News from Ollis/Akers/Arney Human Resources Consulting

American Rescue Plan Contains

Employment-related Provisions

President Joe Biden signed the American Rescue Plan Act of 2021 (ARPA) into law on March 11, 2021. Along with providing financial relief for individuals, state and local governments, schools, businesses and for other purposes, the law contains the following measures of special interest to employers and their employees:

A subsidy for COBRA premiums, funded through employer tax credits

Extension of employer tax credits for FFCRA employee leave voluntarily provided through Sept. 30, 2021

Expansion of employee earnings eligible for the FFCRA tax credit

Inclusion of testing and immunization as reasons for FFCRA leave

Extension of $300 increase in weekly unemployment benefits

Extension of $300 weekly unemployment benefit for workers who normally wouldn’t qualify for unemployment, like the self-employed

Expansion of subsidy for ACA premiums

Increase in DCAP contribution limits

For Additional Information click here

CDC Issues Long-awaited Guidance

for Fully Vaccinated People

The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) has released new guidance for people who have been fully vaccinated with a COVID-19 vaccine. Such individuals have been given the go-ahead to resume many activities that have been on hold since the beginning of the pandemic.

What’s Changed

According to the CDC, people are considered fully vaccinated two weeks after their second dose in a two-dose series, like the Pfizer-BioNTech or Moderna vaccines, or two weeks after a single-dose vaccine, like Johnson & Johnson’s vaccine. According to the guidance, people who have been fully vaccinated:

Can gather indoors with fully vaccinated people without wearing a mask.

Can gather indoors with unvaccinated people from one other household (for example, visiting with relatives who all live together) without masks, unless any of those people or anyone they live with has an increased risk for severe illness from COVID-19.

Do not need to avoid others or get tested if they’ve been around someone who has COVID-19 unless they have symptoms. However, those who live in a group setting (like a correctional or detention facility or group home) and are around someone who has COVID-19 should still stay away from others for 14 days and get tested, even if they don’t have symptoms.

Read more here

How Do You Bring Employees Back to the Office?

In early 2020, businesses worldwide navigated uncharted waters as the COVID-19 pandemic forced them to close their doors and find ways for their employees to work remotely. A little more than a year later, vaccines are being distributed and it finally feels like things might return to normal—or at least a new normal. But how can associates return to the workplace safely, and how can you resurrect your workplace culture?

Experts at Ollis/Akers/Arney and Neale & Newman share firsthand advice.

Read the entire article from Biz 417 here