VIDEO: 2 lawyers explain 4 big changes to the Department of Labor FFCRA regulations

Just as I was settling in on Friday evening for a well-deserved lime rickey, I got an email from the U.S. Department of Labor.

The email was part of a press release, in which the DOL announced that it had posted revisions to its regulations interpreting the Families First Coronavirus Response Act (FFCRA).

According to the DOL, the revisions do the following:

• Reaffirm and provide additional explanation for the requirement that employees may take FFCRA leave only if work would otherwise be available to them.
• Reaffirm and provide additional explanation for the requirement that an employee have employer approval to take FFCRA leave intermittently.
• Revise the definition of “healthcare provider” to include only employees who meet the definition of that term under the Family and Medical Leave Act regulations or who are employed to provide diagnostic services, preventative services, treatment services or other services that are integrated with and necessary to the provision of patient care which, if not provided, would adversely impact patient care.
• Clarify that employees must provide required documentation supporting their need for FFCRA leave to their employers as soon as practicable, while correcting an inconsistency regarding when employees may be required to provide notice of a need to take expanded family and medical leave to their employers.

The new rules will take effect on September 16.

In the meantime, my incredible FisherBroyles employment law partner, Amy Epstein Gluck, and I posted this video on The Employer Handbook YouTube Channel describing how these revised regulations will impact employers. We hope that you enjoy it.

Me? I’m gonna go enjoy that lime rickey now.