Re-opening your business is the hot topic as local and state governments relax COVID-19 shelter in place orders. Regardless of industry, most small businesses need to address core labor issues and evaluate what additional industry-specific concerns should be addressed. Both valid and specious employment claims are already on the rise due to a combination of new laws, economic pressures, and a tight job market.
Now that Maryland is beginning to relax its shelter in place order and other local jurisdictions will likely follow suit, business owners need to begin planning for re-opening so that it can be done in a safe and effective way. Over the next few weeks, we will be publishing a series of articles that are designed to help you target the relevant issues as you contemplate re-opening, managing labor risks, and possibly shutting down again.
Effective as of May 15, 2020, at 5 p.m., Governor Hogan has amended Maryland’s COVID-19 “Stay at Home Order” to ease certain restrictions on businesses and gatherings and to allow for the re-opening of certain businesses. This article discusses Order No. 20-05-13-01. A link to the complete Order appears at the end of this article.
Of all the questions which we are receiving from clients these days, “force majeure” is the one that can be hardest for clients to grasp and lawyers to give definitive answers on. Although little known and seldom used, this legal concept can be tremendously helpful to prevent a costly contract dispute when a party cannot perform as expected. It’s the equivalent of a “get out of jail free” card in a Monopoly game.
All of us who are trying to figure out how best to help our companies survive and perhaps even thrive in the coronavirus crisis should be sure to review and evaluate the insurance policies we carry to protect our companies from unexpected loss. While none of us fully understand the extent of what the current losses could be, a wise business owner looks to all possible ways of mitigating whatever losses do arrive.
Emergency legislation has made unemployment benefits an important financial lever for small businesses faced with closing the margin between expenses and revenues. Labor costs often make up more than half of gross sales for service businesses, so payroll is one of the first places many owners are looking to be able to manage through the COVID-19 crisis. In previous articles, we discussed how to furlough employees, how to seek payroll loans and tax credits under the CARES Act, and specific business relief programs in the DC-Maryland-Virginia region for working capital and layoff aversion.
An information page for the Montgomery County Public Health Emergency Grant Program (PHEG) went live this week. Local businesses, including for-profit and not-for-profit organizations, may be eligible for grants of up to $75,000 from a $20 million fund. $5 million is reserved for restaurants and retail establishments. The catch is that local businesses must show evidence that they have already applied for any applicable State and Federal programs before qualifying for County assistance. We covered some of those programs in a previous article on Financial Assistance to Small Business. Additional programs can be found on the county website.
We are now living in a profoundly new world where many workplaces are being transitioned to teleworking with limited planning or time to test systems. This rapid shift brings challenges that must be addressed and resolved from both a legal and operations standpoint.