Archive for category: Updates

The global Coronavirus/COVID 19 pandemic has had far-reaching effects on working people across the globe. Many NEJB employers have curtailed operations or ceased operations all together. During this crisis the New England Joint Board is committed to representing and protecting our members to the best of our ability. In line with these goals we are providing the following information and resources to members.

FEDERAL FMLA AND SICK TIME EXPANSIONS

The US House and Senate have passed a package of bills expanding sick leave and FMLA leave to workers affected by COVID 19. The following expansions will apply:

Emergency Paid Sick Leave: Private employers with less than 500 employees and all public employers are required to provide two weeks of paid sick leave at full pay to employees who cannot work or telework due to quarantine, isolation, or pending diagnosis.

1. Qualifying Employees:
   1. Employee subject to federal, state, or local quarantine or isolation order re: Covid-19;
   2. Employee advised by a health provider to self-quarantine related to concerns related to Covid-19 (e.g., protected health condition);
   3. Employee is symptomatic and is seeking a diagnosis;
   4. Employee is caring for someone in categories (i)or (ii);
   5. Employee is caring for child if school/childcare closed due to Covid-19 precautions.
2. Eligibility:
   1. All employees as defined by FLSA (and certain federal employees)
   2. Employees are eligible regardless of how long they have been employed by an employer, if they qualify (above)
3. Duration of Benefit:
   1. Full-Time Employees: 80 hours
   2. Part-Time Employees: Average number of hours worked over a two-week period (if schedule fluctuates, six-month average of hours)
   3. No carryover of unused benefits permitted from one year to next
4. Amount of Benefit:
   1. Personal isolation/quarantine: Full pay at maximum of $511/day or $5,110 total
   2. Caregiving isolation/quarantine/childcare: 2/3 full pay at maximum of $200/day or $2,000 total
   3. Benefit is based on greater of federal minimum wage, state/local minimum wage, or employee’s regular rate of pay as defined by FLSA.
5. Employee Protections:
   1. Employee cannot be required to find replacement to cover their hours while on sick leave
   2. Employee cannot be required to use any other accrued sick leave before taking this leave
   3. Employee cannot be fired, disciplined, or discharged for taking this leave
6. Violations: Constitute failure to pay minimum wages under FLSA and subject to FLSA penalties.  
7. Effective Date: 15 days after enactment of statute and sunsetting 12/31/20

 

Emergency Family and Medical Leave Expansion Act: Amends key sections of FMLA to include time out of work due to childcare needs. Applies to private employers with less than 500 employees and all public employers.

1. Qualifying Employees: Employees who have been employed for at least 30 calendar days. Certain health care providers and emergency responders exempted, as well as small businesses with less than 50 employees which can show that imposition of the requirements would jeopardize the ongoing viability of the business.
2. Eligibility: Employees must be unable to work or telework due to absence of childcare for child under 18 if school or place of care closed or childcare provider unavailable
3. Duration of Benefit: 12 weeks maximum
4. Amount of Benefit: First 10 days is unpaid leave but employee may substitute any vacation, personal, or medical or sick leave provided by employer. After first 10 days, at least 2/3 an employee’s regular rate of pay (defined by FLSA) for the hours they are regularly scheduled to work (or if schedule varies, average number of hours for last six months)—but pay shall not exceed $200/day or $10,000 in total (for entirety of leave).
5. Notice Requirements: Employees must provide as much notice “as practicable” if foreseeable
6. Effective Date: 15 days after enactment and sunsetting 12/31/20

 

UNION RESOURCES AND UNEMPLOYMENT INFORMATION

Union Office Operations: As of 7/8 the Union headquarters in Boston is open again.

Resources for Members:  The following resources have been provided by the International Union

• UNITE HERE COVID 19 Fact Sheet (English/Spanish/Chinese)
• How to Wash Hands Posters (English/Spanish/Chinese)
• How to Safely Remove Protective Gloves (English/Spanish/Chinese)

Unemployment Assistance: The Federal Government has provided guidelines for states to follow in relaxing the requirements for Unemployment Insurance. The Federal guidelines allows states to pay benefits where:

1. 1. An employer temporarily ceases operations due to COVID-19, preventing employees from coming to work;
   2. An individual is quarantined with the expectation of returning to work after the quarantine is over; and
   3. An individual leaves employment due to a risk of exposure or infection or to care for a family member

Each state must enact it’s own legislation in order to implement the new federal guidelines. Below is a listing of each state in the NEJB’s jurisdiction and information about the status of updating its unemployment system to conform to federal guidelines.

Connecticut: New unemployment claims may be filed by clicking here. All workers who become unemployed due to Coronavirus should file for unemployment. The following steps should be followed when filing a claim:

• • Answer “YES” to the question “Do you have a DEFINITE return to work date after today?”
  • If you do not know your return to work date but expect to return to your job, enter 04/01/2020 for your return to work date when prompted.
  • Have your employer’s DOL registration number available. If you do not have the number, enter 99-999-95
  • When you are asked if you are able and available for full-time work on either your initial claim or your weekly claims, please answer “No” only if you are out of work because YOU are sick.
  • If your employer is shutting down for a period of time because of COVID-19 and will be paying you your usual wages for this time, you are not eligible for unemployment.

Maine: Emergency legislation was approved this week by the legislature to allow Maine workers unemployed due to COVID 19 to file for unemployment. Please refer to this document for eligibility information. Unemployment claims may be filed by calling 1-800-593-7660 or online.

Massachusetts: Workers laid off due to COVID 19 should apply for unemployment assistance immediately. For a guide to applying for unemployment due to COVID 19 click here.

The Department of Unemployment Assistance (DUA) has relaxed the following rules for CURRENT claims in the system:

• • All requirements regarding attending seminars at the MassHire career centers have been suspended.
  • Missing deadlines due to effects of COVID-19 will be excused under DUA’s good cause provision.
  • All appeal hearings will be held by telephone only.

The has approved a waiver of the 1 week waiting period before receiving benefits. The Executive Office of Labor and Workforce Development has implemented emergency regulations that will allow people impacted by COVID-19 to collect unemployment if their workplace is shut down and expects to reopen in four or fewer weeks. The following conditions willapply:

• • Workers must remain in contact with their employer during the shutdown.
  • Workers must be available for any work their employer may have for them that they are able to do.
  • An employer may request to extend the period of the covered shut-down to eight weeks, and workers will remain eligible for the longer period under the same conditions described above.
  • If necessary, DUA may extend these time periods for workers and employers.

Workers should file for unemployment online at the Department of Unemployment Assistance website.

New Hampshire: As of 3/19 Governor Sununu has exapnded the scope of eligibility and has extended benefits to workers dealing with COVID 19. Updates can be found at the Department of Employment Security website. Workers laid off due to COVID 19 should file for unemployment immediately by calling 603-271-7700 or applying online here.

New York: The New York State Department of Labor has waived the seven day waiting period before receipt of unemployment benefits. Workers on lay off due to COVID 19 may file for benefits by calling 888-209-8124 or through the Department of Labor website.

If you are filing a new unemployment insurance claim, the day you should file is based on the first letter of your last name. If your last name starts with A – F, file your claim on Monday. For last names starting with G – N, file your claim Tuesday. For last names starting with O – Z, file your claim on Wednesday. If you missed your filing day, file your claim on Thursday, Friday or Saturday. Filing later in the week will not delay your payments or affect the date of your claim, since all claims are effective on the Monday of the week in which they are filed.

For instruction on how to file your claim please see the step by step guide here.

Rhode Island: The Rhode Island Department of Labor and Training is allowing workers laid off due to COVID 19 to apply for unemployment benefits. Workers are encouraged to follow the RIDLT fact sheet on filing for unemployment. Unemployment claims can be filed by calling 401-243-9100 or by filing a claim online.

Vermont: Workers impacted by COVID 19 or laid off due to COVID 19 may file for unemployment benefits here or by calling 1-877-214-3332. By executive order of Governor Scott payments will be expedited and the filing process will be waived.

*Please check this page often as it will be regularly updated as new information is released*

*Updated 7/8/20 1:29 PM*

 

 

 

 

We’re excited to announce that the Pressers’ Local 12 ILGWU Credit Union has merged with Somerville’s Credit Union to offer the members of the New England Joint Board credit union membership. We are proud to offer the great benefit of Credit Union membership to all members of the NEJB. Credit Unions are community-oriented, member-owned financial institutions that are driven by serving the needs of their members, not profit. Credit Unions offer working people a great way to gain financial independence and financial literacy by offering a people-centered focus to banking.

On Monday October 8th over 900 gaming workers at MGM in Springfield, Massachusetts became members of the New England Joint Board through a card check neutrality agreement. With the certification the MGM workers become the first union resort and casino workers in Massachusetts since the Expanded Gaming Act was signed into law in 2011. MGM Springfield opened its doors on August 24th launching the careers of hundreds of new gaming workers and marking a new era in the history of the City of Springfield. The opening also marked the culmination of almost a decade’s worth of work by our union to ensure that good, union gaming jobs could come to Massachusetts.

The NEJB in coalition with Teamsters Local 404 began organizing months before the grand opening and signed up a vast majority of the nearly 1,000 gaming workers on the property. The organizing drive was characterized by the excitement and energy of hundreds of workers beginning their first careers in the union hospitality industry. With the opening, MGM Springfield becomes the first major hospitality industry employer in the City of Springfield and the Western Massachusetts region. The NEJB looks forward to ensuring that these new jobs become family sustaining careers that will be the basis for forming strong and prosperous working class communities throughout the region. With a strong and diverse negotiating committee, the NEJB is moving forward and preparing to negotiate a strong first contract.

The NEJB would like to thank UNITE HERE International Union and Locals 54 and 25 for their assistance and support throughout the organizing effort.

STATEMENT FROM NEJB MANAGER WARREN PEPICELLI ON ENDORSEMENT OF BARBARA L’ITALIEN FOR CONGRESS

“We’re proud to endorse Senator L’Italien in her campaign for Congress. Senator L’Italien has been a close friend of the NEJB for years. She lent her voice to our members at Polartec in Lawrence when they were thrown out of their jobs through no fault of their own. She was a leader in the state delegation supporting our campaign to win justice for Polartec workers. She has also built a strong progressive track record in her time in the state legislature advocating for a range of progressive issues from advancing pro-worker legislation to protecting the elderly and people with disabilities. Barbara has built a reputation as a fearless advocate who is willing to choose to do the right thing rather than the politically expedient thing. 

The Third Congressional District needs people like Senator L’Italien in Washington willing to take bold and sometimes politically risky positions on critical issues that actually matter for working people. Workers in the district can no longer afford to be the support network to elected officials masquerading as progressives. The political moment we find ourselves in is having very real consequences for many of our members. What they need now is a leader in Washington who isn’t afraid to act on their progressive ideals not only to protect people threatened in the current environment but to begin moving us forward again. Senator L’Italien has proven that she is capable of taking bold stances and delivering for working people. She’ll take this experience to Washington, with a foot firmly planted in her district, as she always has, and fight for working families. Our members, whether they’re sewing a garment or serving a meal, know they can count on Barbara.”

Massachusetts’ 3rd Congressional District includes the cities of Lowell, Lawrence, and Haverhill. The NEJB represents over 1,200 members in the needletrades, manufacturing, food service, laundry, and distribution industries in in the 3rd CD. The NEJB is a progressive union of immigrant workers at the forefront of the labor movement.