Rojgar Job News

Updated 10:15a, May 9, 2020 Late Friday afternoon, Governor Lamont announced that Phase I reopenings will occur as soon as May 20, 2020.  These will include “non-essential” offices that had been closed, restaurants, retail stores and hair salons.  Early on Saturday, we also got all the detailed rules that will need to be met to reopen; we’ll have a full update on my firm’s website after a full review . You can download the rules for offices here. The basic outline for the reopening rules are set forth is fairly consistent with the “Safe Workplace” rules for essential workplaces and also my posts on the subject as well. Here’s what you can look for, according to the early details released in the press conference: Offices should be limited to 50 percent capacity Employees should still work from home where possible Meetings are subject to a five person limit Employees should be seated at least six feet apart and employers should leave des...

If you told me in January that I’d spend a week in May: Holding a surprise car parade (“What’s a car parade?”, I’d be asking) for my wife’s birthday; Sitting 10 feet apart outside in a cul-de-sac with a friend sharing stories; Wearing a Hartford Whalers mask when walking outside; Receiving online grocery deliveries (and wiping off the groceries upon arrival); Having a law school class reunion on Zoom (“What is Zoom?”), and, Doing all my work at home (with multiple video calls a week!); I’d have said that you have quite a colorful imagination. And yet here we are. Despite the madness of the last two months, the fact remains that we are all pretty resiliant in way or the other. We adapt. Things that were completely foreign to us only two months ago, are now seemingly a way of life.  Most of us are doing what we need to do to survive and stay safe. For employers, this week presents a new challenge — adapting to the new rules ...

What do you think of masks? Strangely, it seems a loaded question of late.  How masks became a political hot potato is something that historians will debate. Yesterday, Connecticut tried out a new slogan encouraging common-sense use of masks. The new slogan? “If you have to ask, wear a mask”. But that’s not the full story of course. In all of the state’s reopening rules, masks (and face coverings) are a key component — in stores, restaurants, offices, even amusement parks. OSHA has chimed in as well with a new FAQ purporting to recap existing regulations on the subject. If you read that, though, you might think that employers in Connecticut are exempt from provide masks to their workers now. Cloth face coverings are not considered personal protective equipment (PPE) and are not intended to be used when workers need PPE for protection against exposure to occupational hazards. As such, OSHA’s PPE standards do not require employers to provide them. ...