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.

Practical System for Helping Managers Who Don’t Perform

For Day 1 suggestions, go here. Day 2 (AM): The 1-on-1 Meeting with Wilma and Fred (Poor-Performing Manager and Supervisor) I’ve got three rules I’ll ask you to follow as we begin this meeting. First, don’t hold anything back. This is a once-in-a-career benefit, and the purpose of this meeting is to get it all […]

System for Rescuing a Manager on the Brink of Failure

Falcone, author of a number of SHRMStore best-sellers, including 101 Tough Conversations to Have with Employees and 101 Sample Write-Ups for Documenting Employee Performance Problems, is senior director, Human Resources, at Grifols BioScience. He offered his tips at SHRM’s Annual Conference and Exposition, held recently in Chicago. Falcone set up a scenario of a sales […]

How Sponsors Can Change Retirement Plans in Wake of DOMA Decision

By Austen K. Townsend The Supreme Court’s decision on Section 3 of the Defense of Marriage Act in U.S. v. Windsor No. 12-307 (June 26, 2013) raises many issues for employers and other plan sponsors to consider about their qualified retirement plans. Section 3 of DOMA provided that the term “marriage” meant only a legal […]

IRS Streamlines Employer Health Coverage Reporting in Proposed Rules

Self-insured employers may not have to report the portion of the premium they pay, because that is not needed to determine if an individual is covered by “minimum essential coverage.” That’s one of a number of reporting items removed or reduced in IRS proposed health care reform rules detailing and streamlining reports on coverage offered […]

Exempt Employees and PTO: Special Considerations

How do you handle exempt employees and PTO together? Why does an employee’s exempt status matter for the purposes of taking time off? It comes down to the decisions employers make when exempt employees do not work a full day. Can an employer require an exempt employee to take PTO for the hours not worked […]

HR Department Survey Results Are In; How Do You Compare?

The most common HR-to-employee ratios are between 1 to 101 and 1 to 200. While 1% of respondents earned over $200,000 per year, the most commonly reported salary was between $51,000 and $70,000 per year. The most commonly outsourced function was background checks Thanks to all 1,839 companies that participated in the survey! Here are […]

Q&A on Creating and Administrating a PTO Policy

Do you use a paid time off (PTO) policy in lieu of separate vacation, sick leave, and other leave of absence policies? Doing so can have a lot of benefits, such as increased employee satisfaction and ease in administration. That said, it also comes with challenges. For example, must all accrued PTO be paid out […]

Why Does Sandy Get to …? (Caution: Don’t Answer)

It’s a tough situation when a coworker asks, “Why does Sandy get to do that?” and “that” is an accommodation you’ve made for Sandy’s disability. But you can’t discuss the disability, says Trainor. Trainor, who is senior managing editor at BLR®, was joined in her presentation at the Human Resources Leadership Association in Mystic, Connecticut, […]

What Makes the ADA Different? 3 Key Factors

Layers of Analysis The ADA requires a several step analysis, but it is not hard if you work it through step by step, says Farrell. Her remarks came at a recent meeting of the Human Resources Leadership Association in Mystic, Connecticut. Farrell, who is a legal editor at BLR®, was joined in her presentation by […]

PTO and Vacation: What’s the Difference?

Creating a PTO policy may not be as straightforward as employers would like it to be. After all, it’s not just a simple name change. What an employer calls their employees’ time off and how it is treated is important because it will affect the legal obligations attached to it. Each state has its own […]