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Compensation & Benefits

10 ways to perk up open enrollment season

10/10/2011

The double-whammy of incessant media focus on health care reform, plus employees’ acute awareness of rising health care premiums, means they’re paying attention to their benefits in a way that most never did before. You can capitalize on this trend by using this open enrollment season to make an extra effort to educate workers about their health benefits and help them decide which plan options work best for them.

Holiday sampler: 4 treats to make HR’s season bright

10/08/2011
The holidays are special, but they’re also an HR headache. Our early gift to you: Advice on everything from planning seasonal celebrations to handling end-of-year scheduling hassles.

Coming in 2012: Revamped health plan summaries

10/07/2011
A common gripe among employees is that they don’t understand their health care plans. As a result, they end up making mistakes and choosing plans that don’t meet their health care needs or budgets. The federal government aims to diminish confusion by changing the way employers explain health care plans to employees.

Utah turns out the lights on 4-day workweek

10/06/2011
In 2008, Utah launched a “4/10” workweek for state workers—10-hour days from Monday through Thursday—in a bid to cut costs and conserve energy. But the state scrapped its grand experiment last month, saying it wasn’t saving as much as expected.

Supreme Court asked to fast-track decision on health reform law

10/04/2011
The Obama administration has asked the U.S. Supreme Court to rule on the constitutionality of the Affordable Care Act health care reform law—the administration’s hallmark domestic legislative achievement—paving the way for a fast-tracked decision that, regardless of which way it goes, will affect HR professionals for years to come.

Employer-provided cell phones now tax free

10/04/2011
Employer-provided cell phones are no longer a taxable fringe benefit. That means employees don’t have to pay federal income tax on any personal use of their phones—and you can quit keeping track of employees’ personal-use minutes. Read the new IRS guidance here.

Is this worker entitled to FMLA leave? She was out for months on workers’ comp

10/04/2011
Q. One of our employees missed several months of work last year because of a workers’ compensation qualifying injury. She has now requested leave under the FMLA. Do we have to grant this request for leave?

Can bonuses affect overtime calculations?

10/04/2011
Q. We wish to offer a variety of incentive bonuses to hourly workers in an attempt to increase business and productivity. Will these bonuses affect the employees’ “regular rate” under the Fair Labor Standards Act FLSA for purposes of calculating overtime?

How can we protect against subsequent lawsuits following on-the-job injuries?

10/04/2011
Q. My company is a nonsubscriber under the Texas Workers’ Compensation Act and has its own on-the-job employee injury benefit plan. Is there any way to increase the likelihood that employees who receive benefits under the plan will not be able to later sue us to recover damages related to their injuries?

Beware seeking exemptions under Motor Carrier Act

10/04/2011
Some employers think they can classify truck drivers as exempt under the Fair Labor Standards Act by relying on the federal Motor Car­rier Act. But that’s tricky. To be covered by the MCA, the drivers must cross state lines while doing their jobs.