Practical HR Tips, News & Advice. Updated Daily.
A landmark Supreme Court ruling on relief available under ERISA in employee benefit cases is bringing cases back to life that we thought were dead and gone. In CIGNA v. Amara, the U.S. Supreme Court on May 16 ruled that ERISA’s enforcement provision allowing for “appropriate equitable relief” — ERISA Section 1132(a)(3) — aka Section […]
Plan sponsors who watched their retirement investments get buffeted by recent recessionary storms have had few ERISA remedies against broker dealers who led them to poor-performing funds. The sole recourse under ERISA for plan members was to sue the plan sponsor who relied on the advice, rather than against the professional financial expert who gave […]
Yesterday, May 16, 2011, the U.S. Supreme Court held that a district court must take another look at a case that will determine whether approximately 25,000 employees are entitled to have their pension benefits recalculated under the Employee Retirement Income Security Act (ERISA). Although the Supreme Court indicated that the employees may be eligible for […]
Your new copying machine may be keeping copies of records that have been scanned into the copier’s hard drive. You can’t access those records directly, but someone could remove the drive and copy your confidential records.
Your photocopier may be keeping copies of your records that have been scanned into the copier’s hard drive. You can access those records easily—and so can anyone else who knows how to work the copier’s hard drive. “That’s something everyone should be aware of,” said attorney Catherine Moreton Gray, speaking at BLR’s National Employment Law […]
by Joseph C. Pettygrove Employers are increasingly looking at the feasibility of scanning hard copies of various types of employment documents and retaining only the electronic copies in the routine course of business. Generally speaking, you are allowed to do that if you ensure that your electronic record maintenance systems are secure, accurate, reliable, and […]
Federal and state governments require multiple notices to employees, but do they also require them in foreign languages for non-English-speaking workers? The short answer … maybe. Because you’re conscientious about employment law, you’ve put up the required safety and health, family leave, USERRA, and other postings. And you’ve supplied your employees with required information under […]
by Sally J. Reynolds Each year thousands of Americans resolve to quit smoking, but most will be unsuccessful. Some employers have begun implementing financial incentives to motivate their health plan participants to stop using tobacco. One type of reward may be a discount on health insurance premiums for employees who don’t use tobacco or are […]
Before each term, the U.S. Supreme Court identifies the cases it will hear in that term. While the Court has identified only three cases directly involving claims under various federal labor and employment statutes, in an additional four cases, the Court’s decisions are likely to have a significant effect on the rights and practices of […]
Update: Mental Health Parity Changes Take Effect January 1, 2010 Congress deferred the effective date of the Paul Wellstone and Pete Domenici Mental Health Parity and Addiction Equity Act of 2008 to January 2010 for plans that otherwise would have been covered in 2009. The Mental Health Parity and Addiction Equity Act amends the Employee […]