5 Ways To Catch the Eye of a Plaintiffs’ Attorney
It’s not that hard to avoid the actions that tempt me and my fellow plaintiffs’ attorneys, says attorney Whitney Warner. In today’s CED, she shares five things employers do that “make her day.”
Archives
COBRA’s Top 10: Law Used as Poster Child for the Problems With Government Jargon
It’s no surprise to most health plan administrators that the federal law on COBRA continuation coverage was used in a recent newspaper article as an example of “bureaucratic legalese.” In recounting efforts to push the “government to speak plainly,” the Dec. 2 Washington Post article said: If you want to understand Americans’ frustration with Washington, […]
EBSA Proposes Change to MEWA Form 5500 Reporting Requirements
Employers and plan administrators with multiple employer welfare arrangements (MEWAs) that had not been required to file a Form 5500 for their MEWA may have to if a proposal by the Department of Labor’s (DOL) Employee Benefits Security Administration (EBSA) is adopted. EBSA on Dec. 6 published a proposed revision to Section 2520 of the […]
Terminations: ‘Maybe’ Involve HR? No, Always Involve HR
By Stephen D. Bruce, PHR Editor, HR Daily Advisor In a recent CBSmoneywatch article about how not to fire an employee, columnist Amy Levin-Epstein notes that it’s often a good idea to involve HR when terminating. I’ll say. But the rule should be: always involve HR. Consulting with HR before any termination should be an […]
Performance Reviews—Tool Bosses Use to Justify Pay
Culbert, author of Get Rid of the Performance Review!, is a consultant and professor at UCLA. To achieve the best results for the organization, Culbert recommends that all managers and supervisors: Help subordinates see that the boss understands their perspective. Too many managers, helped along by rigid performance review processes, frame situations on the basis […]
Wellness Incentives—Are You Following the Feds’ Tricky Rules?
In yesterday’s Advisor, we looked at DOL’s checklist for wellness program compliance. Today, the “paragraph (f)” criteria, plus an introduction to the wellness program guide that boosts the ROI of your program. If you want to institute a wellness program that discriminates based on a health factor (for example, rewards people who have low cholesterol […]
Put the Performance Review Out of Its Misery
Culbert, a professor of management at UCLA, goes on to say that the performance review is "a pretentious, bogus practice that produces absolutely nothing that any thinking executive should call a corporate plus." In Culbert’s book, Get Rid of the Performance Review!, he advocates instead the performance preview, which he says will actually accomplish what […]
Wellness—Doing the Fed’s Dance for Compliance
Wellness becomes a tricky dance once you want to base incentives on an actual health outcome—like reduced blood pressure or cholesterol. Fortunately, DOL offers a checklist to help you determine whether your program is in compliance. HIPAA’s nondiscrimination provisions generally prohibit a group health plan or group health insurance issuer from denying an individual eligibility […]
Gender Reassignment Surgery a Deductible Medical Expense
Expenses incurred for gender reassignment surgery and hormone therapy are now deductible medical expenses under Code Section 213. The IRS announced in Action on Decision (AOD) 2011-03 that it has acquiesced to a 2010 Tax Court ruling that these expenses are deductible. The AOD appeared in the Nov. 21 Internal Revenue Bulletin. The IRS announcement […]
Vote for Your Favorite Law Blog
The American Bar Association (ABA) Journal is once again holding an election to pick the most popular law blogs — blawgs — in the land. And the nominees include four by members of the Employers Counsel Network (ECN), a group of law firms in all 50 states, Washington, D.C., and Canada that advise and represent […]