Just another day in employment law. Wednesday afternoon, the Department of Labor issued new regulations that further expand what was previously known about the paid leave provisions of the EPSLA and the EFMLEA.

You can view the regulations here.    They go into effect immediately.

The regulations are lengthy and we’ll have a full recap on the Shipman & Goodwin Coronavirus Resource page on Thursday.

But a quick glance at the regulations shows that there are some changes.

For example, the definition of a quarantine or isolation order has been expanded to include certain shelter-in-place rules that have been issued in states.  Thus, employees who cannot work for an employer because of such orders may be eligible for leave (if they are still employed and not merely on furlough).  However, the key will be showing that “but for” the order, the employee would be working.  (And employees who can telework despite such an order do not qualify.)

Moreover, employees who have been advised by their physician that they are particularly vulnerable to COVID-19 because of an underlying health condition and thus unable to work, may also be eligible for paid leave if certain other conditions have been met.

Given that the law is in effect today, employers must revisit their policies and procedures immediately to address these new regulations.