• The HR Specialist - Print Newsletter
  • HR Specialist: Employment Law
  • The HR Weekly

Insurance

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 …

Are we liable for a car accident our employee had on the way to a meeting?

02/01/2008
Q. If an employee is involved in a “fender bender” en route to a work-related meeting in his or her personal vehicle, is the employer liable?

Can you force staff to participate in wellness programs?

02/01/2008

Your organization, like many, may have embraced a wellness program to help employees quit smoking, lose weight, exercise more or participate in screenings for high blood pressure or cholesterol. You may have even thought about requiring employees to participate. But that’s a controversial practice that is likely to step on laws ranging from HIPAA to the ADA …

Got mental health benefits? Spread the word

02/01/2008

According to the nonprofit Partnership for Workplace Mental Health, more than 40% of employees who work for organizations with mental health benefits don’t know anything about them. Yet they’re keenly aware when workplace stress takes its toll on their productivity and happiness …

When is retirement not retirement? When the retiree is on workers’ comp

02/01/2008

No doubt about it, the workers’ compensation system is a headache for employers. It’s full of frustrations and surprises. Consider, for example, the fairly common scenario of a retired employee receiving workers’ comp payments. Seems like retiring would end workers’ compensation payments, right? Not necessarily, as the following case illustrates …

Ohio partners with IRS on employment tax enforcement

02/01/2008

Ohio is one of 29 states that have signed memoranda of understanding with the IRS to share enforcement information on employment tax collection matters. The move is part of the IRS’ Questionable Employment Tax Practices (QETP) initiative …

‘Ad hoc’ leave benefits are a discrimination trap

02/01/2008

Sometimes, employers may want to maintain some flexibility to handle unique leave situations. For example, what would your organization do if a valued, loyal and long-term employee developed a terminal disease? Would you allow him a “leave of absence” with continued insurance coverage until his death to save his family from financial ruin? You can, if you are careful about exactly how you go about it …