I gotta say, I’m pretty cheesed at our national leaders who say they’re doing everything to help small businesses, and who then pass a paid sick and family leave bill that ONLY targets small businesses with less than 500 employees. So while Wal-Mart isn’t bound to offer this, you the Maine small business owner are,
It’s up to the Department of Labor to promulgate a rule that would allow the smallest businesses, those with fewer than 50 workers (who in normal times aren’t subject to the federal FMLA anyways), to be exempt.
Last Friday, the DOL issued a press release stating that are working on emergency guidance and rulemaking regarding this standard, and that they would not enforce the new statute for 30 days to allow employers to understand their compliance obligations.
We are anxiously awaiting that guidance and will post an update once the DOL speaks.