While the deadly COVID-19 pandemic and the economic crisis that it spurred continue to test families across the country, help already is on the way. On March 11, 2021, President Joe Biden signed into law the American Rescue Plan, the most sweeping and progressive economic package that Congress has ...
American Rescue Plan Extends Unemployment Insurance Benefits
By Irwin Aronson and Amy Rosenberger More than a year into the pandemic, chronic unemployment and under-employment remain among its most challenging impacts on individuals’ lives and our economy. The adoption and signing into law of the American Rescue Plan Act (ARPA) significantly extends and ...
ARPA: Subsidized COBRA Coverage and Extensions of ERISA Deadlines
By Susan Bahme Blumenfeld Under the recently enacted American Rescue Plan Act of 2021, some individuals who have lost their jobs or have had their work hours reduced will be eligible for a 100% subsidy for COBRA coverage for the period from April 1, 2021 through September 30, 2021. Pursuant to ...
American Rescue Plan Offers New Life to Multiemployer Defined Benefit Pension Plans Facing Insolvency
By Jim Beall For years, experts and legislators have debated what to do about several large multiemployer defined benefit pension plans facing insolvency because of investment losses during the Great Recession and the decline of contribution bases over decades of industry changes. Finally, ...
PPP Loans Now Open to Certain Labor Organizations
Tax code section 501(c)(5) labor organizations now can apply for Paycheck Protection Program loans, but they need to act quickly before funding and time run out. By Jim Beall For the first time, Tax Code Section 501(c)(5) labor organizations can apply for Paycheck Protection Program (PPP) ...
What Does the ‘No Surprises Act’ Mean for Patients?
By Wendy F. Pongracz, Jim Beall, Susan Bahme Blumenfeld, and Kelly Ann Brogan On December 27, 2020, the Consolidated Appropriations Act, 2021 (CAA) was signed into law. The CCA includes the No Surprises Act (the “Act”), which provides, among other things, protections for patients and their ...
Interim NLRB General Counsel Moves Quickly to Re-Focus Agency on Workers’ Rights
By Joseph D. Richardson The brief time since President Joe Biden’s inauguration has seen dramatic changes at the National Labor Relations Board (NLRB) and other federal labor regulators, signaling the new administration’s commitment to ending the war on workers of the last four years. The ...
Biden’s Pro-Worker Agenda in Action
By Ryan Allen Hancock Within one week of taking office, President Joe Biden’s administration has taken sweeping action that centers on and benefits working people. Specifically, the Biden administration has taken direct action with regard to wages, worker protections, and union organizing. In ...
Are Mandatory Security Screenings Compensable Under PA Law?
By Ryan Allen Hancock The Pennsylvania Supreme Court soon will decide whether mandatory screenings before or after a work shift are compensable under Pennsylvania law, in a case called Heimbach v. Amazon.com, Inc. and Integrity Staffing Solutions, Inc. Under the federal Fair Labor Standards ...
COVID-19 Vaccines at Work: Can My Employer Mandate?
By Jessica C. Caggiano, Esq. The long-awaited COVID-19 vaccine is finally here, and the population is reacting in a variety of ways. Some people are desperate to move ahead in the line of prioritization and get their vaccination, while others are unwilling or reticent about being among the first ...