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Federal officials are hoping that federal job-driven training initiatives will equip jobseekers with in-demand skills and then match them with employers looking for skilled labor. “To put people on the path to meaningful careers, we need to provide them with the skills, credentials, and certifications that businesses are looking for right now. We must ask […]
Inspired by the subject, M. Lee Smith’s Twitter master Tony Kessler reviews Twitter for Dummies by Laura Fitton, Michael E. Gruen, and Leslie Poston in rounds of 140 characters or less. 20 Tweets About Twitter For Dummies (For Dummies (Computer/Tech)) For this book review of Twitter for Dummies, here are 20 tweets (max 140 characters […]
Some employers pay little attention to dirty jokes, horseplay and locker room antics among male co-workers. But a new U.S. Supreme Court ruling makes it more important than ever to take a closer look at this kind of behavior. The court found that alleged sexual abuse of a male oil rig worker by his male […]
Wal-Mart Stores Inc., the world’s largest retailer, has kicked off the holiday shopping season with a costly expense. The company has agreed to pay $40 million in the most recent of a string of wage and hour class-action settlements that have challenged the retailer over the past 12 months. Last December, the company agreed to […]
Health plans now may begin applying for the standard health plan identifier required by HIPAA, CMS has announced. The online application was posted March 29 on CMS’ Health Plan and Other Entity Enumeration System (HPOES). Most HIPAA-covered health plans, including employer group health plans, must obtain an HPID by Nov. 5, 2014, except that “small health […]
Employee assistance programs and certain “limited wraparound coverage” would be added to the set of “limited excepted benefits” exempt from most of the requirements of the Affordable Care Act, under proposed rules in the Dec. 24 Federal Register (78 Fed. Reg. 77632). The proposal also would make it easier for dental and vision benefits to […]
BLR’s 2012-2013 Pay Budget Survey results suggest modest increases for another year, with 40% of employers awarding merit increases of up to 2.5%, 36.5% awarding increases of more than 2.5% and 2% awarding increases above 5%. Among employers awarding merit increases in 2012, the most commonly cited increases ranged from 2.5% to 3.0%. This corresponds […]
Eliminating a participant option to switch to a defined benefit plan from a defined contribution offering does not violate ERISA anti-cutback provisions, even if participants’ accrued — but unclaimed — benefits are reduced. The recent ruling in Andersen v. DHL Retirement Pension Plan (Case No. 2:12-cv-00439-MJP WL 5389141, U.S. Dist., Western District of Washington Nov. […]
Reducing the risk of data breaches requires assessing your company’s vulnerabilities, then addressing them with policies, procedures, training and agreements. The media tend to focus on external hackers, but “the real culprits for most our clients are internal,” according to employment law attorney Robert Fitzpatrick. Employee data breaches can be classified into the deliberate and […]
In yesterday’s Advisor, breastfeeding consultant and expert Michele Griswold, MPH, RN, IBCLC, helped employers understand their obligations to breastfeeding mothers. Today, questions about refrigeration and sound issues, plus an introduction to the all-in-one HR website, HR.BLR.com. Griswald who is chair of the Connecticut Breastfeeding Coalition, shared her remarks during an interview with BLR Editor Elaine […]