IMA COVID-19 (Coronavirus) Update - #29
The Illinois Manufacturers’ Association has been communicating directly with manufacturers across Illinois as the situation changes and will continue posting resources online at the IMA’s dedicated page www.ima-net.org/covid-19/ .

As the IMA noted previously, Governor Pritzker issued an executive order waiving the one-week waiting requirement for unemployment insurance benefits and changed the definition of “ability to work” for applicants seeking these benefits. The Department of Employment Security’s emergency rules were formally filed (p. 720) with the Secretary of State’s office and are in effect for 150 days.
 
Individuals who are separated from work through no fault of their own are eligible to apply for unemployment insurance benefits. In order to qualify for benefits under current law, an individual must be able to work, available for work, and actively seeking employment. The current pandemic has made this requirement difficult to meet so the Governor’s EO and this subsequent rule makes it easier for individual to meet the “availability for work” requirement and receive benefits.
 
Daily COVID-19 Results
 
Governor JB Pritzker held his daily press conference and announced:
 
  1. There are 1,529 new cases of coronavirus in Illinois.
  2. There are a total of 462 deaths related to coronavirus in Illinois, including 82 additional deaths announced today.
  3. A total of 15,078 cases have been confirmed in at least 77 of the 102 counties.
  4. here have been 75,066 individuals tested for cornavirus in Illinois.
 
Press Conference Key Updates

New or critical items of note that were discussed today by the Governor:
 
  1. Governor Pritzker noted that the goal is to administer 10,000 COVID-19 tests a day. Illinois has the capability of administering 6,000 tests a day and likely will not hit 10,000 this week. Illinois is working with manufacturer Thermo Fisher to increase testing.
  2. The state is working with private companies to acquire additional testing machines and lauded IMA member Abbott Laboratories on rapid results testing machines. 
  3. The Governor announced that the Illinois COVID-19 Response Fund, created two weeks ago to support local community organizations and non-profits across the state, has announced its first round of funding totaling $5.5 million. The fund has raised $28 million. To make a donation or apply for funding, please click here. 

Employer Resources & Programs

The IMA published a guide last week on the topics of Federal and State Grants, Unemployment Insurance, and Leave.

Tomorrow, Thursday, April 9, from 1:00 - 2:30pm CST, the IMA is partnering  Kutchins Robbins and Diamond (KRD) for an webinar to provide an update on how the CARES Act is working and what companies should be doing to access its resources. Plus, participants can get their CARES Act questions answered in real time. To register for this webinar, please click here .
 
Question & Answer Section
 
The Families First Coronavirus Response Act (the "FFCRA") provides small and midsize employers refundable tax credits that reimburse them, dollar-for-dollar, for the cost of providing paid sick and family leave wages to their employees for leave related to COVID-19. Eligible Employers are entitled to receive a credit in the full amount of the qualified sick leave wages and qualified family leave wages, plus allowable qualified health plan expenses and the employer’s share of Medicare tax, paid for leave during the period beginning April 1, 2020, and ending December 31, 2020. The Internal Revenue Service has provided a Q & A on this issue that contains questions and answers, such as:

(1) What is included in "qualified sick leave wages"?

Qualified sick leave wages are wages (as defined in section 3121(a) of the Internal Revenue Code for social security and Medicare tax purposes) that Eligible Employers must pay eligible employees for periods of leave during which they are unable to work or telework because the employee: 
  • is subject to a Federal, State, or local quarantine or isolation order related to COVID-19;
  • has been advised by a health care provider to self-quarantine due to concerns related to COVID-19;
  • is experiencing symptoms of COVID-19 and seeking a medical diagnosis;
  • is caring for an individual who is subject to a Federal, State, or local quarantine or isolation order related to COVID-19, or has been advised by a health care provider to self-quarantine due to concerns related to COVID-19;
  • is caring for a child of such employee if the school or place of care of the child has been closed, or the child care provider of such child is unavailable due to COVID-19 precautions; or
  • is experiencing any other substantially similar condition specified by the Secretary of Health and Human Services in consultation with the Secretary of the Treasury and the Secretary of Labor. 

(2) How much credit may an Eligible Employer receive for qualified sick leave wages that it pays?

An Eligible Employer may claim a fully refundable tax credit equal to 100 percent of the qualified sick leave wages (and allocable qualified health plan expenses and the Eligible Employer’s share of Medicare tax on the qualified sick leave wages) it pays.

(3) How does an Eligible Employer determine the amounts of the qualified sick leave wages it is required to pay?

The amounts that an Eligible Employer must pay for qualified sick leave wages vary depending on the reason for which the employee is unable to work or telework, the duration of the employee’s absence, the employee’s hours, and the employee’s regular rate of pay (or, if higher, the federal minimum wage or any applicable State or local minimum wage).

a. What is the rate of pay for qualified sick leave wages if an employee is unable to work or telework due to his or her own health needs?

If an employee is unable to work or telework because he or she:
  1. is subject to a Federal, State, or local quarantine or isolation order related to COVID-19;
  2. has been advised by a health care provider to self-quarantine due to concerns related to COVID-19; or is experiencing symptoms of COVID-19 and seeking a medical diagnosis;
 
The Eligible Employer must pay qualified sick leave wages for up to two weeks (up to 80 hours) at a rate for each hour of the greatest of the following:
  1.  the employee’s regular rate of pay (as determined under section 7(e) of the Fair Labor Standards Act of 1938);
  2. the minimum wage rate in effect under section 6(a)(1) of the Fair Labor Standards Act of 1938; or
  3. the minimum wage rate in effect for the employee in the applicable State or locality, whichever is greater, in which the employee is employed.

The maximum amount of qualified sick leave wages paid for these reasons is up to $511 per day and $5,110 in the aggregate.

For more information, see the Department of Labor's  Families First Coronavirus Response Act: Questions and Answers .

b. What is the rate of pay for qualified sick leave wages if an employee is unable to work or telework because he or she needs to care for others?

If an employee is unable to work or telework because he or she: 
  1. is caring for an individual who is subject to a Federal, State, or local quarantine or isolation order related to COVID-19, or has been advised by a health care provider to self-quarantine due to concerns related to COVID-19;
  2. is caring for a child of such employee if the school or place of care of the child has been closed, or the child care provider of such child is unavailable due to COVID-19 precautions; or
  3. is experiencing any other substantially similar condition specified by the Secretary of Health and Human Services in consultation with the Secretary of the Treasury and the Secretary of Labor;

The Eligible Employer must pay qualified sick leave wages for up to two weeks (up to 80 hours) at a rate for each hour of 2/3 of the greatest of the following:
  1. the employee’s regular rate of pay (as determined under section 7(e) of the Fair Labor Standards Act of 1938);
  2. the minimum wage rate in effect under section 6(a)(1) of the Fair Labor Standards Act of 1938; or
  3. the minimum wage rate in effect for the employee in the applicable State or locality, whichever is greater, in which the employee is employed.

The maximum amount of qualified sick leave wages paid due to the need to care for others as described above is up to $200 per day and $2,000 in the aggregate.

For more information, see the Department of Labor's  Families First Coronavirus Response Act: Questions and Answers .

c. How are employees’ hours determined for purposes of the qualified paid sick leave requirements?

Full-time employees are entitled to up to 80 hours of paid sick leave between April 1, 2020, and December 31, 2020. Part-time employees are entitled to the number of hours of paid sick leave that the employee works, on average, in a two-week period, or if the employee’s normal scheduled hours are unknown or variable, under other alternative determinations, as provided by DOL guidance.

For more information, including how to determine whether an employee is full-time or part-time and how to determine the number of hours to be paid to employees who are entitled to paid sick leave, see the Department of Labor's  Families First Coronavirus Response Act: Questions and Answers .
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Mark Denzler
President & CEO
Illinois Manufacturers' Association
Disclaimer : The information in this email is provided for general informational purposes only as a benefit of your membership in the Illinois Manufacturers' Association. No information contained in this email should be construed as legal advice from the IMA or the individual author, nor is it intended to be a substitute for legal counsel on any subject matter. If you need legal advice, please contact an attorney directly.