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Compensation & Benefits

Study cites heartbreak as a reason for workplace absences

03/09/2026
Romantic breakups are quietly affecting workplace productivity, according to a new survey of 1,020 U.S. workers by career platform Zety. One in three employees say they’ve taken sick leave or PTO to recover from a breakup.

Caregiver benefits gain ground as employees juggle work and aging parents

03/09/2026
Millions of employees now log off from full workdays only to begin hours of unpaid caregiving at home, whether for young children or aging parents. As the U.S. population ages, that dual role has pushed more employers to expand paid leave and caregiver support.

What HR professionals need to know from Trump’s 2026 State of the Union

03/02/2026
President Donald Trump’s 2026 State of the Union address covered health-care costs, retirement savings, workplace tax relief and border enforcement.

Congress to consider paid leave

03/02/2026
Will this be the year that a federal law will require employers to provide some form of paid leave for workers? It’s too early to tell for certain, but there’s an increasing chance it might happen during the off-year midterm elections as pressure mounts on so-called affordability issues.

Should you add an emergency 401(k) withdrawal benefit?

03/02/2026
Just 4% of employers offering 401(k) plans have amended them to allow the new $1,000 emergency withdrawals authorized under SECURE 2.0, according to financial services firm Vanguard.

DOL announces proposed final independent contractor rule

03/02/2026
To make classification easier and better understood by businesses and the workers they seek to employ or contract with, the proposed rule uses a single definition of who is an employee under other federal laws.

Confused by fair workweek and scheduling laws? You’re not alone

02/23/2026
States like Oregon and New York, and major cities across the country, have stepped in, telling employers that workers are entitled to predictable schedules so they can plan for child care, second jobs, education and time away. While that’s great for workers, the patchwork of laws and rules can complicate management, especially for employers with operations across multiple jurisdictions.

High job satisfaction, low engagement: HR’s uncomfortable contradiction

02/23/2026
A new survey from the Employee Benefit Research Institute and Greenwald Research paints a striking picture of the American workforce in 2025. Employees who broadly value their jobs and benefits packages remain stubbornly disengaged, financially stressed and skeptical about what the future holds.

Employers double down on leave benefits

02/17/2026
Leave benefits are no longer treated as a static policy line item. New data from the 2025 Absence, Disability and Medical Leave Survey from global advisory firm WTW shows employers actively expanding time-away programs as part of broader efforts to improve the employee experience and compete for talent.

People metrics outlast DEI in executive pay design

02/09/2026
A new global study finds that while environmental, social and governance language and priorities keep shifting, human capital remains the most common non-financial factor tied to executive pay, even as DEI measures lose ground in the U.S.