Compensation & Benefits

Make sure handbook includes rules on off-the-clock work, missed break time

02/26/2014

With strong policies, employees (and their lawyers) will find it much harder to mount class-action wage-and-hour lawsuits. That’s because employees have to show that a common policy or practice was responsible for wage-and-hour violations.

Cover employee expenses–or prepare for court

02/26/2014

Now is a good time to make sure your employees are being properly reimbursed for expenses they incur while performing their jobs. The problem: If they aren’t reimbursed for those expenses, their pay may fall below minimum wage. And if that’s the case, they can quit and sue, alleging constructive discharge.

3% raises to remain the norm in 2014

02/25/2014

Base pay increases for 2014 will remain at 3% for the second year in a row—roughly one percentage point below pre-recession levels, according to Buck Consultants’ seventh annual Compensation Planning Survey.

Boomers plan to keep working … and working …

02/24/2014

A new Gallup poll finds that 49% of baby boomers (born from 1946 to 1964) don’t plan to retire until after age 65—if they ever retire at all.

Sheetz offers traditional–and unusual–benefits

02/21/2014

Sheetz President and CEO Joe Sheetz says the convenience store giant not only tries to offer the same employee benefits as its competitors, but tries to customize perks to suit its young workers, many of whom work relatively few hours.

Et tu W-2? How to handle the reissue process

02/19/2014

Panicky phone calls to the Payroll department from employees who lost their original W-2s are about as predictable as the sun rising in the east. Here are some tips for controlling the reissued W-2 process.

N.Y. wage-and-hour news you can use: annual notices & tax credits

02/18/2014

Now that 2014 is in full swing, it’s time to make sure your organization is up to speed on new wage-and-hour obligations and prepare to take advantage of a new tax incentive for hiring student workers.

Final rule delays ACA employer mandate

02/18/2014

The ACA’s employer mandate has been delayed until Jan. 1, 2016, for mid-sized employers, while compliance thresholds for large employers have been scaled back.

WHD rolls two sushi restaurants for OT violations

02/18/2014

Two Nassau County sushi restaurants will pay $261,887 in back wages and liquidated damages to 70 workers following an investigation by the U.S. Department of Labor’s Wage and Hour Division.

Obama: Higher minimum for fed contractors’ employees

02/18/2014

President Obama plans to issue an executive order requiring federal contractors to pay employees at least $10.10 per hour, starting in 2015.