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Compensation & Benefits

Erie representative proposes universal health coverage

08/01/2006

State Rep. Linda Bebko-Jones (D-Erie) has proposed a 10 percent payroll tax on businesses and a 3 percent personal income tax to provide universal health care coverage to Pennsylvanians. State Sen. Jim Ferlo, (D-Allegheny) proposed a companion bill earlier in the session …

Be on guard for often-Overlooked ‘Associated with’ claims

08/01/2006

A frequently disregarded ADA provision often catches employers by surprise. The ADA, which prohibits discrimination of disabled people at work, also bans discrimination against employees because they "associate with" someone who is disabled …

Stick to FMLA certification rules, or lose your rights

08/01/2006

Make sure your supervisors (and you) know how to respond when an employee requests leave for his or her own serious illness or a family member’s illness. If you don’t follow the FMLA’s rules on how and when to request written proof about the illness or injury, you lose your right to challenge the employee’s leave request …

OK’ing medical leave won’t equal acceptance of disability

08/01/2006

If you’ve ever wondered whether allowing an employee to take medical leave will tie your hands if it comes time to challenge that employee’s disability claim, take heart. Just because you didn’t ask for medical proof of disability once, that doesn’t mean you can’t later …

Earn a new tax break for giving paid leave for organ donation

08/01/2006

A new law signed last month by Gov. Rendell, The Organ and Bone Marrow Donor Act, grants employers a tax credit if they offer paid organ-donor leave to their employees. State Rep. Robert Godshall (R-Montgomery) proposed the bill (HB 153) after hearing how some would-be organ donors would be deterred by potential economic losses from missing work …

Don’t dock exempt workers’ pay for lost equipment

08/01/2006

While you can set a policy that deducts from nonexempt employees’ wages if they damage or lose company equipment, don’t extend that policy to exempt employees or you’ll risk their exemption status …

New Pa. law restricts use of Social Security numbers

08/01/2006

Pennsylvania employers will have to go to greater lengths to keep employees’ and customers’ Social Security numbers private in the wake of new legislation signed by Gov. Rendell this summer …

Performance-Based Pay Cuts: Legal, not advisable

08/01/2006

Q. We do yearly performance evaluations, during which we review whether employees have met the expectations we laid out during the previous review. If these expectations were not met, can we legally decrease the employee’s salary as punishment? —A.L., Iowa

Online tool helps workers earn back wages

08/01/2006

The Labor Department’s Wage & Hour Division launched a new Back Wage Employee Locator online tool to help people determine if they’re owed back wages as the result of an investigation …

Texas court: Prisoners aren’t entitled to the minimum wage

08/01/2006

Compelling a prisoner to work without pay is not illegal, a federal court has ruled in considering a Texas inmate’s request. The prisoner worked in the prison laundry and claimed he should be paid at least the federal minimum wage …