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Compensation & Benefits

Your gift for newlyweds: Fresh HR paperwork

05/14/2013
If you have employees who are getting hitched soon, help them start married life right by getting their HR documents in order. The problem: Brides who take their husbands’ names and couples with hyphenated names suddenly don’t match a host of records.

Real-life examples of simple, low-cost work/life efforts

05/13/2013
Studies show that work/life programs can help improve employee engagement and productivity. You may think effective strategies are expensive and require a big-business budget. Not true.

Is it OK to volunteer for your own nonprofit?

05/10/2013
Q. I work for a nonprofit organization. Several hourly employees of the organization volunteer during nonworking hours. Is that OK?

St. Paul Chamber musicians, management achieve harmony

05/10/2013
After being locked out since Oct. 21, 2012, musicians with the St. Paul Chamber Orchestra are prepared to complete a shortened season with a smaller contingent. A tentative agreement ending the lockout cuts the orchestra from 34 members to 28 and lowers the guaranteed minimum salary to $60,000—19% less than the previous contract that expired last September.

Sugar lockout comes to sweet conclusion for employer

05/10/2013
The 20-month-long American Crystal Sugar lockout is finally over. In April, 55% of the members of the Bakery, Confectionery, Tobacco Workers and Grain Millers Local 167G ratified a contract that closely resembles a deal they rejected on four previous votes.

Feds offer free toolkit to help employees plan for retirement

05/10/2013
Help your employees jumpstart their retirement savings by pointing them toward a new planning toolkit prepared by the U.S. Department of Labor and the Certified Financial Planner Board of Standards.

Failing to pay workers on time may cost you a big penalty

05/09/2013
In Minnesota, employees are supposed to be paid promptly and receive an accounting of their time worked. Failure to comply may mean you’ll have to pay a penalty.

Discovered wage-and-hour irregularities? Act fast to fix

05/09/2013
When it comes to paying hourly employees for all hours worked, the best policy is to fix any mistakes as soon as you can. Chances are, doing so will reduce your liability down the line.

Firing because you suspect thievery: Better be prepared to prove it

05/09/2013
Employees who steal from their employers violate their duty of loyalty. That makes them ineligible for unemployment compensation. That’s true even if the theft is small. But you must be prepared with clear testimony if you want to contest the worker’s right to unemployment benefits.

Heard about the ACA’s $63 per head reinsurance fee?

05/09/2013
Tucked into the Affordable Care Act’s fine print is a requirement for most group health plans that provide major medical coverage to pay a reinsurance fee to the Department of Health and Human Services in 2014, 2015 and 2016.