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A health reform requirement that all insurers offer four levels of health coverage to small businesses will be delayed until 2015. Under a final rule from HHS (to be officially published June 4), many small employers will have fewer plans to choose from the Small Business Health Options (SHOP) program in 2014. Background Starting in 2014, small […]
Ever wonder what your employees are thinking about their jobs, supervisors, promotion opportunities, teamwork, and other important workplace issues? Now you can find out, through the complimentary National Employee Attitude Survey. Employers can sign up to participate in the survey program that will benchmark their employees’ responses to a written questionnaire to answers from employees […]
Health care reform may be responsible for a rise in partisan bickering, but what is also rising is the number of young adults with health insurance — 1 million more since last year, according to the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (HHS). In the first quarter of 2011, the percentage of adults between […]
By Marcia Akers Baby Boomers are now entering their retirement years while some members of “The Greatest Generation” remain in the workforce. Gen Xers and Yers are looking for advancement and rewarding entry-level positions. This first-ever phenomenon of having four generations in the workplace at the same time is creating challenges for employers, including how […]
Business is all about e-mail these days, yet many managers don’t know how to write an effective e-mail message, says Janis Fisher Chan. Her recent book, E-Mail: A Write It Well Guide, offers help. Check the Tone It’s easy to get the tone wrong in your business e-mails, says Chan. Check these three examples, which […]
By now, most employers have at least heard that California prohibits “use it or lose it” vacation policies—meaning that once an employee earns vacation time, that time can’t be forfeited for any reason. But can an employer decide not to award vacation time right away to new employees? The answer is yes—according to a recent […]
The Obama Administration’s proposed 2013 budget includes funding to hire 92 additional Wage and Hour Division investigators. The budget would allocate $6.4 million to hire investigators to enforce the Fair Labor Standards Act and the Family and Medical Leave Act, said Nancy Leppink, acting WHD administrator during a webchat on Monday. The funding would allow […]
The federal Transportation Department’s announcement banning texting by drivers of commercial vehicles is sure to make employers think twice about their policies even if they don’t have trucks or buses on the road. U.S. Transportation Secretary Ray LaHood made the announcement January 26 that an interpretation of standing rules prohibits texting by drivers of commercial […]
Before they find themselves under a wage enforcement microscope, employers need to be aware of potential problems and misclassification errors when designating workers as independent contractors instead of standard employees. The U.S. Department of Labor has had the misclassification of workers squarely in its cross hairs for a while. In particular the designation of “independent […]
Want to make sure your business has a happy wage and hour new year? Do a quick review to check that your organization is complying with California wage and hour changes for 2008.