COVID-19 pandemic raises questions about layoffs, payroll, and PTO

QIf we send employees home for 14 days because they worked closely with one of our employees who tests positive for COVID-19, do they qualify for the paid sick leave under the Families First Coronavirus Response Act (FFCRA), or do they have to use available personal and vacation days? Would it be wiser to lay them off so they could collect unemployment? Let's step back for a moment before jumping to paid sick leave or layoff. Can any of the employees being sent home telework? Start by exploring work-at-home options so the wheels can keep turning.

If telework isn't feasible for some or all of the employees being sent home, then we need to explore other options. The employees probably aren't going to qualify for paid sick leave under the FFCRA because they haven't been advised by a healthcare provider to self-quarantine. Nor are they experiencing symptoms of COVID-19 and affirmatively seeking a medical diagnosis, at least not at the point addressed by your question. They may, however, use available personal and vacation days to make up for the lost earnings.

Keep in mind, however, that exempt employees must be paid their full salaries for any workweek in which work is performed as long as they remain employed, so if you send exempt employees home on leave on Wednesday, they still must be paid for the full week. Of course, you may require them to use available paid leave to cover the days they miss, but if you choose not to mandate the use of paid leave, you still have to pay them. On the other hand, nonexempt employees have to be paid only for hours actually worked.