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Bonuses and the Law: What You Need to Know

Bonuses are great motivators, but the legalities must be considered. Here’s what you need to think about. The recent Daily Advisor article on bonuses prompted reader questions on how these extra sums paid to workers, at holiday or other times, are viewed by the government, both in terms of taxes withheld and in light of […]

Are We Saying Bye-Bye to the Holiday Cash Bonus?

Bonus programs are changing. Some offer alternatives to cash, and others tie the cash to preset individual or team goals. If your employees are popping their heads in and out of their doorways this week, glancing down the corridor with an expectant look on their faces, it’s understandable. They’re waiting to catch sight of their […]

On-Call Workers: Does FLSA Make You Pay Them to Wait?

Under the Fair Labor Standards Act (FLSA), you have to pay on-call workers as they wait. Well, sometimes, anyway. Here are the criteria. The week between Christmas and New Year’s is traditionally a “stand-down” time at many businesses. A lot of employees choose to use this week to burn off remaining vacation time rather than […]

My End-of-Year HR Wish List

By BLR Founder and Publisher Bob Brady As Bob Brady (and many of you) will be taking some time off next week, here are his thoughts as one year ends and a new one begins. Bob’s next new column will appear in January. Happy holidays from Bob and all at BLR! I’ve been writing this […]

Immigration: H-2B Visa Cap Reached

U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) has announced that it has received a sufficient number of petitions to reach H-2B cap of 33,000 H-2B workers for the first six months of fiscal year 2007 (FY 2007). The H-2B visa program allows U.S. employers to request foreign workers to fill a one-time, peak load, intermittent, or […]

Health Benefits: New HIPAA Nondiscrimination Rules for Wellness Programs

The U.S. Department of Labor’s Employee Benefits Security Administration (EBSA) has published final rules regarding compliance with the nondiscrimination provisions of the Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act (HIPAA) for wellness programs. The rules will be effective on the first day of the plan year beginning on or after July 1, 2007. For calendar year […]

Winter’s Here! Does FMLA Cover the Flu?

The flu can affect 10 to 20 percent of your workforce. But is it serious enough to warrant FLMA coverage? Here’s the government’s typically fuzzy answer. December 21 marks the first day of winter. That means joyous holidays and great skiing, (snow or water, depending on where you are.) But it also means the return […]

Progressive Discipline: What Supervisors Need to Know

You can’t … and you shouldn’t want to … just terminate problem employees. There’s a better way. Here’s how to train on it. Attendance problems. Poor job performance. Safety violations. Abuse or theft of company property. If you’ve got problems like these at your workplace, you’re far from alone. But more important than knowing that […]