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More Bad News for Wal-Mart in Canada

by Dominique Launay Five weeks ago, we told you about an unfair labor practice complaint against Wal-Mart in Saskatchewan, arising out of its closure of a store in Jonquiere, Quebec. Well, it seems that Saskatchewan isn’t the only province in which Wal-Mart is being dealt blows. The Quebec Labor Relations Board  has also recently ruled […]

‘Tis the Season to Hire Seasonal Workers

It’s easy (and common) for retailers to hire temporary seasonal workers to help handle the rush of holiday business. But however temporary their employment might be, they’re still employees with all the potential for employer liability that status entails. It’s important to bear that in mind. Audit your hiring policies and practices with the Employment […]

DOL Clarifies E-Delivery of Participant Fee Disclosures

It’s important to disclose information through ERISA-required documents properly: it can be a plan administrator’s last line of defense if participants allege that they suffered losses because they didn’t know their rights or important plan terms. That obligation has  grown in response to the financial scandals of the last decade (Enron, WorldCom, mortgage-leveraged bonds, etc.). […]

Supreme Court Makes Pivotal ADEA Decision

By Natalie Ramsey In a 5-4 decision, the U.S. Supreme Court recently rejected the mixed-motive framework for disparate treatment claims filed under the Age Discrimination in Employment Act (ADEA). In reaching this pivotal decision, the Court made it clear that the analysis for age discrimination isn’t subject to the one-size-fits-all mixed-motive analysis applied in Title […]

Unions, Politics, and Money: Campaign 2008

In a democracy, social issues regularly become political issues, and solutions (including compromises) are worked out through public elections. Since employers and unions are frequently on opposite sides of key issues, both attempt to involve the public and spend extensively to support their respective positions or solutions. Both the short- and long-term ramifications of this […]

Withholding judgment on IRS amnesty program

by Michael E. Barnsback For the past couple of years, the IRS has focused its enforcement efforts on the misclassification of independent contractors. Many employers improperly classify workers as independent contractors to avoid paying FICA taxes and providing benefits. Others make the mistake simply because they don’t understand the differences between the two classifications. Regardless, […]

IRS Freezes New DB Lump-sum Distributions for Retirees, Beneficiaries

IRS on July 9 announced that it intends to amend regulations to prohibit defined benefit retirement plans from replacing retiree benefits being paid through joint and survivor, single-life or other annuity benefits with lump-sum distributions or other accelerated payments. The change is effective immediately, IRS said. Notice 2015-49 will amend IRS required minimum distribution regulations […]

Human trafficking prevention and awareness law on the horizon

by Elizabeth B. Bradley Do you know what lurks in your supply chain? Would you sign a certification subject to the penalties of perjury stating there is no human-trafficking-related activity anywhere in your company’s supply chain? For all federal contractors, the answer must already be “yes.” But new bills pending before Congress will bring these […]

Stereotypes Are Alive and Well

We are beyond the day when an employer could evaluate employees by assuming or insisting that they matched the stereotypes associated with their group. — U.S. Supreme Court Price Waterhouse Facts Brenna Lewis started working for Heartland Inns, a small hotel chain, in July 2005. She mainly worked as a night-shift auditor, and in the […]