Practical HR Tips, News & Advice. Updated Daily.
An increasing number of employers are examining providing a low-benefits health plan that covers only preventive health services but not high-price major medical claims. Offering this type of low cost or “skinny” plan is allowed under the health reform law. The question is: Will skinny plans trigger a large-employer exodus to de minimis coverage, and if so, […]
by Gesina M. Seiler The implementation of the Affordable Care Act’s (ACA) tax credit for employers with fewer than 25 employees and the looming requirement that large employers (those with 50 or more full-time-equivalent (FTE) employees) provide affordable health insurance to their full-time employees or pay a penalty have resulted in some employers trying to […]
A much-appreciated session at BLR’s recent Advanced Employment Issues Symposium was a panel presentation during which panelists offered quick, real-world-tested ideas for attracting, engaging and retaining employees. The original talk was called “30 Ideas in 30 Minutes,” but we’ve culled the best fifteen ideas for our readers. The panelists were: Andrew Botwin, head of Human […]
by Tom Daniel When voters in Anchorage go to the polls in November, they will decide the fate of a local ordinance that reins in the collective bargaining rights of municipal employees. A referendum to repeal the local ordinance known as the Responsible Labor Act will be part of the November 4 ballot. The ordinance, […]
By Ruth Berkowitz, VP at Liazon Corporation
Maybe David Siegel, billionaire president of Westgate Resorts, needed to read BLR’s special report on political activity in the workplace, 2012 Election Issues for Employers. If he had, he probably wouldn’t have written the e-mail letter where he tells employees they will lose their jobs if Obama is reelected. No, the letter is not fake; Siegel […]
Freelancers now make up 35% of the U.S. workforce, and their numbers are anticipated to rise over the next few years. And more and more companies are beginning to rely on their expertise and labor.
As employers continue to ramp up their use of wellness incentives, employee resistance also is on the rise, recent studies suggest. While wellness programs in general enjoy broad public support (76 percent of respondents), a majority (62 percent) oppose requiring employees to pay more for health coverage if they do not participate, according to a […]
Wells Fargo & Co. has agreed to pay $12.8 million to settle a class action lawsuit charging that the bank improperly classified certain business-systems employees in California and other states as exempt from overtime, in violation of the federal Fair Labor Standards Act. The suit, filed in federal court in San Francisco, alleged that Wells […]
An old maxim says “never talk about religion or politics,” but how realistic (or even desirable) is that advice? And as the worlds of religion and politics collide, talk of one often crosses the line into speech about the other. While employers don’t want to trample on anyone’s right of free speech, they also can’t […]