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Compensation & Benefits

DOL gets free pass when suing employers for wage violations

12/09/2008

Employers, beware: The 11th Circuit Court of Appeals has just made it much easier for the DOL to file lawsuits against employers. All the DOL needs to do is file a complaint alleging unpaid wages.

The problem with working: having to do work

12/09/2008

Tired of working, but still need a paycheck? Keith Smith apparently found a solution to that age-old problem, if only temporarily.

Meat packer, staffing firm settle with Muslim workers

12/09/2008

St. Cloud-based Gold’n Plump has agreed to pay $215,000 to a group of Somali Muslim workers to settle a religious discrimination lawsuit brought by the EEOC. The company also granted the workers an extra paid break for prayer during the second half of each shift.

3 steps to jumpstart your company’s wellness program

12/09/2008

As health insurance costs skyrocket, even as benefits dwindle, so does the trend toward employers setting up wellness programs—71% of U.S. employers offered such programs in 2008. Here’s how to make the case for establishing a wellness program in your workplace, plus initial steps to put the plan in motion.

Survey: Work site wellness works

12/08/2008

Work site wellness programs are more popular than ever because they are an economical way to offset rising employee health care costs, according to an American Heart Association survey.

Assess needs of employees, business before offering perks

12/08/2008

Work/life benefits can help take the edge off employee stress during a time when people fear their jobs aren’t secure and managers are pressing workers to produce more with less. Still, it’s especially important during an economic downturn for organizations to limit benefits to those that will help them meet their bottom-line goals.

By The Numbers: Top executive pay down 4%

12/08/2008

A cynic might say a 4% average earnings decline isn’t enough, but at least the highest-paid executives in America’s publicly traded corporations are feeling some of the pain of the financial meltdown.

Worker denied unemployment can’t keep filing claims

12/08/2008

It may seem like common sense, but it took an Ohio Court of Appeals decision to settle the question: Employees can’t keep filing unemployment compensation claims for the same discharge after they lose the first round.

Obama health plan would raise coverage, some employer costs

12/08/2008

President-elect Barack Obama has said his plan for universal health coverage would reduce health care costs and save American businesses $140 billion a year. It would do so largely by requiring big businesses to provide health insurance for their workers or else pay into a federal fund that would provide coverage.

Encourage organ donations by offering extra days off

12/08/2008

Offering an extra three to 30 days of paid leave to employees who donate bone marrow or organs could improve your organization’s reputation as a company that cares about its community. Less than half of 1% of those who register as potential donors will ever be called to give, so the benefit will cost your organization very little.