Title
Recommendation to Approve Recommendations on Continuation of City Operations and Compensation for Employees, Implementation of the Families First Coronavirus Response Act (FFCRA) and to Increase Vacation Accrual Caps and Other Employees Actions Related to the City Response to COVID-19. (Human Resources 2510)
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To: Honorable Mayor and Members of the City Council
EXECUTIVE SUMMARY
Since Alameda County issued a shelter-in-place order on March 16, 2020, the City of Alameda (City) has continued to evaluate how to comply with this order while providing essential services to the Community. Many employees continue to work to provide services either remotely, in the field or in the office using social distancing practices. When the shelter-in-place order was first implemented the City recognized not all employee would need to continue to work or would be able to work. In order to ensure employees were able to maintain their salaries the City Council approved the implementation of a leave bank (COVID-19 bank) equal to three weeks of pay. Employees unable to work are able to use this leave to cover any time there was a lack of work or they were unable to work full hours related to the COVID-19. Employees who continued to work will have the opportunity to use this leave at a later date.
It is anticipated that some form of shelter-in-place will remain in effect at least through May 2, 2020. In response, staff have developed a recommendation on how to continue to, the maximum extent possible, necessary City operations while appropriately compensating employees for their work. This plan will allow employees who are able to continue to work and be available full pay either through the use of the COVID-19 pay, regular pay or additional paid leave through May 2, 2020. If the shelter in place order is extended beyond May 2, 2020, the City Manager and City Attorney seeks authorization to have the discretion to continue operating pursuant to this plan or to return to normal City operations, as appropriate based on conditions at that time.
The expectation is that employees who have work to do remain fully engaged in the work of the City. Employees who are able to work effectively remotely, as determined by the City, may do so when approved by the City while following strict guidelines, including required rotational attendance at City facilities, immediate availability for redeployment and strict reporting requirements. Full-time employees unable to work will be eligible for pay through the new Extended Family Medical Leave act and/or the use of accruals.
Human Resource staff will also be working with departments to identify needs for part-time staff. It is anticipated that there will be a significant reduction in work hours for part-time staff.
BACKGROUND
On March 16, 2020 the County of Alameda and six other Bay Area agencies issued a Shelter-In-Place order requiring residents of the affected counties to stay home and the closure of non-essential businesses from March 17, 2020 through April 7, 2020. On March 17, 2020, City Council approved an emergency ordinance, which included three weeks of paid leave (COVID-19 pay) based on an employee’s regular schedule for all City employees, full and part-time. The paid leave began on March 17, 2020 and runs through April 6, 2020, the original end date of the county wide Shelter-In-Place order. The County Shelter-In-Place order is expected to be extended until at least May 1, 2020.
On March 19, 2020 Governor Gavin Newsom issued a statewide mandatory Stay-At-Home order requiring all state residents to remain at home except for essential needs and for all non-essential businesses to close. The order has no end date but is expected to be in place until at least May 1, 2020, requiring the continued closure and reduction in services already in place in the City of Alameda.
The FFCRA went into effect April 1, 2020 with two important provisions for the City, the first requiring the City to provide 80 hours of emergency paid sick leave for certain COVID-19 related reasons and second, expanding FMLA to cover certain COVID-19 related leaves and provide partial pay during those leaves. The FFCRA is to sunset on December 31, 2020.
DISCUSSION
I. Families First Coronavirus Response Act
Staff is currently recommending the implementation of the FFCRA to all employees including emergency responders. The FFCRA includes the Emergency Paid Sick Leave Act (EPSL) and the Emergency Family and Medical Leave Expansion Act (EFMLEA) and requires the City to provide our employees with paid sick leave and expanded family and medical leave for specified reasons related to COVID-19. The provisions in the FFCRA apply from April 1, 2020 through December 31, 2020.
A. Emergency Paid Sick Leave Act
The EPSL provides all employees with paid sick leave. Full-time employees who are unable to work because of one of the COVID-19 related reasons listed below are eligible for eighty (80) hours of paid leave. Part-time employees who are unable to work because of the reasons listed below are eligible for the number of hours the employee would normally be scheduled to work over the period they are taking leave.
Reasons for EPSL leave:
1. subject to a Federal, State, or local quarantine or isolation order related to COVID-19;
2. has been advised by a health care provider to self-quarantine related to COVID-19;
3. is experiencing COVID-19 symptoms and is seeking a medical diagnosis;
4. is caring for an individual subject to an order described in (1) or self-quarantine as described in (2);
5. is caring for a child whose school or place of care is closed (or child care provider is unavailable) for reasons related to COVID-19; or
6. is experiencing any other substantially-similar condition specified by the Secretary of Health and Human Services, in consultation with the Secretaries of Labor and Treasury.
Employees taking leave for reasons 1 - 3 above receive 100% of their pay based on their regular rate of pay up to $511 per day ($5,110 in the aggregate). Employees taking leave for reasons 4 -6 above receive 2/3 of their pay based on their regular rate of pay up to $200 per day ($2,000 in the aggregate).
B. Emergency Family and Medical Leave Expansion Act
The EFMLEA adds a reason for which Family and Medical Leave may be taken and changes eligibility requirements. The EFLMEA provides that 12 weeks of FMLA may be taken to care for a child whose school or place of care is closed (or child care provider is unavailable) for reasons related to COVID-19and provides pay for the last 10 weeks of FMLA taken for this reason. It also provides that to be eligible for this expanded use of FMLA employees need only be employed for 30 days. Eligibility requirements for all other uses of FMLA remain the same, one year of employment and 1250 hours of work.
Employees qualifying for EFMLEA receive 2/3 of their regular pay up to $200 per day ($12,000 in the aggregate). The first two weeks of EFMLEA are unpaid, but employees may use leave under EPSL, described above, during this initial two week period.
II. Continuation of Work and Commensurate Pay
Staff are recommending the City continue to pay employees as described below for the period April 7, 2020 through May 2, 2020 if certain conditions are agreed to by the employee. The City Manager and City Attorney may adopt guidelines needed to manage and implement this Continuation of Pay Provision. As part of this provision staff are also recommending the City Manager and City Attorney be granted the authority to increase vacation caps for employees in their respective service who are unable to take vacation due to the COVID-19 emergency.
Full-Time Employees:
During the period beginning April 7, 2020 and ending May 2, 2020 City Departments will make every effort to perform needed functions in compliance with the State Stay-At-Home order. Certain employees will continue to perform necessary work at City facilities, as allowed by the Alameda County Public Health Order. Employees may be authorized to perform remote work, subject to written approval of their Department Head, consistent with their work function, their ability to adequately handle remote work, and the needs of the City. If approved, they will be required to:
1. Rotate into the office, as allowed by the Alameda County Public Health Order (or other City facilitates such as the EOC) to perform work;
2. Work remotely, following the City’s Telework Policy;
3. Consistently monitor calls and emails throughout each workday;
4. Be available and ready to work either remotely or at a City facility, as determined by the City, immediately when called upon;
5. Be available and ready to be immediately be redeployed to other areas within the department or City;
6. Perform a combination of each listed above.
7. Employees will be required to acknowledge in writing their full availability for work and redeployment.
During this period employees working their full schedule will receive their regular pay for all hours worked. Employees working less than their full schedule will be required to use any remaining COVID-19 Administrative Leave. Once COVID-19 leave is exhausted employees working less than their full schedule but still fully available and performing all work as directed by their Department Head and Supervisor will use general paid Administrative Leave to reach their full pay.
Employees unable to work as described above due to a reason covered by the FFCRA, will be compensated as prescribed by applicable provisions in the FFCRA. Employees unable or unwilling to work as described above and not covered by any provision of the FFCRA must first use any remaining COVID-19 administrative leave and then may use sick leave, comp time, or vacation accruals to remain in a paid status. Once all leaves are exhausted, an employee who remains unable or unwilling to work and is not covered by a paid provision of the FFCRA will be placed on leave without pay.
Employees who are not able to telecommute and who are not essential employees, and would prefer to work rather than use accrued leave or be unpaid can sign an agreement to be reassigned as laid out above.
Some employees based on their ability to work may use a combination of regular pay and FFCRA.
Part-Time Employees:
During the period beginning April 7, 2020 and ending May 2, 2020, part-time employees identified as necessary by a department will continue to receive pay based on their hours actually worked. Where a department does not have work for the employee to perform a part-time employee may use any remaining COVID-19 administrative leave and then may file for unemployment insurance benefits.
ALTERNATIVES
1. Approve the recommendations above.
2. Reject the recommendation above and direct staff to implement provisions of the FFCRA and require employees to use accrued leaves for hours not actually worked.
3. Modify the recommendations above consistent with all applicable laws.
FINANCIAL IMPACT
The City is tracking time specific to the COVID-19 response, as well as any purchase of supplies and materials needed to respond to the incident for future reporting and potential claims for Federal, State, or other reimbursement.
This current recommendation continues to provide pay to employees as budgeted. However, there may be a loss of some of productivity. While the total impact of the COVID-19 emergency is unknown at this time staff will continue to track costs. Any necessary budget adjustments will be presented to City Council at a later date.
MUNICIPAL CODE/POLICY DOCUMENT CROSS REFERENCE
This action is in conformance with the Alameda Municipal Code and all policy documents.
CLIMATE IMPACTS
There are no climate impacts associated with this resolution.
RECOMMENDATION
Approve staff recommendations on continuation of pay for full-time employees, implementation of the Families First Coronavirus Response Act (FFCRA) and to authorize the City Manager to increase the vacation accrual caps and other employees actions related to the city’s response to the COVID-19 Emergency.
CITY MANAGER RECOMMENDATION
The City provided an initial 3 week Admin Leave Bank when the initial County Order occurred. We do not have the financial capability to expand that program. Thus employees who are not determined essential and / or do not have work that allows telecommuting and who have used the three weeks of Administrative Leave (COVID 19) will have the option of taking leave using their accruals or be unpaid. Alternatively they may agree to the option to be reassigned/repurposed to other necessary work.
Respectfully submitted,
Nancy Bronstein, Human Resource Director
Financial Impact section reviewed,
Nancy Bronstein, Interim Finance Director
cc: Eric Levitt, City Manager