As businesses across the country adjust to the financial reality of Coronavirus related shutdowns and restrictions, some employers that sponsor safe harbor formula 401(k) plans are revisiting a money saving strategy last implemented on a wide scale basis over a decade ago during the great recession—the suspension or reduction of safe harbor contributions. Under a …
COVID-19: Unemployment Benefits for Temporary Foreign Workers
Employers confronting business interruptions and shut-downs in the wake of the first COVID-19 wave face challenging workforce decisions about whether they need to lay-off or terminate workers. Employers having a workforce partially comprised of temporary foreign workers (i.e., workers holding work visas such as H-1B, L-1, E-1/2, E-3, TN, O-1, etc.) confront additional layers of …
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Benefits Briefs in the Time of COVID-19, Part 4: Reimbursement of Over-the-Counter Medications
Congress has reversed course and amended the Internal Revenue Code (“Code”) to provide that a health flexible spending account (“health FSA”), health savings account (“HSA”) and health reimbursement account (“HRA”) may reimburse employees for over-the-counter medications, effective January 1, 2020. Background For many years, health FSAs, HSAs and HRAs did not consider a non-prescription drug …
Benefits Briefs in the Time of COVID-19, Part 3: Layoffs/Furloughs and Excise Taxes under the Affordable Care Act
Employers that are laying off or furloughing employees during the COVID-19 crisis may be creating the possibility for excise taxes under the Affordable Care Act (“ACA”). Knowing the method by which employers determine full-time status is key to understanding the issue. Excise Taxes under the ACA The ACA generally provides that employers with 50 or …
COVID-19 Return-to-Work Checklist from an Employment Law Perspective
As employers attempt to return to workplaces in the midst of the COVID-19 pandemic, there are a number of considerations they must be mindful of. Indeed, among other things, employers must be sure to establish a COVID-19 response plan, refine their communications and policies, examine travel policies, and ensure compliance with state and federal leave laws. …
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Benefits Briefs in the Time of COVID-19, Part 2: Temporary Expansion of Educational Assistance Programs to Cover Employees’ Student Loan Debt
The CARES Act gives employers a way to pay employees’ student loan debt on a pre-tax basis during a portion of 2020 through an educational assistance program under Section 127 of the Internal Revenue Code (“Code”). Overview of an Educational Assistance Program Under a Section 127 educational assistance program, an employer may pay or reimburse …
Benefits Briefs in the Time of COVID-19, Part 1: Federal Agencies Relax Summary of Benefits and Coverage (“SBC”) Disclosure Deadlines
Recent guidance from the Department of Labor (“DOL”), Health and Human Services (“HHS”) and Treasury (the “Departments”) provides limited enforcement relief from the summary of benefits and coverage (“SBC”) disclosure rules during the COVID-19 crisis for employers to comply with the CARES Act or to add other benefits to their group health plans. Dickinson Wright’s …
Expired State Identity Documents Temporarily Accepted for Form I-9 List B and the Case-by Case Remote Form I-9 Completion Risk
U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) recently issued a follow-up Question and Answer sheet (Q&A Sheet) to the March 20 announcement of the U.S. Department of Homeland Security (DHS) related to a limited relaxation to physical proximity requirements associated with Form I-9 completion due to COVID-19. While the acceptance of an expired state identity document …
CRITICAL COVID-19 GUIDANCE FOR CERTAIN FOREIGN WORKERS
The ever-changing impact of the evolving COVID-19 pandemic is making it extremely difficult for employers to plan what to do with their foreign worker populations right now. DW Immigration stands ready to help! Here below we summarize some critical pieces of immigration information from the various government agencies and our related guidance, as it stands …
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Summary of Employee Benefits Provisions in CARES Act (as passed by U.S. Senate)
On March 25, 2020, the Senate passed the Coronavirus Aid, Relief, and Economic Security (“CARES”) Act, as a follow-up to the Families First Coronavirus Response Act. The Act contains a number of employee benefits related provisions to address the COVID-19 emergency. The House of Representatives intends to take up the legislation on March 27, 2020. …
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