Category: Benefits and Compensation

This topic provides guidance on how to handle compensation issues in a way that attracts and retains the best talent and advances the strategic goals of your business. You get news and tips on what’s going on nationally and in the states, and updates on changes in regulations, possible governmental action, and emerging compensation trends.

The 3 Approaches to Profit-Sharing

When you consider a profit-sharing plan, there are three main ways to set it up: straight, hurdle, and goal. A profit-sharing plan is a group incentive plan that includes all employees in an organization and that focuses on overall business unit profit (or a similar bottom-line financial goal). What are the advantages and disadvantages? Advantages […]

Hitting the Team Member Trifecta—Not Easy, But Necessary

In a recent conversation with an organizational psychologist, I was asked, “What are the top three things you look for in the members of your management team?” That’s a big and important question. Yet I was able to answer it quickly and easily: “Trustworthiness, compatibility, and talent.” The next sentence I uttered might surprise you; […]

Penalties Await Plans That Ignore ACA’s High-litigation Risks

Employers have cited complying with the Affordable Care Act as their number one concern in surveys, and that wouldn’t be the case if there weren’t taxes and money penalties backing it up. This is true even though the government postponed until 2015 penalties for failure to comply with the ACA’s play-or-pay mandates, temporarily reducing the […]

Goal-Driven Profit-Sharing? Sure

[Go here for 1. Straight and 2. Hurdle-Rate Profit Sharing] 3. Goal-Driven Profit-Sharing Plans In a goal-driven profit-sharing plan, profits are used to establish an incentive opportunity, but employees also must earn that opportunity, based on achieving other goals. These other goals are broad corporate goals, rather than unit operational goals, which are used to […]

Profit-Sharing Primer—the 3 Types of Plans

Advantages Funded from profits, so there is low risk for the company. Can be used to supplement company retirement contributions. Can be linked to company objectives other than profit. Provide an opportunity to train employees on financial measures and the operational business factors that affect those measures. Easy to integrate with suggestion plans and other […]

My Salaried Employee Has No PTO But Needs Time Off—What Can I Do?

Employers often find themselves in a conundrum, however, over how to handle miscellaneous time off that was never even requested as PTO. For example, what happens when the work hours are 8 a.m. to 5 p.m., but an employee has a personal appointment that requires him or her to arrive late? Usually this is not […]

Regression Analysis: a Case Study

A nonprofit home healthcare agency has asked “a consultant” whether its CEO is fairly paid relative to the marketplace for similar agencies. The Agency has supplied a database to the consultant, who also has his own survey database of CEO pay. This case will demonstrate how regression data can be used to answer this question. […]

Regression Analysis: Setting Pay Levels with Precision

What Is Regression Analysis? Regression analysis is a statistical technique that predicts the level of one variable (the “dependent” variable) based on the level of another variable (the “independent” variable). In a compensation setting, for example, that might be the relationship of executive pay to company size or company revenue. David Wudyka, SPHR, MBA, BSIE, […]

Got an 800-Pound Gorilla? Confrontation Time

One of the national hotel chains, in an attempt to attract business travelers, advertises that if you stay at its hotels, you’ll be able to take on “the 800-pound gorilla in the room.” The ad shows Regional Manager Amy, after spending a night in one of the hotels, being able to tame the chest-pounding 800-pound […]

PBGC Proposes Facilitating DC-to-Pension Plan Rollovers

As more 401(k) plan participants look for retirement savings options that resemble traditional pensions, the U.S. Pension Benefit Guaranty Corp. has proposed exempting  DC-to-DB rollovers from maximum guarantee and five-year phase-in limits. The agency in early April proposed regulations that would amend its rules on allocation of assets and benefits payable in terminated single-employer plans to clarify […]