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Compensation & Benefits

FLSA: The Minimum Wage

12/30/2014

HR Law 101: Passage of the Fair Minimum Wage Act of 2007 marked the first boost to the federal minimum wage since 1997. In July 2007, the federal minimum wage increased from $5.15 to $5.85 per hour. Additional raises took effect over the next two years: to $6.55 on July 24, 2008, and to $7.25 on July 24, 2009.

Consider shifting to private health exchange

12/29/2014
Consulting firms Accenture and Oliver Wyman have estimated that by 2018, private exchanges will provide health coverage for around 40 million individuals. Here are the benefits.

Employees using salary surveys to request a raise?

12/29/2014
Get ready to explain your compensation policy, but also be prepared to point out these illuminating facts to counter their arguments.

7 states subject to FUTA credit reductions for 2014

12/29/2014
Seven states are on the 2014 FUTA credit reduction hit list. Employers will have their maximum FUTA credit reduced on their 2014 Form 940 because their states haven’t repaid loans they took out to shore up their state unemployment trust funds.

Feds seek employer input on proposed rule on excepted benefits

12/25/2014
The Obama administration is seeking public comment on proposed rules that would amend the definition of excepted benefits to include certain limited wraparound coverage for employees who buy health coverage through Affordable Care Act insurance exchanges.

What’s the federal youth minimum wage?

12/24/2014
Q. I am an employer that employs minors in certain occupations. Is there a federal youth minimum wage that I must pay my minor employees?

Can a friend or relative pick up a paycheck?

12/24/2014
Q. Some of the employees in my company’s Texas office have inquired about alternative payment delivery options. Among other things, they have asked if they may have a friend or relative come to the office to pick up their paychecks. Is this permissible?

On-premises fringes: Is there such a thing as a free lunch?

12/24/2014
The IRS has begun to examine the tax treatment of employer-provided free meals, such as those famously provided by Silicon Valley tech firms like Google.

Questions and answers about California’s new Paid Sick Leave law

12/24/2014

The newly enacted Healthy Work­­places, Healthy Families Act of 2014 requires California employers to provide employees with one hour of paid sick leave for every 30 hours worked, starting on July 1. This is the first of a two-part series designed to get you up to speed on exactly what the new law requires.

Two California nursing homes cited for wage violations

12/24/2014
The U.S. Department of Labor’s Wage and Hour Division has found two California nursing homes failed to pay their employees the federal minimum wage.