October 1, 2020 Nevada law requires hospitality workers be provided paid sick leave for absences related to COVID-19 Recently enacted legislation (SB 4, Chapter 8) requires that hospitality employees exposed to or contracting COVID-19 be provided with paid sick leave. This paid leave cannot be counted against the paid sick leave that the employee has accrued under NRS 608.0197 (2019 SB 312). The paid leave may, however, be deducted from paid leave provided under the federal Families First Coronavirus Response Act. (Governor Steve Sisolak's press release.) Under NRS 608.0197 and effective January 1, 2020, Nevada employers with 50 or more employees are required to provide accrued paid leave to their employees. Hospitality employees who have been notified, or reasonably believe, that they have had close contact with a person who has tested positive for COVID-19 or who are experiencing COVID-19 symptoms must undergo COVID-19 testing at no cost to themselves at either their place of business or at a testing facility selected by the business. Employees must allow their employer access to their testing results. Employees must not return to work while waiting for their testing results and must be given, in addition to any other leave to which they are entitled, up to three paid days off to await the testing results. Should more than three days pass before the testing results are received, the employer must provide employees with additional paid time off. Hospitality employees who have tested positive for COVID-19 must be allowed at least 14 days off from work, at least 10 of which must be paid time off. Under the law and regulations recently released by the Nevada Department of Health & Human Services, employers are not precluded from allowing employees to be paid to work remotely, if possible, rather than collecting paid sick leave while awaiting test results or after testing positive for COVID-19. Hospitality employers must designate an area where employees report each day for temperature checks and symptom screening. If testing is available, each new employee and each employee first returning from lockdown after March 13, 2020, must undergo testing for COVID-19. Ernst & Young LLP insights Hospitality employers should review the requirements under SB 4 and the regulations carefully to confirm compliance with the law. SB 4 also provides some liability protection for the state's hospitality industry if businesses comply with the increased health and safety standards imposed by the state to protect workers and customers and slow the spread of COVID-19. ———————————————
——————————————— EY Payroll News Flash
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