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Survey Shows What Employers Are Doing to Reduce Health Care Costs

By Stephen Bruce, PhD, PHR Managing Editor, HR Daily Advisor Just My E-pinion Big surprise—health care costs are going up. In our recent survey, 56% reported annual costs per employee in the $5,000-10,000 range (compared to 47% in last year’s survey), and 18% reported costs of over $10,000 per year (compared to 12 % in […]

DOL Proposes Rule To Reveal 401(K) Plan Fees

The U.S. Department of Labor (DOL) has issued a proposed rule that would force 401(k) plan administrators to report compensation they derive directly and indirectly from their services. In addition, the rule would require plan administrators to disclose in writing potential conflicts of interest to plan fiduciaries, namely employers. The regulation’s main purpose is to […]

Employment Law Tip: Adopting a Safe Driving Program

If you have employees who drive motor vehicles for work purposes, it’s important to take a close look at whether you’re doing all you can to ensure employees drive safely and avoid accidents—and your best bet is to implement a comprehensive driver safety program. According to the U.S. Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA), an […]

Readers Say, ‘No Amnesty!’ (Mostly)

By Stephen D. Bruce, PHR Editor, HR Daily Advisor Just My E-pinion Our recent column featuring a question about amnesty for illegal immigrants generated responses from many readers, most of whom voted (or railed) against amnesty. [Go here to read the original column.] The original questioner/writer had low-level positions to fill. No one with a […]

Certain religious employers get a reprieve from ACA’s contraceptive mandate from Supreme Court

On New Year’s Eve, just hours before the healthcare reform (also known as the Affordable Care Act or ACA) contraceptive mandate requirement was supposed to go into effect, Supreme Court Justice Sonia Sotomayor issued a stay and gave the federal government until Friday to respond to the Court. The stay applies to a limited group […]

Obama Unveils ‘Starter’ Retirement Savings Bond in State of Union Speech

A new type of “starter” retirement savings account for smaller balances that’s backed by the federal government but administered by employers was promised by President Barack Obama in his 2014 State of the Union address on Jan. 28. The president said he would use an Executive Order to direct the U.S. Treasury Department on Jan. […]

News Notes: Ninth Circuit Issues Pair Of Free Speech Rulings

The Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals has ruled that a public employee whose First Amendment rights are violated can sue even if the employee wasn’t terminated or disciplined—if an adverse employment action was taken that was reasonably likely to deter the employee from engaging in constitutionally protected speech. But in another case, the same court gave […]

News Notes: New Disability Bias Law Is Not Retroactive

Changes to California’s disability bias laws, which took effect Jan. 1, 2001, broadened the class of disabled persons to include those with conditions that make a major life activity “difficult.” This new definition of a disability is a more lenient standard than the “substantial limitation” of a major life activity that was previously required under […]