Long covid impacting workforce:  Long Covid — also known as long-haul Covid, post-Covid, or post-acute Covid syndrome — is a chronic illness with potentially debilitating symptoms.  About 18% of people with long Covid hadn’t returned to work for more than a year, according to a report by the New York State Insurance Fund, the state’s largest workers’ compensation insurer. Another 40% returned to work within 60 days of infection but were still receiving medical treatment — presenting challenges such as reduced hours, lower productivity, and other workplace accommodations, NYSIF said. The finding adds to other research suggesting long Covid is contributing to a labor shortage and hurting the U.S. economy. Up to 30% of Americans develop long Covid after a Covid infection, affecting as many as 23 million Americans, the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services said in November.  Source: CNBC  1/30/23

Do at-work workers have an advantage over remote workers for recognition? More than half of adults in the U.S. believe that employees who work exclusively in-office have a “competitive advantage” over fully remote workers regarding bonuses, promotions and raises, a Jan. 19 report suggests. The American Staffing Association surveyed about 2,000 adults — a little over half of whom were employed — in Q4 2022 for their attitudes regarding the future of work. About half of workers said they’re working in-office full-time, with 28% operating in a hybrid arrangement and 24% of respondents working fully from home.  Despite most respondents noting the advantages of working in-office, 44% also told ASA that they’d take a pay cut if it enabled “greater freedom to work remotely.” Many HR experts have warned against “workplace proximity bias.” The term describes employer prejudice against remote workers. In practice, this looks like remote workers getting passed over for promotions, raises or other career development opportunities, experts have said.  Often, proximity bias feeds into recency bias, wherein recent interactions — be they negative or positive ones — color a supervisor’s overall perception of a direct report’s work performance. Source:  HR Dive 1/23/23

Will there be paid FMLA in the future?  At the State of the Union, President Biden floated the need for paid sick leave.  While the creation of a paid family and medical leave program at the national level is a top priority for employee advocates and many Democratic lawmakers, experts said this kind of initiative isn't likely to drum up enough Republican backers to pass. But broadening the scope of the FMLA might win enough bipartisan buy-in to make it to the president's desk. "There's a political impetus for something like this," said New York University School of Law professor Samuel Estreicher, who heads up the school's Center for Labor and Employment Law. The proposal would expand the FMLA to cover care for domestic partners, in-laws, adult children, and others. Noreen Farrell, executive director of gender justice advocacy organization Equal Rights Advocates, said the attention from both parties on the FMLA's gaps is promising.  "With both Democrats and Republicans introducing in 2023 new legislation building on family and medical leave rights and protection against caregiver discrimination, the opportunity exists for some bipartisan progress on that front," Farrell said.  Source: Law360 2/10/23

Do you have an Emergency Action Plan (EAP) for work?  On January 2, 2023, 24-year old Damar Hamlin, safety for the Buffalo Bills, suddenly collapsed on the field during a Monday Night Football game with the Cincinnati Bengals.  Medical personnel immediately surrounded him, performed CPR, and used a defibrillator to get his heart beating again. The NFL's Emergency Action Plan (EAP) has been credited with helping save Damar Hamlin's life. After Hamlin's collapse, the first responders, who were part of the Bills' medical team, immediately ran out to the field, assessed his condition, and quickly signaled that Hamlin was in need of critical response. According to the Occupational Safety and Health Administration, almost every business is required to have an EAP. After evaluating your current EAP, is there more that could be done? How often should employers communicate their EAP to employees?  All employers should have a written EAP and train employees on it.  Employers should also post it and keep it up to date.  A fully actionable and functional EAP can save lives. A sample Emergency Action Plan is available for download in the ASE member resource, Zywave HR Services Suite.  Source: Ford & Harrison LLP 1/20/23

EEOC publishes guidance for working with hard of hearing and deaf employees and applicants:  The U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC) released an updated resource document, “Hearing Disabilities in the Workplace and the Americans with Disabilities Act,” explaining how the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) applies to job applicants and employees who are deaf or hard of hearing or have other hearing conditions.   The document outlines how certain pre- and post-job offer disability-related questions can violate the ADA, describes easy-to-access technologies that can make providing a reasonable accommodation for a hearing disability free or low-cost, addresses employer concerns about safety, and shares realistic scenarios of potential discrimination. In addition to adding information about discrimination against job applicants, the updated document provides new or updated examples that reflect available technologies.  Source:  EEOC 1/24/23