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 10 Steps to Effective Market Pricing

Bottos, who is Vice President of Compensation at data provider Kenexa, offered her suggestions at a recent webinar sponsored by the company. Here are her 10 steps: 1. Analyze your organization’s jobs to determine: Main function of the job and key responsibilities Knowledge/skills/abilities required Organization level and reporting relationships 2. Develop a brief job summary: […]

Is My Local Salary Survey an Anti-Trust Violation?

If I call colleagues in other companies to see what they are paying, am I creating a Sherman Anti-Trust Act violation? It’s likely, but there are safe harbor provisions, says Bottos, Vice President of Compensation at data provider Kenexa. Her suggestions came at a recent webinar sponsored by the company. What’s the Practice in the […]

Top 5 Health Reform Issues Employers Should Focus on Today

It has now been almost a year since health care reform was first enacted. The first year involved many compliance challenges, not the least of which was keeping up with the many pieces of guidance issued by DOL, IRS and HHS. Plans had to expand coverage (more dependents, fewer dollar limits, no more questions about […]

Incentives or Disincentives? More Mistakes That Send Salespeople Packing

McAnally is president of SalesComp America, in Andover, Massachusetts. Killer #7. Design Comp Plans That Don’t Match Company Goals [Go here for mistakes 1 to 6.] Nobody’s going to be happy with the sales force if compensation plans don’t match up with company goals. Say you’re trying to launch a new product that is much […]

Pay Never Goes Down? Another Bad Habit

In yesterday’s Advisor, we featured the first three of Stacey Carroll and Al Lee’s “bad compensation habits.” Today, more bad habits, and an introduction to a unique FLSA audit system that detects problems before the feds do. Carroll is Director of Professional Services and Education at Payscale, Inc.; Lee is Director of Qualitative Analytics. Their […]

How to Incentivize Your Best Salespeople … to Leave

Is your sales compensation program actually sabotaging your results? It probably is, if it’s guilty of the frequently committed faux pas detailed below. They’re from Alan McAnally, sales consultant and president of Andover, Massachusetts-based SalesComp America, in an article on the company’s website. We’ve abstracted the gist of these sales force killers here. Killer #1. […]

The Top 5 Compensation Habits to Kick

Most HR managers only have a few bad compensation habits, but they’re hard to break, say experts Stacey Carroll and Al Lee. In today’s Advisor, their “Top 5” bad habits in compensation. Carroll is Director of Professional Services and Education at Payscale, Inc.; Lee is Director of Qualitative Analytics. Their remarks came at a recent […]

‘Out of Control’ Employee Screaming Profanities Loses out on COBRA Due to Gross Misconduct

Although the COBRA statute never defined gross misconduct — leaving it up to the courts — no dictionary is needed when an “out-of-control” employee screams profanities at and makes seemingly threatening hand gestures toward another employee, saying she would “get” hers. This behavior was “so manifestly so outrageous and extreme as to constitute gross misconduct,” […]

A Shorter Commute Can Be Very Accommodating under the ADA, 2nd Circuit Says

Perhaps employers have been mistaken in assuming they never have to worry about a worker’s commute when accommodating a sickness or disability. In certain circumstances, an employer may be required to assist with an employee’s commute, the 2nd Circuit says in a recent opinion (Nixon-Tinkelman v. New York City Department of Health and Mental Hygiene). […]

Don’t Follow HR Policies of ABC’s New ‘Pan Am’

Rigorous Inspections for Employee Attire Prior to flight, the female employees file into a beauty inspection where their attire is inspected — one woman is singled out for a torn stocking and must borrow a pair from a co-worker. Each is also required to pass a weigh-in, and must attest to the fact that she […]