Practical HR Tips, News & Advice. Updated Daily.
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 […]
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 […]
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,” […]
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). […]
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 […]
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) […]
Jan. 1, 2014, sounds far away, but some plan sponsors may be hoping that day never comes. That’s the day the “shared responsibility provisions” of the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act (PPACA) kick in; and it’s the time plan sponsors become subject to health reform’s “unaffordable coverage trigger.” Under the law, if an employee’s […]
Compbearsation Manager? Tanis is Manager, Compbearsation and HRIS for Build-a-Bear Workshop in Saint Louis, Missouri. His “Top 9” came at the recent SHRM Annual Convention and Exhibition in Las Vegas. [Go here for tips 1 to 5.] 6. Get Analytical Identify the indicators and drivers you’ll use to analyze your department’s work, Tanis says. […]
Thanks to President Obama’s executive order on revisiting federal regulations, and likely a flood of comments from the employee benefits community, the U.S. Department of Labor (DOL) is scratching its proposed rule on the definition of fiduciary and will be issuing a revised one in early 2012. In what likely could be considered an understatement, […]
The warning “Beware of the Dog” is making employers fearful in a new way. One downside of offering telecommuting privileges is injuries that occur while an employee is working from home. If an employee is injured at home while he or she is on a work-related task, he or she may be entitled to workers’ comp benefits. This raises […]