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Compensation & Benefits

Contractor paying back wages to Sandy cleanup employees

09/06/2013
InStar Services Group has agreed to pay $65,000 in back wages to more than 100 employees who did not receive the pay they were promised for cleaning up after Superstorm Sandy.

Bill would provide leave for domestic abuse victims

09/06/2013
A bill before the New York Legislature would require employers to provide domestic or sexual abuse victims up to 90 days per year of unpaid leave to deal with the effects of the abuse.

Do you qualify for ACA’s small business tax credits?

09/06/2013
Starting in 2014, small businesses can earn a significant tax break if they provide health insurance benefits to their employees. To qualify, a small business must meet three criteria:

UPS to drop spouse health insurance, blames ACA

09/05/2013
UPS will stop offering health insurance to many employees’ spouses next year, a move the company said was prompted by fears that the Affordable Care Act won’t be affordable after all.

354 times more

09/05/2013
Compared to the average worker, that’s how much more the CEOs of America’s largest companies earned last year, according to the AFL-CIO.

4 tips for talking to employees about rising health benefits costs

09/04/2013
If employees will have to bear a larger share of health benefits in your next plan year—whether in higher premiums, deductibles or copays—you can expect to get an earful during your upcoming open enrollment period. Here are four ways to prepare employees for changes and—perhaps—soften the sting:

Does telecommuting affect nonexempt status?

09/03/2013
Q. We’ve allowed employees to work from home on occasion and are considering making it an option for some positions. Does exempt/nonexempt status matter when it comes to employees working from home on a permanent basis?

Isn’t it illegal to withhold pay as punishment?

09/03/2013
Q. When an employee fails to clock in or out properly, our payroll department withholds that day’s pay until the next pay period as a form of employee discipline. My understanding is that an employer can’t hold back portions of pay as punishment. Am I right?

When does a voluntary wellness program become involuntary?

09/03/2013
At what point is the financial incentive to participate in a wellness program or the penalty for nonparticipation so great as to render it involuntary? Per­­haps more to the point, how does the EEOC define that tipping point?

Wilkes-Barre McDonald’s faces debit card suit

09/03/2013
A former McDonald’s employee is suing a franchise owner, arguing that paying her via a payroll card—with all its attendant fees—meant she earned less than the minimum wage.