COVID-19 Update September 15, 2020

The National Hurricane Center is warning nearly 10 million Americans along the Gulf Coast to expect “life-threatening” and “historic” flooding over the next 24 hours as Hurricane Sally continues churning just south of Alabama. For those of you who have reached out to check on us, we appreciate your concern. Delta will be operating as normal tomorrow; however, please keep the residents of these areas in your thoughts and prayers.

In today’s COVID-19 news, employers of healthcare providers will soon be required to provide paid sick leave and partially paid family leave to a broader category of employees, and all employers subject to the law now have clarification on a number of other obligations, thanks to a revised set of regulations released by the Labor Department late Friday afternoon.

Next, Louisiana State Treasurer John Schroder revealed some interesting information about the local Main Street Recovery Program and the large amount of grant applications that are being denied. There are still about seven weeks to apply before the deadline on November 4^th, so please let us know if we can help make sure yours is properly completed.

Lastly, studies show that nearly 1 in 3 employees have had to purchase office supplies ranging from computers or webcams to pen and paper in order to work remotely, while 37% have been told they will not be reimbursed for these expenses. At the start of the pandemic, most companies prohibited employees from bringing equipment home with them, so it may be time for businesses to consider introducing a reimbursement policy to motivate their staff.

As always, please don’t hesitate to reach out if you have any questions.