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Compensation & Benefits

Cutting health care costs: Is it time to switch to a ‘Mini-Med’ plan?

03/01/2008

Providing affordable employee health insurance is tough for many small companies and those employing lots of part-time workers. If that sounds like your organization, it may be time to consider offering a “mini-med” plan that covers limited health care expenses at a relatively low cost. Here’s what you need to know …

Must you provide leave to domestic violence victims?

03/01/2008
In 1999, California and Maine became the first states to enact laws providing protection or leave to employees who are victims of domestic violence. Since then, nearly half of the states have enacted similar laws …

Workers’ comp doesn’t cover accidents that occur after hours, off premises

03/01/2008
Employers may be responsible for injuries that occur in the employee parking lot or on company premises after employees have clocked out for the day. However, New Jersey courts draw the line at the end of the employer’s property line …

Sued for injury? Check if workers’ comp paid out

03/01/2008
If your company is sued by someone other than your own employee for an injury that occurred on your premises, it’s worth finding out if the injured person collected any money under workers’ comp. That can easily happen if the person was traveling on business. Here’s why you should check …

Is your broker lazy? 5 questions to weed out slackers

03/01/2008
You don’t have the time or expertise to shop for benefits plans and analyze them all. That’s why you hire a health benefits broker to sort out the best plans at the best prices. Here are some issues to consider when selecting the right broker …

Insure for workers’ comp? Your liability policy may cover gross negligence, too

03/01/2008
The Texas Supreme Court recently decided that employers that have workers’ compensation insurance and are sued for gross negligence could also insure for any damages a court may award for that negligence. If you don’t know whether your employers’ liability policy covers additional damages, now is a good time to check the policy …

Time records crucial in FMLA eligibility calculation

03/01/2008

As a practical matter, the FMLA requires employers to carefully keep track of all hours each employee works. If the employer’s time records don’t include all time worked, it is up to the employer to prove to the court that the employee didn’t work enough hours to qualify for FMLA leave. With poor records, that may be hard to do …

Paid sick leave proposal put before legislature

03/01/2008

A proposal that would require most Ohio companies to give employees at least seven paid sick days each year is headed to the state Legislature under the Healthy Families Act …

Paying back ‘Borrowed’ vacation leave

03/01/2008

Q. We allow our employees to “borrow” unearned vacation time. Our policy provides that if employees quit or are terminated with a “negative” vacation balance, the amount that they owe us for the vacation time taken before it was earned will be deducted from their final pay. Can we do this? …

FMLA extended to military families: More changes to come?

03/01/2008

For the first time since it became law in 1993, the FMLA has been amended. President Bush signed H.R. 4986 in January. The law grants FMLA-protected leave to workers who care for injured soldiers and families of reservists called to duty …