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Compensation & Benefits

Can we legally give extra vacation time to certain workers; and must we pay for unused days?

06/17/2013
Q. Our company policy states that we give one week of paid vacation after one year of employment and two weeks of vacation after two years. But some employees when hired have been given two weeks of paid vacation right away. Is this legal and proper? Also, are we required to pay for unused vacation time upon termination or resignation?

DOL proposes income projections on retirement fund statements

06/14/2013
Annual or quarterly statements for 401(k) and 403(b) retirement funds could soon include graphs showing how much monthly income employees can expect to receive from their investments.

IRS details its response to the budget sequester

06/14/2013
The automatic budget cuts that took effect on March 1, known as the sequester, will require the IRS to furlough all employees without pay and completely close its doors on July 5, July 22 and Aug. 30, with two possible additional furlough days to be announced in August or September.

HEXs and SHOPs: Welcome to the new world of health benefits

06/13/2013
Under the Affordable Care Act, open enrollment for the individual health exchanges, or HEXs, begins Oct. 1, 2013. The outlook for the Small Business Health Options Program, or SHOPs, through which small employers may buy health insurance is a bit more complicated. Here’s where things stand.

How should we calculate withholding on executive bonuses?

06/13/2013
Question: What are the tax guidelines for executive bonuses payments? I need to calculate the withholding on them manually.

DOL issues revised model COBRA notice

06/12/2013
The DOL last month published an updated version of its model COBRA election notice, as well as model notices that employers can use to tell employees about their options for buying health insurance through the new state exchanges.

New wellness rules allow premium incentives

06/11/2013
Employers will be able to offer rich incentives for employees to participate in workplace wellness programs under final rules issued May 29 by the Obama administration.

IRS issues more guidance, FAQs on VCSP

06/11/2013
Under the IRS’ Voluntary Classification Settlement Program, you can voluntarily reclassify independent contractors as employees for future tax periods on favorable tax terms: you’ll be liable for just over 10% of the wages paid to those reclassified workers for the past year and no penalties or interest will be due. Recently updated FAQs shed more light on this program.

6 key ACA terms benefits pros must know

06/10/2013
There’s lots of new lingo built into the Affordable Care Act. Understanding what these six terms mean can help you make better decisions about the health benefits you offer.

Status of States’ Positions on HEXs/SHOPs and Medicaid

06/10/2013

Under the Affordable Care Act, individuals will be able to buy health insurance ­policies through individual health exchanges (HEXs). States may create their own HEXs, and may create SHOPs (Small Business Health Options Program). This chart summarizes the states’ current positions on HEXs, SHOPs and whether they will expand their Medicaid rolls.