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Dear Readers, The article’s authors—Amy Wrzesniewski, a professor of organizational behavior, and Barry Schwartz, a professor of psychology—had conducted a study about motivation. According to them, there are two types of motivation: internal and instrumental. Internal motivation, as you would guess, comes from within. People are motivated to do something based on the feeling of […]
Employer preparation for preparing for health care reform’s pay-or-play provisions, especially data reporting (under Sections 6055 and 6056) to the IRS, can be complicated by: (1) changes in workers’ employment status (from part-time to full-time); (2) an organization’s switching from one measurement method to another; and (3) the structure of controlled groups and subsidiaries, speakers […]
Yesterday’s Advisor covered several aspects of pregnancy discrimination as laid out in recent guidance issued by the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC). Today, more about pregnancy plus notice of a timely new webinar on benefits for same-sex couples. [Go here for the first part of the discussion on pregnancy discrimination] Requiring Leave May an employer […]
[Go here for the first part of the discussion on pregnancy discrimination] Requiring Leave May an employer require a pregnant employee who is able to perform her job to take leave at any point in her pregnancy or after childbirth? No. An employer may not force an employee to take leave because she is or […]
On July 14 the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC) issued enforcement guidance on pregnancy discrimination accompanied by an extensive and practical Q&A. The new guidance, the first to address pregnancy discrimination since 1983, focuses on how the 2008 amendments to the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) may apply to employees with pregnancy-related disabilities. Is EEOC […]
More needs to be known about managed account services for retirement plan participants and the role employer plan sponsors play in offering them, according to a report released on July 29 by the U.S. Government Accountability Office. Because these services differ from investment options provided within 401(k) plans, yet can serve as a qualified default […]
A federal appeals court not only affirmed a ruling that an employer/plan administrator must pay more than $126,000 in penalties and legal costs for intentionally violating COBRA notice requirements, it also held that about $2,460 in expenses excluded from the legal award should be revisited by the lower court. The case is Evans v. Books-A-Million, […]
When investigating a breach of IT network security leading to leakage of protected health information, HHS looks for consistency in the covered entity’s response — with both HIPAA rules and the organization’s own written procedures, according to a former official with HHS’ Office for Civil Rights. OCR tends to “expect a perfect assessment done the […]
By Peter A. Susser Federal contractors’ administration of family leave will face unprecedented scrutiny as a result of a new executive order from President Obama. The order requires the disclosure of labor law violations committed by would-be contractors, and a determination of whether that candidate is satisfactorily responsible and ethical. The order is […]
In a decision sharply at odds with a recent Illinois ruling, a federal district court in Arizona held that health care providers cannot be characterized as plan beneficiaries who can sue to compel payment of ERISA benefits. The court rejected the view that a direct payment for services is an ERISA benefit that give providers […]