Our Blog | Employment Counsel in WA, OR, and CA | Vigilant
Home » Blog

Vigilant Blog

News, trends and analysis in employment law, HR, safety & workers' comp

Showing all recent posts

Jul 01 2021
COVID-19California

CALIFORNIA: Santa Clara County rolls back vaccination status checks

Santa Clara County issued an order on June 21, 2021, phasing out their previous order from May 18, 2021 (which we reported on here), which required employers to inquire about an unvaccinated employee’s status every 14 days to see if they had been vaccinated against COVID-19 (coronavirus). The new order reduces an employer’s obligation to…

Read More
Jul 01 2021
COVID-19OregonSafety and Health

OREGON: Workplace mask and distancing rules lifted

Governor Kate Brown issued an executive order rescinding mask, distancing, and other COVID-19-related restrictions for the general public in Oregon, effective Wednesday, June 30, 2021. Also on June 30, Oregon OSHA published its revised Rule Addressing Covid-19 Workplace Risks, which eliminates the requirements for workplace masks and distancing (regardless of employees’ vaccination status), with certain…

Read More
Jun 17 2021
COVID-19CaliforniaLeave Laws

CALIFORNIA: Sonoma County extends and expands EPSL

The Sonoma County Board of Supervisors has enacted an urgency ordinance extending the county’s COVID-19 (coronavirus) emergency paid sick leave ordinance (EPSL) through September 30, 2021, and expanding several areas of EPSL protection. As we previously reported, the original Sonoma County EPSL expired on December 31, 2020, but was extended through June 30, 2021 (see…

Read More
Jun 17 2021
Leave LawsQ&AWashington

Q&A: Does compliance with workers’ comp satisfy FMLA obligations?

Question: Our employee was injured at work and needs to be off work for two months. The employee filed a workers’ compensation claim, which was accepted. The plant manager told the employee that medical leave is covered by workers’ comp and to call when they’re cleared to come back to work. Are we missing something?…

Read More
Jun 17 2021
COVID-19Leave Laws

IRS updates FAQs for paid leave tax credits under ARPA

The IRS recently updated their FAQs to address tax credits available to eligible employers who voluntarily provide leave under the Families First Coronavirus Response Act (FFCRA) between April 1, and September 30, 2021, pursuant to the American Rescue Plan Act of 2021 (ARPA). As we previously reported, ARPA extended the optional FFCRA tax credits through September…

Read More
Jun 17 2021
COVID-19Hiring

Form I-9 remote inspection extended again, until August 31, 2021

The U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) announced on May 26, 2021, that the Department of Homeland Security is again extending its temporary relaxation of the standards for physically inspecting a new worker’s employment eligibility documents when completing the Form I-9, and is adding flexibility for individual remote hires. This is the tenth extension of the relaxed standard, which…

Read More
Jun 17 2021
COVID-19Safety and HealthWashington

WASHINGTON: Industry-specific COVID-19 requirements lifted

As of June 11, 2021, Governor Jay Inslee has removed Washington’s industry-specific COVID-19 (coronavirus) requirements for certain industries, including manufacturing, construction, outdoor maintenance, and several recreation industries. Employers in these industries are now only required to follow the Department of Labor & Industries (L&I) general COVID-19 workplace safety requirements. L&I’s general requirements were recently updated…

Read More
Jun 17 2021
Wage and HourWashington

WASHINGTON: Vigilant comments on L&I hours worked changes

Vigilant recently submitted comments on behalf of our members in response to the Washington Department of Labor and Industries (L&I) draft administrative policy addressing hours worked. This draft policy proposes changes to the existing policy ES.C.2, which was last revised on September 2, 2008. The revised policy attempts to clarify the current definition of “hours…

Read More
Jun 17 2021
COVID-19Oregon

OREGON: OHA again allows for shortened quarantine

In updated Statewide Isolation and Quarantine Guidance issued on June 4, 2021, the Oregon Health Authority (OHA) is again allowing a shortened quarantine period for people who have had close contact with a confirmed positive COVID-19 (coronavirus) case. While OHA continues to recommend a 14-day quarantine period for employees who have come in close contact…

Read More
Jun 17 2021
COVID-19Safety and HealthWage and Hour

OSHA issues COVID-19 workplace rule for health care employers

The federal Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) has released an emergency temporary rule to prevent the spread of COVID-19 (coronavirus) for employers that provide health care services. The new rule applies to most employers that provide health care services or health care support services. OSHA has published a helpful guide for employers to determine…

Read More
Jun 17 2021
COVID-19CaliforniaSafety and Health

CALIFORNIA: Cal/OSHA proposes changes to COVID-19 rules

June 17, 2021, the California Occupational Safety & Health Standards Board (OSHSB) approved revisions to Cal/OSHA’s COVID-19 Emergency Temporary Standards (ETS) for non-health care workplaces. (We summarized the original ETS here and reported on the related FAQs here.) The OSHSB will now send the proposal to the Office of Administrative Law (OAL) for final review….

Read More
Jun 03 2021
COVID-19Safety and Health

OSHA won’t require recording vaccine side effects after all

The federal Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) recently updated its guidance on COVID-19 (coronavirus) vaccines to state that it won’t enforce recordkeeping requirements for worker side effects from mandatory vaccines through May 2022. As we previously reported, OSHA had stated that side effects resulting from employer-mandated COVID-19 vaccines may be recordable on the OSHA…

Read More

Is My Company Eligible?

If you are a manufacturing or agriculture employer in Washington and committed to keeping your employees safe and working, you may be eligible for Vigilant's workers' compensation Retro or claims management programs. To see if you qualify fill out our release form now, or contact us.

Release Form
Contact Us
Browse By Category
Browse By Topic
Filter By State
Get Our Newsletter
Sign Up Today
Connect With Us
Linkedin

Don’t Navigate Employment Issues On Your Own

Learn how Vigilant membership can help with your complex employment situations.
Get in Touch Today
Scroll to Top