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Compensation & Benefits

13 is a magic salary number

05/24/2017
New research by ADP has found that a 13% raise is the salary-increase tipping point at which employees will jump to a new job.

Can a worker be both exempt and nonexempt?

05/23/2017
Q: “We have an exempt employee who sometimes works weekends in a different role, which is nonexempt. Should the exempt employee be paid straight time or overtime?” – Natalie, Virginia

Employers struggle with paid leave mandates

05/19/2017
A poll by the National Partnership for Women and Families shows that 82% of U.S. citizens surveyed favor some sort of paid sick leave. But paid leave enjoys much less support from employers.

Beware creative workers’ comp fraud: The case of the ‘sprinkler selfie’ injury

05/18/2017
Florida says fraud is one reason workers’ comp premiums for businesses rose by 14.5% last year.

Collect unemployment during furloughs in Minnesota?

05/17/2017
Q. As a labor cost-cutting measure we are scheduling employees for three weeks on and one week off. We expect to keep this schedule indefinitely. Can employees collect unemployment for the one week they are off?

Personal care industry: Know the unique UC rules

05/17/2017
Under Minnesota’s unemployment compensation laws, when service for a particular patient ends, attendants are only eligible for unemployment compensation benefits if they tell the staffing service they are willing and able to work with another patient. Otherwise, the end of the original assignment doesn’t count as a discharge.

Employee misconduct bars unemployment benefits

05/17/2017
Employees who are terminated for misconduct aren’t eligible for unemployment compensation benefits. Just about any breach of an employer’s rules amounts to misconduct.

Tough economy no excuse for pay bias

05/17/2017
The 8th Circuit Court of Appeals has ruled that an economic downturn cannot be used as an excuse to justify continuing unequal pay under the Equal Pay Act.

The O’Reilly Factor: Claw backs and the ‘faithless servant’

05/16/2017
In the world of controversial show host Bill O’Reilly, personal responsibility has given way to excuses and coddling, prompting the question: Where is good, old-fashioned comeuppance when it is needed? In O’Reilly’s case, we now have an answer to that question.

Keep accurate pay records–or prepare for court to take employee’s word for it

05/16/2017
If you fail to keep tabs and the worker sues, it’s generally his word against yours as to how many hours per day and per week the employee worked. That can result in a big back-pay bill, especially if the court doubles the damages as permitted under both federal and state law.