Q: If we lay off employees do we have to pay them their accrued, vacation/paid time off?

A: Yes, in most states accrued time off is due at the time of layoff or termination.

Remember to check your state wage & hour laws for how long you have to deliver that final wage payment.

Q: What happens to benefits like health insurance, short and long-term disability, life insurance while an employee is on furlough or layoff? 

A: Employers need to contact their broker, insurance carrier or carefully read their insurance contracts.  Many benefit providers have provisions requiring employees to work a specific number of hours to be eligible for the benefit.  It may be that employees on furlough or layoff are not eligible for a benefit.

Q: Once FFCRA is effective on April 1, will employees be allowed to use the FMLA provision for intermittent leave as they can under current FMLA regulations?

A: Unfortunately, there has been no guidance issued yet on intermittent leave for the expanded FMLA benefit.  CAUTION, you must continue to stay up to date on a daily basis as the details continue to come from the US DOL and bills continue to get passed every day!!

Answers to any of your questions can be answered by our HR Expert, Fran Lefavour

HR Consulting – Helping You Navigate the Legal Maze…Consulting Hotline 866.533.3947

• Layoff vs. furlough
• Benefit compliance
• Required documentation
• 0 – 500 employees – new laws that impact your business

Fran Lefavour has been in the Human Resources field for over 30 years, 24 of those years as a consultant to small businesses in New England. She is viewed as an expert in the area of workers’ compensation case management and frequently speaks to groups regarding claims management, reducing workers’ compensation costs and other Human Resource topics.