Compensation & Benefits

Breaks for nursing mothers: Just for nonexempts?

08/20/2012

Q. We have an exempt employee who just returned after giving birth. She says she needs to express milk three times a day and we have to let her. I thought the federal law says breaks were just for hourly employees. Do we have to give her this time? She’s away from her desk for 20 to 30 minutes each time.

9% of employers may drop health benefits by 2014

08/16/2012

In 2014, when the employer-mandate provisions of the Affordable Care Act kick in, 9% of employers may drop health benefits, according to a survey of benefits managers by the consulting firm Deloitte.

DOL: Miami’s Barton G stiffed tipped servers

08/14/2012

The U.S. Department of Labor has ordered Barton G, the company that owns three renowned Miami fine-dining restaurants, to pay $28,000 to low-wage workers who did not receive minimum wage.

Take control of your workers’ comp costs

08/14/2012

Workers’ compensation insurance provides compensation to employees for loss of income and for medical payments when they’re injured on the job. Since employers ultimately bear the expense of workers’ comp benefits, it’s smart to understand how the system works and the proactive steps you can take to control costs.

Fired sales rep did not return our iPad! Can we deduct its value from his last check?

08/13/2012

Q. We recently fired a veteran sales representative on short notice. He still has a new iPad that we purchased to help make sales presentations. We have repeatedly asked him to return the iPad, but he is ignoring our requests. Can we now just deduct the cost from his last paycheck?

Beware bias based on employee’s tribal status

08/13/2012

A court has decided employees can sue employers for national-origin discrimination based on an unexpected characteristic: the employee’s tribal affiliation. National-origin discrimination lawsuits are usually based on being from a particular country, but belonging to a specific tribe can count, too.

When the school bell rings, do some employees go missing?

08/09/2012

The beginning of the school year can be fraught with stress and tension for kids and their parents, too. Result: less productive and often absent employees. Reminder: The federal FMLA doesn’t cover employees who take time off for school visits or to care for kids who aren’t seriously ill but who must stay home from school. Some state laws do.

Columbus graphics firm must return pension funds

08/07/2012

Officers and owners of Columbus-based Clark Graphics must pay back more than half a million dollars to the company’s two pension plans after federal investigators found that the money went missing because of lax oversight.

Use greater experience, extra skills to justify why you pay some employees more than others

08/07/2012

Some employees wrongly assume that discrimination must be to blame if someone doing the same work earns more than they do. But even under the Equal Pay Act, employers are allowed to value employees with more highly specific skills and experience.

To B or not to B: Tips for handling B Notices

08/06/2012

It’s no secret that a large contributor to the tax gap—the difference between the taxes that are paid and the taxes that are owed—are independent contractors who don’t have taxes withheld from their payments. B Notices, properly called CP 2100/2100A notices, which require payers to backup withhold, are a key tax collection tool.