Human Resources Blog

The Louisiana Legislature successfully wrapped a thirty-day special session in Baton Rouge yesterday with plenty of progressive reform accomplished. The best news is that the Governor has promised to sign a bill that would allow the state to be on a level playing ground with most other states when it comes to auto insurance premiums, even after he vetoed a similar bill in the regular session.

If you have not applied for the PPP loan program from the SBA, the deadline has been extended to August 8^th after Congress voted unanimously in favor of pushing it back last night. However, if you are planning to participate in the federal Main Street Lending program, you may not have taken any SBA loans to apply. This includes any long-term outstanding loans, PPP loans or the EIDL loans. While it’s unfortunate that so many have already used up their PPP loans on payroll, I found the article below on maximizing loan forgiveness to be thought provoking and insightful.

Today’s Downloads:

1. Employee Transgender Workers – This article focuses on workplace issues related to the employment of transgender individuals in an organization.
2. How Should Multistate Employers Approach Mask Policies – Businesses in multiple jurisdictions must carefully plan their workplace safety strategies as some states continue to reopen in phases and others pull back due to spikes in coronavirus cases.
3. Is Maximizing PPP Loans Forgiveness the Real Endgame – In a recent webinar, the New York Small Business Development Center confirmed that any PPP funds that are unused in the covered period will be treated, along with the unforgiven por on of funds used in the covered period, as a five-year loan, as adjusted by the PPPFA, at 1 percent and the remaining funds can be used for any SBA approved business expenses.
4. PPP Loan Disrupts Tip Sharing for Restaurants and Bars – Instead of bringing back a full staff at once, many restaurant owners or managers have reconstructed their employees’ working hours, internal tip-pooling policies and schedules, for both the front-of-house and the back-of-house workers, causing added confusion.
5. Rethink Work-from-Home Employee Perks – As working from home (or living from work) stretches into the summer and beyond at many companies, some firms are adopting interesting, innovative incentives to maintain engagement and productivity among telecommuting employees.
6. States Begin Releasing Plans for Reopening Schools, but Uncertainty Lingers – The biggest question remains whether in-person school will resume this fall, especially as the country grapples with a surge of new COVID-19 cases.