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Compensation & Benefits

Monday mashup: Draft Form 941, Biden budget and other good stuff

06/07/2021
It’s an old government trick—dump stuff on a Friday afternoon, especially during the summer (and most especially during this summer), when our attention is elsewhere. Mondays, of course, are the day we sort it out.

Buried by burnout, employees plan long vacations this year

06/01/2021
Fully 44% of professionals surveyed said they are more burned out on the job today than they were a year ago, up from 34% in a similar 2020 poll. Nearly half of employees—49%—experiencing increased fatigue blamed it on a heavier workload.

EEOC: OK to require employees to be vaccinated against covid-19

06/01/2021
Federal equal employment opportunity laws do not prevent an employer from requiring all employees physically entering the workplace to be vaccinated for covid-19, according to new guidance issued by the EEOC on May 28. However, employers must comply with the reasonable accommodation provisions of the ADA and Title VII.

Consider new perk: Student-loan repayment

05/27/2021
A little-known provision in the Consolidated Appropriations Act of 2021, signed last December, lets employers offer student-loan repayment as a benefit. This may help attract job applicants who see the value of paying down their student debt.

Cost of denying pregnancy leave: $146,000

05/27/2021
When an employee has pregnancy complications that might delay her return to work, consider offering additional leave. In addition to the FMLA, the Pregnancy Discrimination Act may compel employers to accommodate pregnant employees by granting time off.

Afraid you’ll miss payroll? Here’s what to do

05/27/2021
Failing to pay employees what you owe them, on time, is certain to cause legal trouble. Not only do many states have strict rules about when employers must pay wages due, the U.S. Department of Labor aggressively goes after employers that don’t pay workers on time.

Labor crunch: Lure applicants with higher pay

05/27/2021
The post-pandemic economy is showing signs of a solid recovery. Businesses that sell goods and services are gearing up to satisfy pent-up demand. But first they need to hire staff, and that is proving to be a challenge, even as the unemployment rate continued to hover around 6.1% in April.

Employment law changes: What to expect into 2022

05/26/2021
Paid sick leave—an issue supported by President Biden and gaining steam in state legislatures—is the top legislative issue that employers expect to impact their businesses over the next 12 months, according to a new Littler survey of 1,100 HR professionals and in-house attorneys.

Medicare at age 60 would provide coverage to millions of employees

05/25/2021
As many as 11.7 million employees who currently have employer-sponsored health insurance would be covered by Medicare if eligibility for the program began at age 60 instead of 65, according to an analysis by the nonprofit Kaiser Family Foundation.

Bill would require automatic enrollment in retirement plans

05/25/2021
H.R. 2954—the Securing a Strong Retirement Act of 2021—is designed to encourage more Americans to set aside money to fund their retirements.