Employment & Business Litigation Pointers - Volume I, No. 5

As a public service, we are pleased to present this issue of Employment & Business Litigation Pointers, which aims to provide our clients and subscribers with timely information and practical, business-oriented solutions to the latest employment and general business litigation developments.  In some jurisdictions, newsletters such as this may be considered: Attorney Advertising.
 
If you know of others who may wish to subscribe to this free publication, please feel free to forward it. If you wish to subscribe or unsubscribe, please do so at the bottom of this newsletter.

Embracing Gratitude and New Opportunities in a Time of Crisis

By Ann E. Evanko, Esq.

As Chair of the Labor & Employment Practices Group, I am proud of the work our team has accomplished over the last several weeks to keep you informed and on the cutting edge of the rapidly evolving COVID-19 crisis. Many of our articles and alerts offer practical advice on what to do, how to respond, and how to mitigate losses and damages affecting your business. As I wrapped up 12 years as CEO and Managing Member of a law firm with close to 100 employees and multiple offices throughout NYS and beyond, I relied on our team’s work to help guide our own company’s decisions.  It made a difference. I hope it made a difference to you as well. The firm’s response to the challenges presented by the COVID-19 crisis has served as a stark reminder about the importance of embracing gratitude and new opportunities to best serve our clients.

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What Happens to Your PPP Loan Forgiveness Amount if a Laid Off Employee Rejects an Offer to Rehire?

By Joseph S. Brown, Esq.

As we noted in last week’s newsletter, if your company or organization managed to obtain a Paycheck Protection Program (PPP) loan during the first round of PPP funding, your focus has likely shifted to utilizing the loan proceeds to best position yourself for loan forgiveness.  Borrowers have eight weeks from receipt of PPP funding to spend 75% of that amount on payroll on employees.  To have the loan forgiven, some businesses need to get their staff off unemployment and back on the payroll.  But what if a laid off employee rejects an offer to rehire?

Over the weekend, the Small Business Administration and U.S. Department of Treasury updated their FAQs (see question #40 available here) to address this very question.  This alert summarizes the recent SBA guidance and offers practical advice to address the dilemma posed by employees refusing to return to work because they are collecting more in unemployment benefits.

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Rebound Your Business: What You Should Know

As we noted in last week’s newsletter, the White House has unveiled a plan for “Opening Up America Again” and Governor Andrew Cuomo detailed a two-phase plan to begin reopening New York. Is your business ready to re-open when workplace restrictions issued in response to the COVID-19 crisis are eventually lifted? 

Last week, a multi-disciplinary team of Hurwitz & Fine attorneys presented a Webinar for the Amherst Chamber of Commerce entitled “Rebound Your Business: What You Should Know,” which explored the employment and other financial issues that businesses should be planning for as they return to work and “normal” operations.

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Your COVID-19 Resource Center: Legal Updates Regarding the Coronavirus
 

Hurwitz & Fine is working hard to keep you updated with information that could affect you and your business during this pandemic.  The Labor & Employment team regularly shares updates on federal and state employment law developments in response to the coronavirus.

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Editor:
Joseph S. Brown, Esq.

Hurwitz & Fine's Labor & Employment team is here to answer your questions:

Labor & Employment Law
Ann E. Evanko, Esq. ([email protected])
Andrea Schillaci, Esq. ([email protected])
Joseph S. Brown, Esq. ([email protected])
Amber E. Storr, Esq. ([email protected])
Katherine L. Wood, Esq.

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