Tracy Billows and Joshua Seidman Participated in the American Benefits Council Benefits Briefing Webinar

The American Benefits Council held a Benefits Briefing webinar on Thursday, August 6, and provided an update on state and local laws mandating paid sick leave and/or family leave for private-sector employees – including laws specifically provided or expanded with respect to COVID-19 – as well as federal developments.

The Families First Coronavirus Response Act included emergency paid leave requirements for employers with fewer than 500 employees and the Department of Labor issued a request for information (RFI) on July 16 soliciting public comments on the effectiveness of current state- and employer-provided paid leave programs. However, as broad federal paid family leave (PFL) and paid sick leave (PSL) legislation affecting private employers continues to elude lawmakers on Capitol Hill, certain states and localities are taking paid leave into their own hands. The Council recently upgraded its members-only paid leave atlas to cover both paid family leave and COVID-19 sick leave statutes.

Ilyse Schuman, senior vice president, health policy, moderated a discussion with Tracy Billows and Joshua Seidman of Seyfarth Shaw on the range of paid leave activity for the rest of 2020 and beyond.