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Lessons from the U.S. government shutdown

By Julia Kennedy It should be a relief to many employers (and employees) that their company has just one board of directors, with no second house to blockade budgets, freeze operating funds, or send large portions of the workforce home. Since an estimated 800,000 U.S. government employees were “furloughed” or required to work without pay […]

Going for Gold

In honor of the Olympics, I have decided to hand out some well deserved medals to our Dunder Mifflin friends for keeping us laughing all these seasons.  I’ll only be handing out gold medals, because that’s the only color on my yogurt lids and I have run out of paperclips for the chains.  Without further […]

401(k) Fee Cases: Hot Area for Litigation

In the past year, litigation filed under the Employee Retirement Income Security Act (ERISA) has exploded, and it’s quickly becoming an ever-present reality for employers. One of the most recent and fastest-growing areas of this litigation involves 401(k) fee cases. Because the lawsuits are very new and still not well publicized, they catch many employers […]

California getting tough law on gender wage gap

Employers in California will have to comply with what’s being called the strongest equal pay law in the nation when it takes effect on January 1, 2016. Governor Edmund G. Brown, Jr., signed the California Fair Pay Act, Senate Bill 358, on October 6. A statement from the governor’s office says current law prohibits employers […]

Health Plans Can Expect Cost Reductions by Bundling Payments, AHRQ Indicates

Health plans and insurers long have been thinking of ways to compensate providers not for volume of care, but for value of care, as an important tool in curbing runaway health inflation. Research over the last two decades recently compiled and reviewed by the Agency of Healthcare Research and Quality shows consistent reductions in what […]

Are noncompete agreements enforceable in California?

In the vast majority of states, noncompete agreements are generally enforceable as long as they’re reasonable in terms of having a genuine business need, an appropriate geographic scope and an appropriate time duration. However, California law differs significantly from most states in this regard.

I Do. You Sue

This week was another repeat of “Niagara,” the hour-long Pam and Jim wedding episode. Doug Hall and Matt Scott did a nice job with this episode here and here offering different takes on employee behavior outside the office. But seriously, does an employer really have to be concerned about what happens at an employee’s wedding? Yup. The […]

Stop! 5 Things to Consider Before You Discipline for Social Media

In a special report from the SHRM 2011 Conference, Steve Bruce Reports on the 5 tips to consider before disciplining an employee for social media usage. Attorneys Chad Richter ad Cynthia Sandoval presented why it’s not always easy to comply when technology changes every day and the laws are archaic. The two Jackson-Lewis attorneys (Richter […]

flu

Time to make sure you’re ready for flu season

Ebola may be grabbing headlines, but it’s the old familiar flu that’s more likely to cause headaches and chills for employers this winter. Flu.gov reports that nearly 111 million workdays are lost as a result of flu each season. That puts the tab at approximately $7 billion per year in sick days and lost productivity.  […]

IRS Formalizes One-year Delay in Reform’s Reporting and Penalty Rules for Employers

An official announcement on transition relief for employers from information reporting requirements under health care reform, as well as on the delay of key provisions of the employer play-or-pay mandate, was issued July 9 in Notice 2013-45 from the U.S. Department of the Treasury and IRS. In unofficial announcements last week on the White House and U.S. […]