Today, the U.S. Department of Labor’s Wage and Hour Division (WHD) announced more guidance to provide information to workers and employers about how each will be able to take advantage of the protections and relief offered by the Families First Coronavirus Response Act (FFCRA) when it takes effect on April 1, 2020.

The new guidance includes two new posters, one  for federal workers  and  one for all other employees , that will fulfill notice requirements for employers obligated to inform employees about their rights under this new law. It also includes  questions and answers  about posting requirements, and  a Field Assistance Bulletin  describing WHD’s 30-day non-enforcement policy. The new guidance addresses critical issues such as whether employers may post required notice electronically, whether employers must provide notice of this law to recently laid-off individuals, when FFCRA applies to federal workers and when enforcement of the new rules will begin.

“The Wage and Hour Division continues to prioritize providing this vital information to workers and employers so that both are fully prepared to maximize the benefits available to them as quickly as possible when this law goes into effect on April 1, 2020,” said Wage and Hour Division Administrator Cheryl Stanton. “These critical protections will provide a lifeline to untold numbers of struggling families, and to countless employers trying to balance their business needs with the needs of their workers, their communities and their own families.”

FFCRA will help the United States combat and defeat COVID-19 by giving all American businesses with fewer than 500 employees tax credits to provide employees with paid leave, either for the employee’s own health needs or to care for family members. The legislation will enable employers to keep their workers on their payrolls, while at the same time ensuring that workers are not forced to choose between their paychecks and the public health measures needed to combat the virus.