We told you in December that the recent Coronavirus Stimulus and Relief bill allowed employers to continue to provide FFCRA paid leave to employees on a voluntary basis through the first quarter of 2021. Since then, the DOL has updated its Questions and Answers to address FFCRA paid leave obligations after December 31, 2020.

The updated guidance includes 2 new Q&As. The first Q&A addresses whether eligible workers who did not use their FFCRA leave entitlement in 2020 may use such leave in 2021 and reiterates that employers are not required to provide employees with FFCRA paid leave after December 31, 2020. But employers may voluntarily decide to provide it anyway. And for those who do, employer tax credits available to cover the cost of qualified leave wages paid to employees have been extended to March 31, 2021.

The second new Q&A explains the DOL’s enforcement of the FFCRA. Because the FFCRA was mandatory from April 1 through December 31, 2020, only, that is the time period when an employer could violate the law and face legal consequences. However, employees and the DOL have considerably more time to raise complaints after the December 31, 2020, expiration date. Q&A #105 includes the example of an employee who used 6 weeks of FFCRA in 2020 because a childcare provider was unavailable due to COVID-19, but the employer did not pay the employee for the last two weeks of the FFCRA leave. The DOL explains that it will enforce the FFCRA for any leave taken or requested during the effective period of April 1 to December 31, 2020, as long as the complaint is made within the statute of limitations (2 years from the date of the alleged violation in most cases, or 3 years where the employer willfully violated the FFCRA). So even though the FFCRA has now expired, employees may still make complaints and employers may still be held responsible for violations that occurred during 2020—regardless of whether the employer continues to provide FFCRA paid leave through March 31, 2021.

As with all things COVID-related, and especially so considering the new administration’s efforts to combat it, more changes may be on the horizon. Stay tuned.