HR News

Consider granting a “Leave of Absence” for workers too scared to come back to the office  UPDATED 4/29/2021 The threat of contracting COVID-19 is a serious fear for many employees and must not be underestimated nor belittled. Many employees are reluctant to return to work or return to the worksite. What are the legal alternatives to helping those employees, while maintaining the viability of your business?  Can A Refusal to Return to Work Be Grounds […]

To stay on top of issues important to employers, Cardinal Services tracks the 2021 Oregon Legislative Session for potential laws that will impact employers and business owners.  Only bills that have been assigned to a committee and have had a work session scheduled still have a chance of becoming law. Here are the remaining employer-related bills being considered (with links to the full-text of each bill).  HB 2474 – Oregon Family Leave Act [OFLA]: This […]

COVID-19 vaccination policies are a top concern for employers and employees alike  Should employers require workers to receive a COVID-19 vaccination, as a condition of continued employment? Here’s what the polls say…  Employers are strong on vaccine encouragement, but split on requiring mandated vaccinations for employment. A recent Society for Human Resource Management (SHRM) survey shows a differing opinion among employers.  While 81% of employers strongly encourage their employees to get vaccinated, 55% were uncertain […]

Setting up a conduct policy can prevent embarrassing mishaps  In March of 2020, many employees began working from home. Businesses have had to rely on virtual meetings for both staff and customers by using Microsoft Teams, Zoom, WebEx, Skype, or other video communication platforms.  On the upside for workers, these meetings from home have become a casual dress day—which on the surface, seems like a good thing. Employees have traded their standard office attire for […]

Small Business Administration’s opens up the application process on Wednesday, February 24  Effective on Wednesday, February 24, 2021, at 9 am EST, the Small Business Administration [SBA] will open up a special, 14-day Paycheck Protection Program [PPP] loan application period, reserved exclusively for businesses and nonprofits with fewer than 20 employees.   This new loan option gives lenders and community partners more time to work with the smallest businesses on application submission, while still ensuring that larger […]

Good news, not all trends are pandemic related!  Many of the 2021 employee benefit trends are related to employee issues that have arisen due to the COVID-19 pandemic, such as accommodating employees working remotely and keeping employees healthy and productive during these challenging times.  While some of these benefit trends will fade when the pandemic does, others may become the “new normal” in employee benefit programs.   According to a 2019 Employee Benefits Survey administered by […]

The business mileage rate will be $0.56 cents per mile   For 2021, standard mileage rates for the use of cars, vans, pickups, or panel trucks will be:   $0.56 cents per mile driven for business use, down from $0.575 cents in 2020.  $0.16 cents per mile driven for medical or moving purposes, down from $0.17 cents in 2020.  $0.14 cents per mile driven in service of charitable organizations, which remains unchanged.  While the standard mileage rates […]

As vaccines become available, workplace vaccination requirements may expand.  The Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC) has released guidance under federal law that makes it clear that employers may require workers to receive a COVID-19 vaccine – with limited exceptions. This is also true under Oregon law.     Employers may require employees to get a COVID-19 vaccination before returning to a worksite if the absence of a vaccination constitutes a direct threat to other employees in the […]

Within the bill to fund the government and provide continued economic relief in response to the pandemic, there are expansions of the Coronavirus Aid, Relief, and Economic Security (CARES) Act, the Paycheck Protection Program (PPP), and an extension of the refundable employer payroll tax credit for paid sick and family leave through March 31st 2021.   Here are the highlights of what employers need to know … 

IRS New Rule: OK to hide SSN/TIN Numbers on W2s   The IRS has approved a rule that allows Social Security [SSN] and Taxpayer Identification [TIN] numbers to be “masked” or truncated on W2s issued after December 31, 2020. The SSNs and TINs can now be printed on W2s with the first five numbers represented as “X” or “*” to conceal the actual numbers.   Example might read: XXX-XX-0000 or ***-**- 0000.  What this means for employees: […]