Practical HR Tips, News & Advice. Updated Daily.
You may access the website here: http://www.dol.gov/odep/workplaceflexibility/ How Does Your Organization Rate? Where does your organization sit on the “flex spectrum”? This Corporate Voices for Working Families graphic helps you see where you stand: The Flexibility Spectrum No Current Use of Flexibility No flexible work options currently being used ↓ Individual Accommodations Special arrangements or […]
Federal OSHA has published a new guide to help employers develop and implement an effective first-aid program. The “Best Practices Guide: Fundamentals of a Workplace First-Aid Program” lists the primary components of a workplace first-aid program at the workplace, including: identifying and assessing workplace risks, designing a program specific to the worksite and complying with […]
The U.S. Department of Labor’s (DOL) Employee Benefits Security Administration (EBSA) just released updated COBRA Model Notices that reflect the COBRA subsidy extension that was part of the Department of Defense Appropriations Act, 2010. The new COBRA subsidy legislation extends the original federal COBRA subsidy created by the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act of 2009 […]
Our firm has many employees whose spouses are in the military, so we’re gearing up to deal with the new law. While trying to set up our policies, we’ve come across some questions that don’t seem to be answered in the materials we have received. Do we have to let the employees take leave on […]
Karla Schikore, a Bank of America employee, resigned and requested a lump-sum payment of her retirement benefits. She swore that she’d mailed the bank a form electing to receive lump-sum benefits more than a year before, as required under the terms of the bank’s retirement plan. Unfortu-nately, the bank said it had never received the […]
David Virts was an “over-the-road” truck driver at Consolidated Freightways Corp.’s Nashville, Tenn., terminal. Virts refused to go on overnight “sleeper runs” with female drivers because it would violate his religious beliefs. Now a federal appeals court has ruled that the trucking company wasn’t required to accommodate Virts because it would have been an undue […]
Using independent contractors is a way to avoid paying unemployment, Social Security and Medicare taxes, overtime and benefits. However, if an employer is found liable of misclassifying an employee in tandem with committing wage and hour violations, DOL may fine the employer, and the employer may be assessed back wages and taxes. The U.S. Department of Labor (DOL) […]
Retirement benefits, always a challenge to manage—and to fund. What’s happening with pensions and 401(k)s in 2013? What are your competitors up to? Help us find out! Please participate in our brief survey and see how your retirement benefits stack up against those of other successful companies. We’ll get answers to these questions and more: […]
In earlier articles we reported on two new U.S. Supreme Court affirmative action decisions with implications for workplace diversity programs. Cultivating and maintaining a diverse workforce is a complex and ongoing process, and it’s not always easy to know how to proceed. This two-part series will address why organizations adopt diversity programs, ways to get […]