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Compensation & Benefits

4 tips for talking to employees about rising health benefits costs

09/04/2013
If employees will have to bear a larger share of health benefits in your next plan year—whether in higher premiums, deductibles or copays—you can expect to get an earful during your upcoming open enrollment period. Here are four ways to prepare employees for changes and—perhaps—soften the sting:

Does telecommuting affect nonexempt status?

09/03/2013
Q. We’ve allowed employees to work from home on occasion and are considering making it an option for some positions. Does exempt/nonexempt status matter when it comes to employees working from home on a permanent basis?

Isn’t it illegal to withhold pay as punishment?

09/03/2013
Q. When an employee fails to clock in or out properly, our payroll department withholds that day’s pay until the next pay period as a form of employee discipline. My understanding is that an employer can’t hold back portions of pay as punishment. Am I right?

When does a voluntary wellness program become involuntary?

09/03/2013
At what point is the financial incentive to participate in a wellness program or the penalty for nonparticipation so great as to render it involuntary? Per­­haps more to the point, how does the EEOC define that tipping point?

Wilkes-Barre McDonald’s faces debit card suit

09/03/2013
A former McDonald’s employee is suing a franchise owner, arguing that paying her via a payroll card—with all its attendant fees—meant she earned less than the minimum wage.

Cursing car salesman can’t get unemployment benefits

09/03/2013
A car salesman fired after he cursed and threatened a customer has been denied unemployment benefits.

State hotels rank fourth in nation in wage & hour violations

09/03/2013
Pennsylvania’s hospitality industry has earned the dubious distinction of violating the nation’s pay laws more often than those in any state outside the Sun Belt.

Corporations can’t object to ACA based on religion

09/03/2013
In July, the Obama administration gave employers with 50 or more employees until January 2015 to begin providing health insurance coverage for full-time employees. Some companies challenged parts of the law in court because of their owners’ religious beliefs. They lost in the 3rd Circuit.

DOMA-related issues top IRS’ 2014 business plan

09/02/2013
The 2013-2014 Priority Guidance Plan is the IRS’ road map for regulatory and administrative guidance it hopes to publish by June 30, 2014. Commonly referred to as “the business plan,” the IRS has loaded itself up with 324 projects. As usual, Payroll figures very prominently on the IRS’ agenda. Here’s what to expect.

Part-time work on the rise

09/02/2013
Since March, U.S. employers have added 187,000 full-time workers to their payrolls—and 791,000 part-timers.