Rojgar Job News

As the dust continues to settle from the General Assembly, bills that didn’t get a lot of press beforehand are continuing to come into the light. One of them is new Public Act 19-95, which was just signed by Governor Lamont yesterday. The bill treats being a member of the “Civil Air Patrol” as a new protected class and prohibits an employer from discriminating against an employee because the employee is absent from work responding to some emergencies or training as a civil air patrol member. And how is the Civil Air Patrol defined? It’s defined as the civilian auxiliary of the U.S. Air Force.  There are approximately 61,000 youth and adult members of the CAP nationwide, according to the most recent statistics, though 26,000 of them are cadet members between the ages of 12 and 20. But before employers start to wonder if they have a lot of employees working for them in the Civil Air Patrol – the answer is probably not.  In Connecticut, only 365 peop...

One of the reasons I’m working on this project is to highlight the mandates and requirements that employers in the state need to follow. Some can lead to possible litigation; some can lead to, well, something less. Conn. Gen. Stat. Sec. 31-51jj is an example of the something less. The key language of the provision is as follows: An employer shall notify an employee of an incoming emergency telephone call for the employee if the caller states that the emergency involves a member of the employee’s family or  a person designated by the employee in accordance with Conn. Gen. Stat. Sec. 1-56r [typically someone with the power to make decisions, like healthcare, over another.] It shall not be a violation of this section if the employer proves, by a preponderance of the evidence, that he or she made reasonable efforts to notify the employee of the emergency telephone call.  The failure of an employer to comply with any provision of this section shall be an infraction...

Wednesday felt like a breaking point. The day when COVID-19 seemed to come out from under your office desk and said “You’re surrounded. Go home.” NBA – Suspending its season indefinitely. Schools in Fairfield County – Closed with the likelihood that more schools will follow soon. Tom Hanks – Another COVID-19 victim. Of course, this isn’t impacting everywhere at the same time. But it seems that several businesses are starting to contemplate severe restrictions in their workplace.  (Update: Thursday morning, Governor Lamont recommended that all businesses try to have employees work from home ASAP.)   Sure, many businesses will stay open or try to; we’ll need markets, pharmacies and utilities just to name a few.  But those businesses that can try to minimize their workplace interactions, probably will — or at least try to move to a remote-only workplace. Even the courts are now getting into the act by showing how the viru...

Wednesday was supposed to be the first day of vacation for me and my family in Florida. Instead, I spent it at home helping clients run from one crisis to another. It’s pretty amazing how quickly all of our lives have changed so dramatically. Also amazing: Congress passed major legislation on leave related to COVID-19.  In record time. Normally, I would recap those types of things here but everyone (including, to be fair, my lawfirm) has already recapped it so I have little to add.  That said, you can and should read my firm’s recap here.  What else transpired on Wednesday that Connecticut employers need to be aware of? Another day, another executive order — this one titled “7F” (quick question: What happens after 7Z? Let’s hope we don’t have to get there). This one closed recreational facilities such as bowling alleys and zoos.  Expect more closures in the coming days. Access Health CT announced that it was having a special ...