Dealing with School Closures Due to COVID-19

We know that you are going to be limited in what an employee could do from home, especially if they are typically involved in patient care. But, if there was ever a time to get creative, this is definitely it.

Some ideas on utilizing remote workers:

• Many administrative duties could be completed from home and even after hours when there may be a second parent or someone else to take care of children.
• Businesses are modifying their procedures to minimize contact in the office. Many are doing virtual patient check-ins that don’t require the employee to be in the office.

If you are a dental office and need help with virtual and paperless processes, we recommend looking into the OperaDDS Pre Screening, Paperless Forms, And Teledentistry Triage Kit, which integrates with your existing dental software.

NOTE: If you are one of our many non-dental members and know of a system you would recommend, please let us know so we can share those resources with others.

• Re-assign duties among the team so your in-office team can be focused and smaller while still providing everything you and your patients need while physically at work.

You won’t always be able to find a solution like this, and you’re not obligated to create a new position to accommodate someone’s child care needs.

But, be sure that you are identifying the work that needs to be done, as well as who can do what from where, and what tasks can be done from home.

This isn’t just us trying to help save your employee’s job — it’s a way to find new solutions to run your business with the valuable team members you’ve already invested your resources in.

For more on having employees work from home, please review our “Remote Work Checklist for Employers” here.

CEDR Members have a sample Remote Work Policy pre-loaded in their HR Vault, and can also find it in the CEDR Member’s Area.

Some employees will be able to work a reduced schedule in the office, from home, or some combination of both. We encourage you to see if this is an option for your employee. If you hired this individual to work full-time, a reduction in hours is not ideal but it is a solution that can be worked around in many situations.

However, many times businesses are able to work around a short-term reduction in hours by consolidating or reassigning tasks that usually get done when this person is out of the office.

Keeping your existing, trained, experienced employee while they work a modified work schedule may be more financially viable than spending time, money, and resources trying to find and train a replacement.

Keep in mind that, if you are a CEDR member, you have remote clocking built into your HR Vault. If you need help setting that system up, send an email to support@cedrsolutions.com.

If you are using the free version of that software, you can activate PTO & Time Tracking in your HR Vault here.

Most of your employees are non-exempt, hourly employees. You’re generally only required to pay those employees for the time they spend working.

If your employee is paid on salary, we recommend that you reach out to our CEDR advisors so we can confirm how they are paid and classified and review the options for how to address the reduced schedule.

Employees who are working fewer hours due to child care needs may be eligible to receive paid time off under the Families First Coronavirus Response Act (FFCRA). Whether FFCRA applies to the absence depends on the reason why they are unable to work.

There is a difference between the child’s school being physically closed and only providing remote learning, the parent choosing a remote learning option, and a parent opting not to return their child to an open daycare.

We explain when FFCRA does and does not apply below, as well as when employers may be able to opt-out of FFCRA pay through an exemption. If you are going to provide FFCRA pay, see this section on how to determine the amount of pay.

Employees can use FFCRA on an intermittent basis, meaning you can apply the paid FFCRA leave time to the days/hours of their regular work schedule that they are unable to work due to child care needs.

CEDR Members have a sample letter that confirms an employee’s schedule change in the CEDR Member’s Area.

If FFCRA pay will not be provided, hourly, non-exempt employees only need to be paid for hours actually worked.

You should document any changes to the employee’s work schedule, position, job duties, or pay. Depending on your state regulations and the number of hours the employee is putting in, they may be able to collect partial unemployment benefits based on the federal government’s expansion of those benefits.

CEDR Members have a sample letter that confirms an employee’s schedule change in the CEDR Member’s Area.

Note once again that CEDR members and Free HR Vault subscribers can use CEDR’s integrated and robust time tracking system to designate which hours qualify for FFCRA reimbursement, making running payroll much more straightforward.

We recommend having an expected return to work date in place, and informing the employee that you plan to check in with them about 2 weeks ahead of that date.

If the employee is ready to return to work:

If the employee is ready to return, and you’re prepared to have them back, then confirm with each other when they are expected to return and what their schedule will be. Also, give them a heads up about any other changes that happened while they were gone that they should be aware of in advance.

If you don’t want to bring this employee back:

If, when the time comes, it turns out that you don’t need them back, that’s generally ok. An employee on leave from work is subject to all the normal changes that would have happened had they still been actively working.

The pandemic is unpredictable, so you may find yourself in a position where you needed to reduce your staff size or restructure the team. If that is the case, be upfront with the employee as soon as possible so they know they need to start making different plans for employment.

A big caveat here: If the employee was out under FFCRA, there is some job protection in place for them. You are supposed to treat FFCRA as job-protected leave, with a couple of exceptions.

You can opt not to bring them back if they are a highly compensated “key” employee, or if you have fewer than 25 employees and certain business and economic circumstances have changed.

Read the DOL’s full guidance on that here before making this decision.

If the employee is NOT able to return to work:

Have a detailed conversation with the employee about their child care status.

If they just need another couple weeks off to make it to the end of the semester and their child will then go back to in-person schooling, we recommend extending their time off as unpaid leave. Document this extension in writing.

If they are able to return on a limited basis (part-time and/or remote), then have that conversation with them and consider if that option works for you.

If The Employee Needs More Time

If your employee needs more time and doesn’t have a foreseeable return date in sight, you have two choices — stop holding their job, or allow them to continue staying out on leave.

Stop holding their job: Let them know that you need to officially separate from them so you can complete your ongoing staffing plans and ensure you have continuing coverage. Tell them they are eligible for rehire should they become available in the future. You simply can’t promise you will have the same — or any — position open for them at that time.

Continue their leave: You are able to have them stay out on leave. CEDR typically would not recommend granting an indefinite leave, but these are highly unusual circumstances and it is ultimately up to you.

You can let them know you are doing your best to hold a job for them and they should contact you when they are ready to return. Or, you can grant extensions and continue to check in at scheduled times. This is really the preferred way to do it, so that you remain in contact and have a better idea of their long-term plans.

Either way, this is an extended, unpaid, personal leave of absence, so it is not job protected. Meaning that, if you don’t have a position for them when they are finally able to return, you can separate at that time.

If the Employee Ignores You:

If you are trying to reach out to the employee to confirm their return to work status and they are not responsive, document every one of those efforts.

CEDR Members and Free HR Vault Subscribers: Use the “Add a Note” function in your HR Vault to add confidential documentation to an employee’s file.

Don’t have an HR Vault account yet? Unlock your FREE HR Vault here!

We also recommend sending an email or letter to the employee that tells them you’ve been unsuccessful in contacting them, but that you expect them to return to work as scheduled on a designated date.

If they do not respond and/or do not show up to work, you can treat that as job abandonment and resignation from employment.

If you hired someone to provide temporary coverage, don’t leave them hanging!

Make sure they are aware of what’s happening at the end of their scheduled coverage time, as well. This may be confirming when their last day will be, asking them to stay on a bit longer, or extending an offer of ongoing regular employment.