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Compensation & Benefits

Salaries for ’09: Flat raises, more performance pay

08/28/2008
Despite the economic gloom dominating the headlines, three new national salary surveys predict that U.S. employers will generally hold salary increases steady in 2009. The surveys predict that employers will award average pay increases at or near 3.8% next year, nearly identical to raises given during 2008 and 2007. But smart employers aren’t handing out 3.8% across the board …

In which city is compensation the highest?

08/28/2008
Employers in the San Francisco/San Jose area pay their workers, on average, 19% above the national average, according to a new U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics survey. Other top cities: New York City (15% above); Salinas, Calif. (14%) …

Proving the ROI of wellness programs just got easier

08/28/2008

Every employer seems to be jumping on the wellness bandwagon in an effort to curb health care costs. But it’s always been hard for HR to prove its wellness investment is worth it. Reason: the inability to nail down a return on investment (ROI) on wellness programs. Now, a host of new approaches and tools have come to the rescue …

Cell phones, laptops and BlackBerrys: Understand the liability risks

08/27/2008

Before you hand out cell phones, laptops and BlackBerrys to everyone on your staff, understand that such tech tools may expose your organization to legal liability. Two legal minefields are particularly worrisome …

How should we pay for weekend travel time?

08/27/2008
Q. How do we pay hourly employees who are traveling on a day that’s not considered a workday, like Saturday or Sunday? What if they normally have a 10-minute commute to the office but instead they have to go to the airport, and the airport is an hour from their homes? …

Factor Lower Health Care Cost Growth into 2009 Budgets

08/26/2008
Health care costs are expected to increase on average 10.6% in the next 12 months, the lowest percentage increase since 2001. Here are the stats you need to make smart business decisions about the health plan  you choose for your employees.

Sorry, no take-Backs on FMLA

08/26/2008
In July 2001, Steven Peters joined Gilead Sciences, a California-based pharmaceutical company, as a therapeutic specialist. In December 2002, Peters took leave under the FMLA for surgery. He took a second leave in March 2003. On April 25, the company sent a letter to Peters, saying that because he held a “key” position the company could not keep open, he had been replaced …

Indiana employers respond to higher gas prices

08/26/2008
The LaPorte District of Indiana’s Department of Transportation (INDOT) has instituted a four-day workweek for operations workers to battle high fuel costs. INDOT hopes the move will bring 10% savings on fuel, utilities and fleet maintenance costs …

Gas pains: Implemented properly, telecommuting can be win-Win

08/26/2008
During this period of high gas prices, telecommuting could help employees cut commuting costs. With the right kind of phone and computer equipment, many workers can do their jobs as effectively from home as they can from their usual work sites. Employers benefit from increased productivity and lower absenteeism, higher retention rates and better employee morale …

Is it legal to discipline an employee for tardiness by suspending her without pay?

08/26/2008
Q. I work in HR at a customer call-in center. To make sure we have enough coverage to handle calls, we have a strict tardiness policy. Recently, one of our customer service agents was late for work several days in a row. She is an otherwise outstanding performer and we don’t want to fire her. In the alternative, we would like to suspend her for one week without pay. Is that legal? …