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Compensation & Benefits

SECURE 2.0 challenge, part 11: Auto-enrollment 401(k) plans

02/25/2025
The IRS has already released key guidance on SECURE 2.0’s mandate that all 401(k) plans established after Dec. 29, 2022, be auto-enrollment plans, beginning with the 2025 plan year. Proposed regulations now round out and encompass this previous guidance.

Poll: Cost of health care is now biggest economic problem

02/24/2025
Health-care affordability is a “very big problem” according to 67% of surveyed adults.

Global retirement fund assets climb to record $58.5 trillion

02/24/2025
That compares with $55.7 trillion at the end of 2023, when the same study measured a return to growth after the sharp fall in global retirement fund assets in 2022.

Beware potential huge cost of small wage-and-hour mistakes

02/21/2025
When employers don’t understand wage-and-hour laws such as the Fair Labor Standards Act—or worse, when they try to circumvent that law—they can find themselves on the hook for potentially costly penalties. Even relatively small violations can quickly add up.

In the Payroll Mailbag: March ’25

02/19/2025
Vendors relentlessly market their wellness plans to employers, intentionally misrepresenting or not understanding the payroll rules. You’d be wise to not take vendors’ claims at face value. Two questions illustrate.

You can hit a three-point shot every time

02/19/2025
College basketball players (pros, too) strive to hit three-point shots, but they’re rare. You can hit the basket and score three points every time if you take care of these items now.

Please explain: Paycheck etiquette

02/19/2025
Most employees have their pay direct-deposited. This doesn’t matter to the dwindling few who still insist on paper checks. For them, there is little you can do except honor their wishes. But paper checks create unique headaches.

Employee or independent contractor? When Section 530 relief applies

02/19/2025
Section 530 is a significant safe harbor, but its scope is narrow. The key to Section 530 relief is how you treat workers, not what or how you pay them.

Finding the right way to say ‘thank you’ to employees

02/12/2025
With Employee Appreciation Day approaching on March 7, now is the perfect time to plan meaningful ways to recognize your team’s hard work.

Obey state & local wage-and-hour laws in addition to the federal FLSA

02/10/2025
Many states and municipalities have wage-and-hour laws that go beyond the mandates of the federal Fair Labor Standards Act. The FLSA sets the floor for wage-and-hour rules, but states and cities are free to set standards that are more generous to employees.