Practical HR Tips, News & Advice. Updated Daily.
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.
In one case, an HR manager who reported to top management made a complaint. Soon thereafter he lost all his staff, was moved to another area, and found himself reporting to a middle manager. His new boss said to him, "I don’t know why they sent you to me. I don’t have anything for you […]
Find the balance, Moldover says. When you get wind of a manager’s action that might be retaliatory—like denying a raise—put the situation in context and try to view it from the employee’s perspective. Context Matters With retaliation, context matters, Moldover says. Of course, no one’s going to be happy about losing a raise, but a […]
Oswald, CEO of BLR, offered his thoughts on trust (and Twinkies) in a recent edition of The Oswald Letter. Twinkies were a part of my childhood. Somehow, on occasion, we could convince my mother to pick up a box of those golden treats with absolutely zero nutritional value. That was no small feat! My mother […]
Get ready for one more requirement of the Affordable Care Act—the Patient-Centered Outcomes Research Institute (PCORI) Fee. It’s a fee your plan pays to fund government research into the effectiveness of certain treatments. What Is the Amount of the Fee? The fee is: $1 times the average covered lives for policy years ending on or […]
The Affordable Care Act (ACA) will be plaguing employers for many years, but there are a few things that require immediate attention, says attorney Ashley Gillihan: women’s health preventive care, W-2 reporting, and PCORI fees. Gillihan, who is Counsel in the Atlanta office of Alston & Bird LLP, made his suggestions at a recent webinar […]
A former employee argued that her former employer, which employed fewer than 20 employees (and thus was exempt from COBRA) for eight months of the year, formed an affiliated service group with another employer and thus employed more than 20 employees for four months of that year. Thus, she contended the employer became subject to […]
It’s so easy to get wrapped up in the day-to-day activities of managing and lose sight of the bigger picture. The beginning of a new year provides a natural break for you to take a deep breath and consider how to make 2013 a success, says Oswald, CEO of BLR, who offered his thoughts in […]
Many plan sponsors are still having a hard time improving the funding status of their plans, according to indexes measuring the December funding levels of U.S. corporate pension plans. Statistics show plans’ funding rose slightly from November 2012 to December 2012, keeping the month’s funded ratios above the lowest monthly figures for 2012; however, they […]
In a recent case, the 4th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals declined to decide whether small companies that are extensions of larger entities must comply with the Americans with Disabilities Act. The court in Reynolds v. American National Red Cross (No. 11-2278, 11-2280 (Dec. 7, 2012)) said it would not address the matter in a […]
Federal agencies will accept alternate definitions of full-time employee for purposes of health reform’s play-or-pay mandate, to allow for industry-specific labor norms and seasonal workers. Some business owners and workers requested special methods of calculating hours for employees: (1) whose compensation is not based on hours, such as salespeople on commission; and (2) whose work […]