Compensation & Benefits

Beware promising that benefits are permanent

03/27/2014

Here’s something to think about when you revise your handbook or send out an announcement outlining your benefit plan: Be sure to tell workers that benefits can change at any time and that this year’s offering isn’t a promise that the benefits described will continue indefinitely.

Negotiating return to work? Don’t rush firing

03/27/2014

Sometimes, employees end up on unpaid leave after complaining about discrimination. Then the employee’s lawyers try to negotiate a settlement that includes returning to work. If you turn down such terms, make sure you get clarification on whether the worker will return even if you don’t meet her demands.

Era of low health care cost growth continues

03/26/2014

The cost of providing employer-sponsored health care benefits is expected to increase 4.4% this year, a slight uptick from 2013, when cost increases fell to a 15-year low, according to an annual survey by Towers Watson and the National Business Group on Health, an association of large employers.

Job candidates can apply to Marriott via phone app

03/26/2014

In January, the Marriott International hotel chain began accepting applications from job-seekers who apply via their cellphones and tablets. The hospitality giant says it is the first in the industry to offer mobile job applications to would-be employees.

Does Minnesota require allowing time off for employees to attend school activities?

03/25/2014

Q. One of our employees came in two hours late today, without an advance call. When he got here, he told his supervisor that he needed “school leave” for the morning. Can we discipline him for being late?

Pay gap shrinking for Millennial women

03/25/2014

Each new group of young women entering the workforce over the past 30 years has started out at a higher average hourly wage relative to men. Here are the statistics on women’s earnings as a percentage of men’s, among 25-to-34-year-olds.

Create a strong workplace ‘health culture’

03/24/2014

Employees who believe they work in an organization with a strong “health culture” perceive themselves as healthier and are more likely to change unhealthy behaviors, according to a new study.

Can we make partial-day deductions from a PTO bank?

03/21/2014

Q: If an exempt employee works for two hours one day, must we pay her for a full day, or can we require her to use her paid time off? What if she doesn’t come in at all for a day—must she still receive her full salary, or can we dock her pay for the day? We don’t allow employees to borrow PTO from the next year’s allotment.

Payroll NRP audits almost done; analysis to follow

03/20/2014

More than 75% of the intensive line-by-line payroll returns audited under the IRS’ National Research Program have been completed, according to IRS spokesperson Paul Carlino. Interim findings reveal issues with executive compensation and Form 1099-MISC.

Changing hours: Must we talk to the union first?

03/19/2014

Q. Our employees recently voted for a union and we are now negotiating. Our policies say full-time employee status starts at 30 hours per week. All of our full-time employees currently work 40 hours per week. We want to decrease the hours of some employees (about 25% of them) from eight to six per day. Do we have to bargain with the union on this change or can we just notify them?