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Workers’ Compensation: Commissioner Recommends 9.3 Percent Rate Drop
California Insurance Commissioner John Garamendi has recommended a 9.5 percent cut for workers’ compensation insurance pure premium rates for policies incepting on or after Jan. 1, 2007. The recommendation far exceeds the 6.3 percent cut recently recommended by the Workers’ Compensation Insurance Rating Bureau (WCIRB).
Tip Five: Request New Certifications
–Ask for a new certification for the claimed condition for each 12-month period. Go to Tip Six
E-Alerts: Disability Bias: California State Standard for Determining Who’s Disabled Is More Lenient Than the ADA, States Supreme Court Confirms
The California Supreme Court has handed down a new decision making it easier for disabled workers in California to sue their employers for job discrimination. The court ruled that under the state Fair Employment and Housing Act, an individual claiming workplace disability discrimination need only show that their disorder limits a major life activity. In […]
Employee Benefits: New Proposed Rule on Penalty Assessments for Disclosure Violations
The U.S. Department of Labor (DOL) has issued a proposed regulation for assessing fines against plan administrators who fail to disclose certain documents to participants, beneficiaries, and others as required by the Pension Protection Act (PPA), which amended the Employee Retirement Income Security Act.
IRS Ups Deductions for 401(k) and IRA Plans
Starting 2012, savers can sock away $17,000 per year in a 401(k) retirement plan without paying upfront taxes, up from $16,500 in 2010. This increase applies to all 401(k) and 403(b) plans, most 457 plans and the federal government’s Thrift Savings Plan. The last time the IRS raised this elective deferral (contribution) limit was in […]
‘Competition’ from ‘Exchange’ Plans Won’t Incite Employers to ‘Desert’ Health Benefits, Optimists Say
As the government fulfills its promise to create an essential benefit package, employers can be forgiven for thinking the government’s putting a competitor plan out there to lure plan members away from employer-sponsored plans. And it is tempting for them to just say: “Fine! You asked for it; no more funding health benefits!” But paradoxically […]
U.S. Supreme Court to Address Privacy of Text Messages
The U.S. Supreme Court announced on Monday that it would hear arguments in a case involving sexually explicit text messages sent by employees using their employer-provided pagers. The issue for the court is whether the employer violated its employees’ privacy rights by reading the messages. The case involved several police officers with the Ontario, California, […]
Health Insurance: Universal Health Care Coverage in California–What Will It Mean for Your Business?
The new Health Insurance Act of 2003, signed into law by Gov. Davis, requires many California businesses to either provide health coverage to part- and full-time employees or pay a fee into a state health coverage fund. Here’s a summary of the law.
Comment period for rule on federal contractor compensation data extended
The U.S. Department of Labor (DOL) has extended the comment period for a proposed rule that would require federal contractors and subcontractors to submit an annual equal pay report to the Office of Federal Contract Compliance Programs (OFCCP). The 60-day extension means comments must be submitted by January 5, 2015. Interested parties can read and […]