• The HR Specialist - Print Newsletter
  • HR Specialist: Employment Law
  • The HR Weekly

Compensation & Benefits

Auditors get new marching orders for payroll audits

02/27/2015
Outsourcing your payroll operations to a third party doesn’t get you off the hook for your undeposited payroll taxes, if your third party drops the ball.

27 biweekly pay periods in 2015? Can that be correct?

02/26/2015
Q: I’m new to payroll. I just noticed that we will have 27 biweekly pay periods in 2015. How do we deal with this? How should we communicate this to employees?

Texas homebuilder brings employees on ‘mission trips’

02/26/2015
After a year on the job at Beten­­bough Homes in Lubbock, Texas, employees may accompany execs and colleagues on an all-expense-paid “mission trip.”

Put your slackers to shame with this amazing example of dedication

02/25/2015
On Jan. 30, Ron Kline, an employee of toilet manufacturer Mansfield Plumbing, reached a career milestone most people would never dream of: 50 years of perfect attendance.

What’s the current mileage reimbursement rate?

02/24/2015
Q. Some of my construction employees must drive their personal cars to and from various work sites during work hours. Am I required to reimburse these employees for the miles they drive during this travel? If so, what is the amount per mile?

California Supreme Court rules on pay for on-call and sleep time

02/24/2015
The California Supreme Court has held that the on-call hours for security guards who work 24-hour shifts constituted compensable hours worked. The court also ruled that the guards’ employer could not exclude “sleep time” from the guards’ 24-hour shifts.

Federal judge strikes raises for home health workers

02/24/2015
One of President Obama’s attempts to stimulate the economy has been nixed by a federal court.

New California law requires pay for rest or recovery periods

02/24/2015
SB 1360, passed late in 2014, requires employers to pay employees for recovery periods taken during hot weather.

What counts as compensable working time?

02/23/2015
Q: We’re a property management company. Nonexempt employees must remain on-call at night and during the weekend to handle emergencies. Usually all they have to do is call the plumber or another service provider. If an employee receives a text or call, is that time compensable? Does the length of the call have any impact on whether the time is compensable?

Challenge unemployment if misconduct led to firing

02/19/2015
Employees who are fired for misconduct aren’t eligible for unemployment benefits because their dismissal was the result of their own wrongdoing. Contest benefits when that happens.