisconsin