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Compensation & Benefits

Taxable or not? What do we do about door prizes for spouses?

11/06/2013
Question: Door prizes at our wellness fair included gift cards. We know that employees who receive gift cards are taxed on those amounts, but what about spouses—are gift cards taxable to employees and reportable on their W-2s if their spouses win prizes?

Houston firm dedicates one day per year to volunteerism

11/04/2013
For the third year, Houston-based Swift Worldwide Resources has given all of its employees a day off—the same day—to volunteer in their communities at 23 locations around the world.

It’s about time: Fall back!

11/01/2013
Don’t forget to turn your clocks back one hour, to standard time, at 2 a.m., Sunday, Nov. 3.

November 2013: Employer’s business tax calendar

11/01/2013
Saturdays, Sundays and legal holidays as observed in the District of Columbia are taken into account to determine due dates. Under the federal deposit rules, you’re allowed a deposit shortfall of the greater of $100 or 2% of your tax liability.

Texas AG lawyer blows whistle on hostile work environment

10/31/2013
An attorney in Texas Attorney Gen­­eral Greg Abbott’s office has filed a whistle-blower complaint claiming he has been forced to work in a hostile environment. Among his allegations: rampant discrimination, misuse of taxpayer dollars and falsification of hourly time sheets.

No unemployment after rejecting lower-paying job

10/31/2013
Consider this scenario: A former em­­ployee is collecting unemployment. You have an opening that matches his skills and abilities, but which pays less than the previous position. If you make an offer and the former employee rejects it, he may lose his unemployment compensation benefits.

Harris Health System pays out $4M for back OT

10/31/2013
Harris Health System in Houston will pay out more than $4 million in back pay after it failed to include incentive pay when calculating overtime for thousands of hourly staff members.

Retirement plans growing in post-recession rebound

10/31/2013
Since the Great Recession ended, a higher percentage of employees work for employers that offer retirement plans and a higher percentage of them are participating in the plans, according to a report by the Employee Benefit Research Institute.

Draft severance agreements to prevent future lawsuits

10/30/2013
Have a lawyer draft any release that accompanies a severance payment. If the employee sues and the release was carefully written, the court will probably say it bars suing—and may require repaying severance money before the worker can even try challenging the release’s validity.

Save money upon termination by including ‘use it or lose it’ leave policy in handbook

10/30/2013
Here’s another reason your hand­­book must include clear, concise and specific explanations of vacation and other leave policies: By carefully explaining that em­­ployees who quit forfeit unused leave, you won’t have to pay them for that un­­used time under the North Caro­­lina Wage and Hour Act.