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.

Workers’ Compensation: Q&A on Return to Work Scenarios

Returning employees to work after an injury can raise questions from both the employee and the employer. Must you keep someone on staff who is restricted to part-time hours (when the position needs to be full-time)? If an employee comes back to work without restrictions but still requests a reduced time schedule, how should you […]

Training and Development in 2013–What’s Really Happening?

Please participate in our brief survey and see how what you are doing stacks up against what other successful companies are doing. We’ll get answers to these questions and more: How often do your employees receive training? What kind of training is conducted? What specific topics are covered in employee training? Supervisor training? Which training […]

Social Media–Badmouthing, NLRB, Privacy

The eight tentacles come from a recent BLR/HRHero-sponsored webinar featuring Patricia Trainor, JD, and Stephen Bruce, PhD. Attorney Trainor is BLR’s Senior Managing Editor, HR; Bruce is editor of the HR Daily Advisor.  [Go here for tentacles 1 to 4.] Tentacle #5—Inappropriate/ Negative Actions Toward the Employer Release of “trade secrets” and other proprietary data […]

Apply Now for HIPAA-standard Health Plan Identifier

Health plans now may begin applying for the standard health plan identifier required by HIPAA, CMS has announced. The online application was posted March 29 on CMS’ Health Plan and Other Entity Enumeration System (HPOES). Most HIPAA-covered health plans, including employer group health plans, must obtain an HPID by Nov. 5, 2014, except that “small health […]

Stop-Loss Insurers Would Not Be Health Exchange ‘Navigators’ Under HHS Proposal

The health reform law provides that entities called “Navigators” will assist consumers and small businesses in researching health insurance exchanges — but stop-loss insurers for self-funded health plans won’t be one of them. Those insurers, as well as individuals and other entities with too close a financial relationship to such insurers, would be excluded from […]

Social Media Octopus—The 8 Tentacles That Can Grab You Unawares

Attorney Trainor is BLR’s Senior Managing Editor, HR; Bruce is editor of the HR Daily Advisor. Tentacle #1—Sourcing and Recruiting with Social Media It’s clear that social media is rising as a method of recruiting, and some employers are enjoying great success. However, when you use only one source for finding candidates, there’s always the […]

Congress Sees Self-funded Health Plans’ Financial Strength

Companies that self-fund health benefits are larger than companies that fully insure health benefits and their solvency is just as good as companies that fully insure, a government report required by the health reform law indicates. The reform law requires reports on the prevalence, solvency and quality of self-funded plans, with the stated goal of […]

Fiduciaries Cited for Overreliance on Investment Consultant Advice

Fiduciaries of 401(k) plans were reminded by a recent court decision that it’s best not to accept financial consultants’ investment advice for a retirement plan’s assets without careful scrutiny. At the same time the case, which raised other issues important to managing defined contribution plans, resulted in several rulings in the plan sponsor’s favor. Facts […]

States Try to Impose Tougher Stop-loss Limits on Self-insured Health Plans

Recently, four bills were introduced in state legislatures that would make self-funding less attractive by limiting stop-loss coverage for self-insured health plans. Many such proposals would raise minimum specific deductibles above the standard $20,000 seen in most enacted laws. This and other measures are intended to rein in self-insured plans, observers in the self-insured industry […]