Audits/Due Diligence - Page 8 of 24

Payroll Tax Deferral Update: Treasury Guidance Answers Certain Questions and Raises Others Only Days Before Start of Implementation

Late in the afternoon of August 28, 2020, the Internal Revenue Service (IRS) issued Notice 2020-65 (the Notice) permitting the deferral of employers’ obligation to withhold and deposit with the IRS the employee portion of certain social security (and related railroad retirement) taxes imposed under Sections 3101(a) and 3201(a) (FICA Withholding Taxes) of the U.S. Internal Revenue Code of 1986, as amended (the Code). The Notice follows President Trump’s August 8, 2020, executive memorandum (the Memo) directing the IRS to issue such guidance, and the deferral period begins on September 1. While the Notice specifies how FICA Withholding Tax deferral is to be effected and how deferred amounts are to be collected, a number of significant questions remain unanswered.

For the full alert, visit the Faegre Drinker website.

Modernized OFCCP Website Tools: The National Pre-Award Registry and VEVRAA Hiring Benchmark Database

On August 10, 2020, the Office of Federal Contract Compliance Programs (OFCCP) updated its website, including revamping the National Pre-Award Registry and the VEVRAA Hiring Benchmark Database. These new features provide helpful information to contactors and contracting officials and help to streamline navigation among OFCCP’s website content and tools. Furthermore, the updated tools enhance information accessibility to individuals with vision impairments.

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San Francisco Enacts Temporary ‘Back to Work’ Ordinance in Response to COVID-19 Layoffs

On June 23, 2020, the San Francisco Board of Supervisors passed a “Back to Work” Emergency Ordinance guaranteeing reemployment to certain employees laid off due to the COVID-19 pandemic. The ordinance requires covered employers to provide written notice when layoffs occur while also prohibiting discrimination against, and requiring reasonable accommodations for, employees who experience a family care hardship.

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Independent Study of EEOC 2017 and 2018 Pay Data Underway

On July 16, 2020, the U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC) announced that the National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine’s Committee on National Statistics (CNSTAT) will conduct an independent study of the EEOC’s Employer Information Report (EEO-1 Report) Component 2 data, which was collected last year. Pursuant to a court order, covered employers were required to provide new Component 2 EEO-1 data reports for two years of their employees’ W-2 wage information and total hours worked in 12 pay bands by gender, race and ethnicity. The collection ultimately sought pay data for fiscal years 2017 and 2018 and was due on September 30, 2019.

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Remote Working During COVID-19 (and Beyond?): Frequently Asked Questions

Many state and local orders continue to require certain employees to work remotely or telecommute during the COVID-19 pandemic. And even where employees are beginning to return to the workplace, employers may face an increase in requests from employees to work remotely on an extended basis. With a likely uptick in its remote workforce, employers should consider whether to allow its employees to work remotely, and if so, how to best accomplish the task, including whether to implement a remote work policy and/or enter into individual remote work agreements with its remote employees during this pandemic and, perhaps, beyond.

For the full alert, visit the Faegre Drinker website.

Returning to Work Post-Shutdown, Part III: Potential Trends and Changes to U.K. Workplaces

In the final instalment of our series examining the return to work post-shutdown in the U.K., we look at the potential trends and longer-term changes that the COVID-19 pandemic will likely have on U.K. workplaces.

The COVID-19 pandemic and resultant shutdown in the U.K. have caused a massive shift in the way we work, with many employers sending their employees home and transitioning to home-working in a matter of days. Notwithstanding the devastating effects that the COVID-19 pandemic has had on personal lives and the U.K. economy, many employers have found the move to a predominantly home-working culture to be largely successful. So, now that most of us have finally mastered the art of the Zoom call, what does the future hold for the U.K. workplace as the country begins to emerge from the lockdown?

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