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News Notes: New IRS Rules Make Retirement Plan More Employer Friendly

Rigid administrative requirements make many employers hesitate to participate in so-called 401(k) safe-harbor plans. But these programs can prove valuable because they permit you to avoid costly discrimination testing requirements by following a specific formula for contributions. Now the IRS has issued new rules that add some flexibility. Significant changes include revising the way matching […]

News Notes: Employee Pays Big To Settle Overtime And Psychological Testing Lawsuits

Rent-A-Center, a rent-to-own furniture chain, will pay $3 million to settle a class action lawsuit alleging that assistant managers in California were improperly classified as exempt from overtime because they only occasionally performed managerial duties. And in a separate lawsuit, about 1,200 California applicants and employees will share in a $2.1 million settlement of claims […]

Employer Family Health Premiums Rose 4% in 2015

Single and family premiums for employer-sponsored health insurance rose an average of 4% in 2015, according to the recently released Kaiser Family Foundation/Health Research & Educational Trust (HRET) 2015 Employer Health Benefits Survey.

Employment Law Tip: Get Ready to Post Cal-OSHA 300A Form

Beginning February 1 and through April 30, 2006, you’re required to post the Cal-OSHA Form 300A annual summary log of injuries and illnesses that occurred in 2005. Even if you had no recordable injuries or illnesses in 2005, you must still post a summary with zeros in the total line. This posting requirement applies to […]

Imminent Canadian federal election unlikely to affect labor law

by Karen Sargeant Americans are not the only ones going to the polls for a federal election this year. Canadians are on their way, too. Despite a planned federal election for October 2009, the Prime Minister just called a federal election, to take place on October 14, 2008. So how would this election affect labor […]

Hot List: New York Times Bestselling Paperback Business Books

The following is a list of the bestselling paperback business books as ranked by the New York Times on November 24. 1. The Forgotten Man: A New History of the Great Depression by Amity Shales. A reinterpretation of the New Deal and the Great Depres­sion. 2. The Shock Doctrine: The Rise of Disaster Capitalism by […]

NLRB coming after employer’s blog/internet policy

The National Labor Relations Board (NLRB) has filed a complaint against a Connecticut company, claiming that it illegally fired an employee for comments she made on Facebook. The complaint also alleges that the employer maintained an overly broad blogging and internet posting policy.

Federal Contracts: OFCCP Proposes To End Some On-Site Compliance Visits

The Labor Department’s Office of Federal Contract Compliance Programs is proposing to end a requirement for visits to the worksites of federal contractors to make limited “compliance checks.” This type of review issued to see if the contractor has maintained proper records and has developed an affirmative action plan. To allow greater flexibility, contractors could […]

Senate Finance Committee’s Proposals to Expand Health Care, Reduce Costs, and Pay for It All

Previously, we discussed three potential option papers the Senate Finance Committee released in April and May which outline major health care reform issues and approaches to resolving them. This week, we will look at the specifics of each of the three papers and what they mean for employers. Since the papers were released, the Congressional […]

Deferral Rates Beat Asset Allocation, Fund Choice for Retirement Goals

Plan sponsors and participants both want to ensure better retirement savings but they often wonder which factor in the process matters most. A study from Putnam Institute suggests sticking with the obvious: The higher the deferral rate during an employee’s working life, the greater the long-term returns. Despite intense focus on fund performance in the […]