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Compensation & Benefits

More employers are telling sick workers to stay home

12/01/2005
The problem of presenteeism, when employees come to work even though they’re sick, is an increasing concern for U.S. employers, according to a new CCH survey. Nearly half (48 percent) of …

Request certification at start of each FMLA year

12/01/2005
A new Labor Department opinion letter makes clear that you can require employees to provide new medical certification, not just recertification, for their first FMLA absences in a new “FMLA year.” …

Set clear rules on employee credit card use

12/01/2005

Q. I work for a nonprofit agency, and we plan to start using an agency credit card. But we also need a policy that covers who can use the card and when, plus some other things I haven’t thought of yet. What should the policy include? —M.M., Pennsylvania

Supreme Court: Pay employees for certain ‘walking time’

12/01/2005
Issue: Must you pay employees for time spent changing into protective gear and walking to (and from) their workstations?
Benefit/risk: The Supreme Court finally answered this long-running question, but the …

New Roth 401(k) option kicks in Jan. 1

12/01/2005
Starting Jan. 1, employers can offer Roth 401(k)s, which are a hybrid of the basic 401(k) plan and the wildly popular Roth IRA accounts. With Roth 401(k)s, employees invest taxed dollars …

Look at employees’ duties, not titles, to decide exempt status

12/01/2005

Issue: Many employers believe that anyone with a "manager" title is automatically exempt from overtime. Risk: Making such misclassification mistakes can cost thousands in back pay and penalties, plus a black mark on your record …

Unions: Brace for renewed organizing in wake of union rift

11/01/2005
THE LAW. The 1935 National Labor Relations Act gives employees the right to organize, bargain collectively and strike. In the 1940s, Congress
tried to correct union abuses of power by …

Don’t try to silence employees who compare pay & perks

11/01/2005
Issue: The National Labor Relations Act (NLRA) makes it illegal to punish employees for discussing pay, benefits or working conditions.
Risk: Many employers believe that such NLRA restrictions apply only …

No need to juice up severance package next year

11/01/2005
Nationwide, severance benefits have declined a bit since 2001, according to a survey of 1,030 HR executives by consultant Lee Hecht Harrison. Only one-third of employers changed their severance policies during …

Cut health costs by dangling the right opt-out incentives

11/01/2005
Issue: Employee health premiums have jumped 73 percent since 2000 and are predicted to rise 10 percent more in 2006.
Benefit: Offering employees a lump-sum payout or other incentive to …