NT Lakis lawyers submitted written comments to the U.S. Department of Labor (DOL) last week in response to the agency’s proposed regulations to implement President Obama’s Executive Order 13706 requiring covered federal contractors to provide eligible employees with up to 56 hours of paid sick leave annually.
Under the Obama Executive Order, covered federal contractors and subcontractors must allow eligible employees to accrue one hour of paid sick leave for every 30 hours worked on or in connection with a covered contract, up to a maximum of 56 hours per year, to use for themselves or a family member (defined broadly). The Order also states that existing leave policies that provide the same or better benefits will satisfy its requirements.
If adopted as written, the regulations would expand the E.O.’s coverage significantly, and impose burdensome recordkeeping and reporting requirements, even on covered contractors that already provide the same or better benefits.
Our written comments urge the Department, consistent with E.O. 13706, to establish a clear exemption from the Final Rule’s requirements for contractors that provide benefits that meet the E.O.’s minimum requirements. We also object to the ways in which the proposal expands coverage, and advocate for changes that will substantially reduce the burden otherwise imposed on covered contractors.
Members of the Equal Employment Advisory Council (EEAC) can read more here.