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Compensation & Benefits

Texas congressman pushes bill to block SS benefits for illegals

02/01/2007

Rep. John R. Carter (R-Texas) last month introduced legislation in Congress that aims to bar U.S. citizens from receiving Social Security benefits based on wages earned while they were in the United States illegally …

Can We Reduce Benefits to Citizen-Soldiers?

02/01/2007

Q. In the past, we’ve extended additional benefits to our employees who were National Guard members called up for active duty. Although we’re not going to eliminate that practice entirely, we do want to reduce those additional benefits. Is there any problem with doing so? —L..S.

Illegal firing can cancel terms of noncompete pact

02/01/2007

New York companies that require employees to sign noncompete agreements sometimes make deferred compensation conditional on whether the ex-employee actually complies with that noncompete pact. That’s fine, according to state law. But the deal can collapse, as a new case shows …

Workers Aren’t Entitled to Extra Pay for Job-Related ideas

02/01/2007

New Jersey employers aren’t required to pay employees extra money for coming up with good ideas related to their work. But take note: You still may face claims for using employees’ ideas that are NOT related to their regular jobs …

Promises, promises: Put incentives in writing; don’t let managers blurt them out

02/01/2007

Remind supervisors to avoid the temptation of making oral promises that they may not be able to keep, even if that means losing an employee who has another job offer …

10 ways to cut your organization’s legal bills

02/01/2007
Perhaps the last thing you want to think about is hiring an attorney. But someday you will probably have to work with attorneys on contracts or even — perish the thought — lawsuits aimed at your organization. The good news is you can take some steps to contain the cost of using outside lawyers. Here are the 10 best ways to trim your legal expenses.

10 ways to squeeze more value from your EAP

02/01/2007

Is your organization reaping the full financial benefits from its employee assistance program (EAP)? If employees aren’t using it, the answer is probably “no” …

Health coaches can help reduce hospital visits, care costs

02/01/2007

Employees with chronic health conditions like diabetes could make fewer trips to the emergency room if someone would check in with them every couple of weeks to make sure they’re taking care of themselves …

Higher contribution limits will boost interest in HSAs

02/01/2007

If your organization offers a tax-advantaged health savings account (HSA) plan, look for much more employee interest in 2007. That’s because employees can now pour more dollars into their HSAs, thanks to new legislation signed by President Bush in December …

Sort out health care laws with new govt. Web tool

02/01/2007

The U.S. Labor Department recently unveiled an interactive Web site to help guide employers through the maze of federal health benefit laws …