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Compensation & Benefits

Give all employees a shot at advancement

11/12/2008

If some of your managers and supervisors steer career and business opportunities to favored subordinates and keep others from finding out about them, watch out. If those missed opportunities wind up depriving employees of potential financial rewards, that could lead to discrimination lawsuits.

New president, new Congress: 5 new employment laws could reshape HR

11/11/2008

When Barack Obama takes office in January, get ready for the most sweeping employment-law changes the HR world has seen in years. Attorney Mike Fox walks you through the legislation likely to reshape HR, possibly even in the first 100 days of the Obama administration. Here’s how to prepare.

New FMLA regs one step closer to final approval

11/11/2008

The U.S. Labor Department is set to implement the first major revision of the FMLA since the law was passed in 1993. If approved, the proposed changes could help employers administer the complex 15-year-old law and avoid lawsuits. But the proposal carries a few extra burdens for employers, too.

Wellness program covers food, fitness, families

11/10/2008

Glatfelter Insurance Group employees spend their breaks soaking in the company sauna and enjoying neck-and-shoulder massages. As part of its wellness program, the York, Pa., organization gives employees free access to a personal trainer and on-site tennis, volleyball and basketball courts.

Beware potential new source of lawsuits: Lawyers try RICO in discrimination case

11/10/2008

Lawyers are always looking for novel ways to sue on behalf of employees. One such recent attempt involves trying to apply the RICO Act—originally meant to combat organized crime—against employers. If successful, such lawsuits could result in more than lost dollars: Managers and supervisors could go to jail.

New workers’ comp law stops double coverage for out-of-staters

11/10/2008

Senate Bill 334, which became Ohio law in October, eliminated a significant financial burden for roughly 40,000 Ohio employers that were paying workers’ compensation premiums twice to cover out-of-state workers.

Any way to demand repayment of health insurance premiums?

11/10/2008

Q. We have an employee who failed to return from an FMLA leave of absence. During the leave, we had been paying our customary share of her medical insurance premiums. Is there anything we can do to recoup the expenses we paid for this employee?

HR must step up as economy takes a tumble

11/10/2008

As the impact of the global economic crisis takes hold, a quarter of U.S. employers expect to make layoffs in the next 12 months—if they haven’t already done so. However, most companies are focusing on increased employee communication and smaller cost-saving measures.

How old are your employees’ covered dependents?

11/10/2008

At least 30 states require organizations that offer health benefits to employees’ dependents to include children up to age 30—and the number is growing. They are reacting to the growing number of young adults who do not have health insurance.

HR and the bailout: Bill includes key mental health coverage

11/10/2008

The massive $700 billion financial rescue bill that President Bush signed into law on Oct. 3 contained dozens of measures that have nothing to do with bailing out Wall Street or shoring up credit markets. Among them: long-awaited legislation that bans health insurers from imposing stricter limits on coverage for mental health and substance-use conditions than those set for other health problems.