Dear Current & Former VOLS Microenterprise Project Clients:
In light of the developing COVID-19 pandemic, we write to provide you with some information that may be of use to your business. Mayor de Blasio and the Department of Small Business Services (SBS) recently announced that the City will be instituting a financial assistance program for small businesses experiencing decreases in revenue as a result of the COVID-19 pandemic. The financial assistance program announced includes:
- For businesses with 100 or fewer employees, which have experienced revenue decreases of 25% or greater, an interest-free loan of up to $75,000 will be made available to offset profit losses.
- For businesses with fewer than 5 employees and similar revenue decreases, grants will also be made available to cover up to 40% of payroll costs (an average of $6,000) for two months.
If you are interested in learning more about the financial assistance program for small businesses experiencing losses as a result of the COVID-19 pandemic, you may sign up to receive email updates from SBS by clicking the button below.
SBS has also made the following resources available, which you may find useful as your business manages and responds to the developing COVID-19 outbreak.
In addition, the Microenterprise Project Team reminds you that under New York law, as of May 5, 2018, certain employers are required to provide certain employees with sick leave. The following are general guidelines for small businesses dealing with employees’ requests for sick leave:
- For businesses with 5 or more employees, an employee who works more than 80 hours per calendar year is entitled to up to 40 hours of sick leave (accrued at a rate of 1 hour per 30 hours worked), paid at the employee’s regular hourly rate.
- For businesses with fewer than 5 employees, an employee who works more than 80 hours per calendar year is entitled to up to 40 hours of unpaid sick leave (accrued at a rate of 1 hour per 30 hours worked).
For more information about New York’s sick leave laws, click the button below.
We recognize the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on New York City’s small businesses, and we encourage all small business owners to utilize the resources enclosed herein to aid in responding to the outbreak as it develops.
If your business is in need of legal services, please contact the Microenterprise Project Team via our hotline at (347)-521-5729 or via email at microenterprise@volsprobono.org.
Sincerely,
Arthur Kats, Director & the Microenterprise Project Team