11 AM: Welcome & Introductions
11:10 AM: Update from Pfizer Regarding Vaccine Development
Join David Hering, Regional Vice President of Vaccines for North America, Pfizer, who will provide an update on the efforts to fight coronavirus and the development of a vaccine to prevent COVID-19. Participants will leave the session with an understanding of what it takes to develop a vaccine, how the current race to find a vaccine is different than traditional processes and timelines but does not sacrifice safety or efficacy, and understand what the current status and timeline are for a leading coronavirus vaccine.
12:10 AM: Special Update from Texas Workforce Commission Regarding the Unemployment Benefits and the Pandemic
Mr. Simmons will discuss the many ways that the COVID-19 pandemic has altered the landscape of unemployment insurance (UI) in Texas. He will address regular and extended UI benefits, shared work plans, mass claims, and how employers are protected in whole or in part against financial liability for such benefits. The talk will also cover the three new kinds of unemployment benefits created under the CARES Act and how eligibility is determined. Special issues such as work refusals and fraud will be highlighted. Finally, he will cover how the disaster-related benefits may affect employers’ state unemployment tax rates for 2021 and the years beyond.
1:10 PM: COVID-19 Legal Issues
COVID-19 has imposed unprecedented challenges for employers. This presentation will discuss common legal issues that employers face such as leaves of absence, workplace safety, and discrimination but through lens of COVID-19. This presentation will also review and discuss the Families First Coronavirus Response Act, Department of Labor guidance and regulations that have been released in the wake of COVID-19, and other legal issues that could potentially arise.