HR Compliance Updates for Leaders
How are leaders keeping up with compliance updates right now?
As if staying on top of leading your team during a Presidential Election and global pandemic were not enough, there have also been several updates to federal legal requirements and guidance over the past several weeks.
Updates to OSHA reporting, COVID isolation/quarantine requirements, Form I-9s for newly hired employees, and more. These updates likely impact your employee policies and procedures.
To make things a bit easier for leaders, I put together a summary of the biggest HR-related legislative changes and guidance I've seen from the government over the past several weeks all in one place.
Here are the recent legal updates that are most important from an HR perspective:
2021 Retirement Contribution Limits
The IRS announced the 2021 contribution limits for 401Ks, HSAs, and FSAs. This is a helpful chart of the contribution limits for you and your employees as you prepare for January 1, 2021.
Guidelines for Completing I-9s for Remote Workers
Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) released a 60-day extension on guidelines for how to complete Form I-9s for remote new hires. The extension to allowing for the remote viewing of IDs (identification) for new hires lasts until November 19th. Hopefully, an additional extension will be granted as many employers continue working from home.
Updates to CDC COVID-19 Contract Tracing Guidelines
The CDC lowered the threshold for what is considered “close contact” to someone with COVID, meaning employers will need to change their notification practices for when an employee comes into contact with someone who has COVID at work. The CDC now defines close contact as: “Someone who was within 6 feet of an infected person for a cumulative total of 15 minutes or more over a 24-hour period* starting from 2 days before illness onset (or, for asymptomatic patients, 2 days prior to test specimen collection) until the time the patient is isolated.”
The CDC Added Additional Isolation/Quarantine Guidelines
There is new 10-day isolation guidance in addition to the existing 14-day quarantine guidance from the CDC for those with symptoms of COVID. The chart at the link above compares the 10-day isolation period vs. the 14-day quarantine period side-by-side so that you know which action to take with your employees.
FAQs Released on When COVID-19 is an OSHA Recordable Incident
Wondering when or if you are required to report an employee who has COVID as a workplace-related illness on your OSHA reporting? The Department of Labor recently released Frequently Asked Questions (FAQs) to help answer this question.
Next Steps for Leaders
Make sure your COVID-19 Employee Handbook Addendum is up to date.
Train supervisors on the new policies/practices.
Communicate the new policies/practices to employees and have them “sign-off” to acknowledge receipt of the new policies.
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