employment law Archives - Samuels Yoelin Kantor LLP

Navigating Oregon’s Leave Updates: SB 1515 Explained

June 27, 2024June 5, 2024 by Brooke Eide

It is no secret that the implementation of Paid Leave Oregon (PLO) over the last year has created many questions for employers and employees alike. To clear up some of these questions, the Oregon State Legislature passed SB 1515. Here’s what you need to know about the changes SB 1515 brings to PLO and other leave policies.

First, SB 1515 caps the amount of leave an employee can take under PLO in a benefit year to 14 weeks. These 14 weeks can include 12 weeks of leave for family leave, medical leave, or safe leave and an additional two weeks of leave for pregnancy, childbirth, or a related medical condition. This cap is lowered from the 18-week cap previously issued under PLO.

Second, SB 1515 provides clarity on how PLO may be used in conjunction with other leave policies starting July 1, 2024. Employers may create an internal policy, or establish a policy via collective bargaining, that specifies the order in which employees may take different types of available leave. Under any policy, Oregon Family Leave Act (OFLA) leave must be provided in addition to PLO, meaning that the two cannot be taken concurrently. However, SB 1515 does not allow recipients of worker’s compensation time loss benefits or unemployment benefits to also receive PLO benefits at the same time.

Third, SB 1515 expands the amount of wage replacement an employee can receive while on paid leave. At a minimum, employers must allow employees to receive benefits under PLO and any accrued but unused paid time off at the same time so employees can receive up to full wage replacement while taking leave under PLO. Alternatively, employers may choose to allow employees to receive PLO and employer provided benefits that exceed 100% of the employees’ regular wage.

Fourth, SB 1515 revises the protected reasons for taking leave under the OFLA. OFLA will no longer cover leave for a worker’s own serious health condition, leave to care for a family member, excluding a sick child, with a serious health condition, or leave to bond with a new child. Instead, each of these protected reasons for leave will be covered exclusively by PLO starting on July 1, 2024. If you have an employee who is already approved to take leave for one of these reasons under OFLA, or who has requested leave for one of these reasons, Oregon Bureau of Labor and Industries (BOLI) requires employers to provide that employee with notice that their leave will not be protected by OFLA as of July 1, 2024. In addition, the employer must inform the employee that their leave may be covered by PLO and provide applicable contact information to the employee. OFLA will continue to cover leave related to a child’s illness, bereavement leave, and leave for any pregnancy-related disability.

Fifth, SB 1515 adjusts time off allowed under OFLA. An additional two weeks of leave will be temporarily provided to employees engaging in the fostering or adoption process. These additional two weeks are only available to employees until December 31, 2024. Starting January 1, 2025, leave associated with the foster and adoption process will be considered as a protected reason for leave under PLO. SB 1515 also caps the amount of time employees can take off for bereavement leave under OFLA. Bereavement leave will be capped at two weeks per family member and four weeks total per year. Thus, if an employee has more than one family member pass in a 12-month period, they will be allowed to take two weeks of protected, unpaid leave per family member with up to four weeks in that 12-month period.

Looking forward, employers will want to review their current leave policies and HR practices to ensure they are compliant with the changes of SB 1515. Employers and employees can also anticipate updated regulations from BOLI that may provide further clarification to the changes outlined above. Should you have any questions about the changes of SB 1515 contact your employment attorney.

Indefinite Delay: Court of Appeals Enjoins NLRB’s Poster Rule

March 8, 2021April 25, 2012 by Tim Resch

Employers preparing for the upcoming April 30, 2012 implementation date of the National Labor Relations Board’s (NLRB) poster display rule can put down the thumbtacks and tape – at least for a little while longer.

In light of conflicting district court decisions and pending appeals as to whether the NLRB has authority to order this mandatory poster rule, on April 17, 2012 the Washington D.C. Circuit Court of Appeals issued a temporary injunction against the agency. This means that employers will not be required to hang the poster until the question of NLRB authority is settled. Oral arguments for the case are scheduled to begin September 2012.

See this blog’s October 3, October 12, 2011 and January 18, 2012 posts for a full chronology of the NLRB poster requirements and deadline extensions.

Another Delay: April 30, 2012 is New Deadline for NLRA Poster

March 8, 2021January 18, 2012 by Tim Resch

This blog reported on the National Labor Relations Board’s (NLRB) latest notice-posting requirement for employers falling under its jurisdiction (see our October 3 and October 12, 2011 posts). Once again, the NLRB has extended the deadline to hang the mandatory and controversial 11-by-17 inch poster. The original deadline was November 14, 2011, then extended to January 31, 2012, and now extended to April 30, 2012.
Why the extensions?

The NLRB reported that its first deadline extension was to grant confused employers more time to determine whether they were required to hang the poster.

Now, this second extension comes on the heels of a Washington D.C. federal judge’s request that the NLRB postpone the rule’s effective date pending current legal challenges to the Board’s authority regarding the rule. In addition to the Washington lawsuit (consolidated from originally two suits filed by various trade and labor organizations), the US Chamber of Commerce and South Carolina Chamber of Commerce also filed lawsuits in the US District Court of South Carolina challenging the notification rule.

Pending a court ruling on the matter, employers are expected to comply with the current rule. Contact SYK attorneysTim Resch or Steve Seymour for help with this or other employment and labor questions.

Update: NLRB Extends New Poster Deadline to January 31, 2012

March 8, 2021October 12, 2011 by Tim Resch

Citing an influx of questions from businesses and trade organizations, the NLRB has extended the deadline to hang the mandatory new 11-by-17 inch poster by a few months. This extension gives employers more time to clarify whether they fall under the NLRB’s jurisdiction. No other changes were made as to which employers must display the new poster and where to display it in the workplace.

See this blog’s previous October 3, 2011 post (Employers Must Display New NLRA Poster . . .) for more information. SYK attorneys Steve Seymour or Tim Resch can help with labor, employment, or human resource questions for both employers and employees.

Employers Must Display New NLRA Poster by November 14, 2011

March 8, 2021October 3, 2011 by Tim Resch

Following a recent ruling by the National Labor Relations Board (NLRB), most private sector employers must display a new official poster notifying employees of their rights under the National Labor Relations Act (NLRA). An employer’s knowing and willful failure to display the new poster may be considered evidence of an unlawful motive if the employer is later accused of other NLRA violations.

Here are highlights of the new requirements:

Which employers must hang the new poster?
All private sector employers within the NLRB’s jurisdiction must hang the new poster. The NLRA rights apply, and the new poster must be hung, in both union and non-union workplaces, as well as both for-profit and non-profit organizations.

Certain agricultural, railroad and airline employers are not within the jurisdiction of the NLRB and do not have to hang the new poster. Likewise, certain very small businesses are exempt from the NLRB and do not have to hang the new poster. The rules governing which small businesses qualify for this exemption can be complex. Generally, the NLRB categorizes small businesses into “retail” and “non-retail” businesses. “Retail” businesses (including home construction) with less than $500,000 in gross annual volume of business are exempt and do not have to hang the poster. “Non-retail” businesses with either a gross annual “inflow” (goods or services purchased from out of state) or “outflow” (goods sold or services provided out of state) of less than $50,000 are exempt. Some specific categories of businesses (such as nursing homes, private schools, day care centers, office buildings, libraries and museums) have different annual gross revenue requirements for NLRB exemption. A labor and employment attorney can help clarify your status if you are unsure whether your business is exempt.

Where to get the new poster:
You can purchase the poster from a commercial supplier, request free copies from any NLRB regional office, or simply download it from the NLRB’s website and print it yourself. Since the poster must be at least 11-by-17 inches in size, you can download either an 11-by-17 version or a two-page, 8.5-by-11 version and tape the two pages together. Click here to download either version: https://www.nlrb.gov/poster

If more than 20{45ef85514356201a9665f05d22c09675e96dde607afc20c57d108fe109b047b6} of the organization’s employees are not proficient in English and speak another language, the employer must post both the English language poster and a version in that other language (obtainable on request from an NLRB regional office).

Where to display the new poster:
The poster should be hung in a “conspicuous” place in each business premises, such as where other company notices and workplace rights information are customarily posted. If the workplace typically puts such notices and rules on an internet or intranet site, the poster should be added to that electronic site (as well as physically hung in a conspicuous place). If employees work at sites away from the main business premises, the poster should be hung in those locations as well.

Contact SYK attorneys Steve Seymour orTim Resch with any questions about the new NLRA poster, as well as any general labor, employment, or human resources questions.

Subscribe to our blog