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Compensation & Benefits

Walmart drops health benefits for part-timers

10/30/2014
Walmart has announced it will stop offering health insurance benefits next year to part-time employees working less than 30 hours per week—about 5% of the retail giant’s workers.

Are there limits to direct deposit?

10/30/2014
Q: A new employee wants us to direct deposit her paychecks into a business bank account. She’s provided proof that she’s the signatory on the account. Is this OK?

HR lexicon: What’s a pre-cation?

10/29/2014
Possibly the greatest perk you’ve never heard of: paid vacation that new hires can take before reporting for work at their new organizations.

What’s the procedure for handling a worker’s comp claim when an employee is injured?

10/27/2014
Q. As a California employer, what should I do if one of my employees gets injured on the job or has a work-related illness?

Even though we have no employees, do we still need workers’ comp coverage?

10/27/2014
Q. My daughter and I are the sole owners of our business. Are we required to obtain workers’ compensation coverage even though we have no employees?

Enhanced pay report proposed for fed contractors

10/27/2014
The U.S. Department of Labor has issued a Notice of Proposed Rule­­making that would require the Office of Federal Contract Com­­pliance Programs to collect pay data from federal contractors.

Forget the gold watch! Present last check instead

10/27/2014

Employees who quit in California must receive their last checks within 72 hours if the employee provides no advance notice. If the worker does provide at least 72 hours’ notice, the payment must be immediate. But what about employees who announce their retirement—presumably at least 72 hours before their last workday?

Complicated compensation formula? Prepare to spell out all details in court

10/27/2014
Here’s a warning for employers with overly complicated compensation systems: If someone believes the pay plan is discriminatory, you’ll probably have to spend considerable time explaining the system in court. Simpler may be better.

Pursuit of SoCal dentist shows wage law has teeth

10/27/2014
For a Southern California cook, getting paid was like pulling teeth. For five months he was a private chef for a dentist, but was never paid.

Withholding on bonuses: The 25% solution (or not)?

10/27/2014
Q: The company pays bonuses to employees every fall. We’ve run across several 2014 W-4 forms on which employees claim an exemption from federal and state income tax withholding. Can we still withhold using the 25% flat supplemental withholding rate for federal purposes?