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Compensation & Benefits

With COVID emergencies set to expire, prepare for health insurance effects

02/03/2023
The Biden administration has announced that, after more than three years, both the COVID-19 national emergency and the COVID public health emergency will finally expire on May 11. That has implications for terminated employees’ access to COBRA continuation health insurance coverage. It also affects how private insurance plans, such as those sponsored by employers, may cover COVID-related expenses.

DOL never forgets: Slaps millions in penalties on repeat wage offender

02/03/2023
A commercial painting contractor in Las Vegas must have thought federal investigators would forget about his history of stiffing employees. He was wrong.

First Friday in February: The end of the pandemic emergencies, DOL keeps getting into trouble and more

02/03/2023
The end of the national pandemic emergency, challenges to DOL regulations and more.

Survey: More employers taking action on pay equity

01/31/2023
WorldatWork’s latest Pay Equity Study found that 70% of organizations were taking action on pay equity in 2022, a 10% increase since 2019 and a 4% increase over 2021.

State-based retirement plan mandates grow

01/25/2023
By the end of 2023, 15 states will have begun requiring employers that don’t offer retirement benefits to automatically register employees for state-based 401(k) or individual retirement accounts.

Consider coverage issues when employees must travel to receive abortion care

01/25/2023
If your organization operates in a state with a full or partial ban on abortion, it’s likely one or more of your employees seeking an abortion will have to travel out of state to receive care. Here is how to manage some of the complications employers face in the post-Dobbs era.

Weigh HR effect of declining birth rate

01/24/2023
Here’s a trend that could affect when, how and how many employees participate in your benefits program. Millennials—currently between 26 and 41 years old—are waiting longer and longer to have children.

Offer benefits that pay down student debt

01/24/2023
Helping new hires pay off their student loans might be the recruiting advantage that makes you an employer of choice.

Court dismisses EPA case as push for pay equity intensifies

01/18/2023
To win an EPA case, the worker must show that the opposite sex was paid more for “equal work requiring substantially similar skill, effort and responsibilities performed under similar working conditions.” That’s increasingly difficult in a work environment where numerous new jobs rely on extremely specialized skills, making it almost impossible to prove jobs are substantially similar enough to allow a comparison.

Health costs grew 3.2% in ’22, will grow faster this year

01/17/2023
The average per-employee cost of employer-provided health benefits rose 3.2% in 2022, according to the Mercer consulting firm’s 2022 National Survey of Employer-Sponsored Health Plans, released in December. Brace for higher costs this year.