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Compensation & Benefits

Perk up dull HR memos by spelling out personal benefit

08/01/2005
Believe it or not, your ho-hum HR memos, if written in the right way, can serve as a retention vehicle, says Margaret Morford, president of consulting firm theHRedge. One employer customized …

Stay distant from voluntary-benefits vendors

08/01/2005
There are many upsides to offering voluntary benefits such as long-term care insurance, prepaid legal services and pet insurance. However, if you link such programs too closely with your regular benefit plan, your organization could incur liability. Here are three ways to keep your distance.

Case studies in ‘strategic praising’: 6 steps to success

08/01/2005
Issue: How to use rewards and recognition in the best (and most cost-efficient) way to motivate employees.
Benefits: By making recognition a companywide effort, you remove a burden from you …

HIPAA Rules Aren’t Just For Doctors and Hospitals

08/01/2005

Q. I’d like to know if our company needs something like a HIPAA form for employees to sign when we release personal information to others. Is HIPAA only for the medical field? —B.B., New York

Don’t use employee-leasing tactic to avoid UI taxes

08/01/2005
In recent years, more companies have moved their employees to professional employment organizations (PEOs) and then leased the employees back from the PEO. But states are cracking down on employers who …

USERRA allows only one reinstatement, not two

08/01/2005
The federal Uniform Services Employment and Reemployment Rights Act (USERRA) says that if an employee’s military-related absences last less than five years, you must reinstate the employee to his or her …

Calling in ‘sick’ won’t trigger FMLA; employee must give details

08/01/2005
What do you do with employees who call in sick with vague excuses, aches and pains and other less-than-convincing reasons? Can you discipline those people for unexcused absences without fearing that …

Intermittent FMLA leave may cause inconvenience

08/01/2005

Q. We have an employee on intermittent FMLA leave who periodically faints at work, is carried away in an ambulance, is off for a few days and then returns. Her position is critical. Do we have to continue with these absences? —R.R., Massachusetts

Always verify FMLA eligibility before approving leave

08/01/2005
Issue: Courts won’t look kindly on employers that OK an employee’s FMLA leave but then change their minds.
Risk: In such cases, courts could grant FMLA rights even if the …

Retain benefit eligibility after FMLA leave

08/01/2005

Q. We understand that employees on FMLA leave don’t lose investment toward retirement plans. Leave time is counted as work time. But our policy says that if employees are out for more than 30 days, their anniversary dates will change. Accrued paid-time off and vacation time will be based on the new anniversary date. Can we do this? —K.A., Connecticut