Opinion: Employers may require workers to get COVID vaccine
A nurse fills a syringe with a dose of the Pfizer COVID-19 vaccine at Stamford Hospital last month. Ned Gerard / Hearst Connecticut Media Get the COVID vaccine or you might be fired. The federal government has ruled that employers can require their workers to get the...
Opinion: Some school districts violate federal law on COVID
Earlier this month, Connecticut Education Commissioner Miguel A. Cardona stated that “we take very seriously the ADA requirements,” adding that Americans with Disabilities Act compliance was “non-negotiable.” Cardona was referring to whether school districts are...
Attorney Gary Phelan quoted in article “Schools report staffing short-ages” in The Norwalk Hour.
Under the Americans with Disabilities Act, teachers legally are entitled to reasonable accommodations if they need one. For many, that might mean teaching remotely, said Gary Phelan, a Stratford attorney who has represented teachers seeking accommodations. “There’s...
Today’s Business: Working parents continue to manage the virtual office and the virtual classroom
Photo: Contributed Photo : Jessica A. Slippen In a typical year, cooler temps and shorter days mean one thing: Back to school. For working parents, back to school is somewhat of a reprieve, guaranteeing most at least a six-hour window of defined child-free work time....
Attorney Peg Sheahan discusses Employment and Covid on News 12
Click here to watch the video.
Gary Phelan interviewed in Fast Company Magazine article ” ‘I feel devastated’: COVID-19 long-haulers fight for understanding from employers.”
Gary Phelan interviewed in Fast Company Magazine article " ‘I feel devastated’: COVID-19 long-haulers fight for understanding from employers."
Gary Phelan Featured in New Haven Register “Today’s Business: Back to the office if immunocompromised”
“My boss wants me to go back to the office. I am immunocompromised. What can I do? Do I have any legal protections?” In March, Connecticut implemented Gov. Ned Lamont’s executive order stating that to reduce the spread of the COVID-19 virus, all businesses needed to...
Gary Phelan interviewed in Story News 12: Positive coronavirus case reported at Kendall Elementary days before school set to begin
Positive coronavirus case reported at Kendall Elementary days before school set to begin A local attorney says school districts should be pushing back the start dates of school following a positive coronavirus case at a Norwalk school.
Older Teachers At Risk Of COVID Dread Return To Class | Connecticut Public Radio
As office buildings and schools reopen, some adults 65 and older are forced to return to a work environment that carries a higher risk of exposure to COVID-19. Gary Phelan, who practices employment law in Westport as part of Mitchell & Sheahan, P.C., said he’s...
Market Matters: Older workers in the COVID-19 era
“You’re as young as you feel” is one of the most common clichés about getting older. Unfortunately, the novel coronavirus does not care about how old you feel. Older individuals have borne the brunt of COVID-19’s wrath. Part of the reason risk increases with age is...
Gary Phelan was quoted in New Haven Biz
Older employees and the workplace
Reasonable accommodation in the workplace and COVID-19
The Americans with Disabilities Act states that an employer must provide a reasonable accommodation to an employee with a disability unless the accommodation causes undue hardship. The Equal Employment Opportunity Commission, which enforces the ADA in the workplace, has stated that “it is unclear at this time whether COVID-19 is or could be a disability under the ADA.”
Market Matters: Unemployment compensation rules changed amid pandemic
Some of the rules for collecting unemployment compensation have changed amid the coronavirus pandemic. For employers, a degree of caution is needed when dealing with workers who are afraid to come back to the job. Employees must understand that a simple,...
EEOC Should Classify COVID-19 As A Disability Under ADA
Is COVID-19 a disability under the Americans with Disabilities Act?[1] The U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission has so far resisted the invitation to answer that question. After observing that the question had been raised by a lot of people, EEOC senior...
Gary Phelan discusses COVID-19 and Employment Law on Chaz & AJ In The Morning Show
Gary Phelan discusses COVID-19 and Employment Law on Chaz & AJ In The Morning Show
Law offers relief for parents juggling virtual job, classroom
As employers and employees navigate the new COVID-19 virtual workplace, perhaps the hardest hit are those working parents now forced to manage the demands of a workday as well as the demands of children at home adjusting to a virtual classroom. As a working mother on...
Robert Mitchell answering COVID-19 questions with Chaz & AJ in the Morning Radio Show. Listen Here Now.
Robert Mitchell answering COVID-19 questions with Chaz & AJ in the Morning Radio Show. Listen Here Now.
CORONAVIRUS AID, RELIEF, AND ECONOMIC SECURITY (CARES) ACT
The CARES Act, passed on March 27th, affects employment through its extraordinary effect on Unemployment Compensation. The new law is "Phase 3" of Congress's overall Coronavirus response, following first, an $8.3B act funding research and development of a vaccine,...