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Compensation & Benefits

Bonuses or pay raises: Which works best?

02/22/2018

In December, some high-profile businesses announced they planned to give bonuses to their employees. Other companies said they would raise the minimum wage entry-level employees receive, with corresponding increases for higher-paid staff. Both strategies recognize a tightening job market. Which one is right for your organization?

Regardless of prior leave, prepare to offer more time off as a reasonable accommodation

02/21/2018

Under the disability discrimination provisions of California’s Fair Employment and Housing Act, employers are required to offer extended leave as a reasonable accommodation for disabled employees—as long as the employee provides an estimated return date.

Tax reform fueling changes to benefits and comp programs

02/21/2018

Tax reform legislation enacted late last year is already fueling changes to corporate America’s employee compensation and benefits programs, according to a new survey by the Willis Towers Watson consulting firm.

DOL launches internal probe: Was tip pool data suppressed?

02/13/2018

The Department of Labor’s Office of the Inspector General is investigating allegations that Labor Secretary Alex Acosta ordered DOL staffers to quash internal research showing that a proposed rule allowing tip pooling in the hospitality industry would cost employees $5.8 billion per year.

NYC employers: Leave policies must cover ‘personal events’

02/07/2018

The New York City Council has amended the city’s Fair Workweek Law to allow employees to make temporary changes to their work schedules for “personal events.”

Proposal to cover paid family leave

02/06/2018

President Trump’s Jan. 30 State of the Union shout-out to paid family leave drew bipartisan applause but left many scratching their heads: Did he have any specific plans in mind?

Report: Tip pool rule could stiff servers out of $6 billion

02/06/2018

The Department of Labor suppressed results of internal research showing that a new proposed tip pooling rule could deprive restaurant servers of $5.8 billion in tip income every year, according to a report by Bloomberg Law.

Amish builder nailed for OT and child labor violations

01/26/2018

Stoltzfus Structures—an Amish-owned light construction company in Chester County—will pay $188,572 in back wages and an equal amount in liquidated damages to 47 employees.

Accommodation requests can affect unemployment benefits

01/26/2018

How you handle disability accommodation requests may determine whether a worker receives unemployment compensation if you terminate her after she’s used up all her leave.

When stress warrants workers’ comp

01/26/2018

An employee may claim her job is so stressful that she can no longer work and should receive workers’ comp benefits. That claim can succeed—if a court concludes that “abnormal” working conditions caused the stress, anxiety or depression that made it impossible for her to work. But whether work is really abnormally stressful is a fact-specific question.