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By Jim Stanley, President, FDRsafety Big fines make big news as was evident when OSHA recently proposed $16.6 million in penalties in a deadly explosion at a Kleen Energy Systems construction site in Connecticut. But day-in, day-out announcements of OSHA fines may be just as significant because they illustrate the depth of the agency’s enforcement […]
While some HR departments got through the past year relatively unscathed, many have had to conduct layoffs, keep employees happy when they haven’t had a raise in more than a year, and all while their own departments and budgets have been slashed. Each year, HRhero asks its readers about their HR departments and how they […]
Tomorrow, it will be six months since President Barack Obama signed health care reform into law. However, September 23 is not only health care reform’s six-month anniversary but also the day several significant provisions under the health care reform package (the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act and the Health Care and Education Affordability Reconciliation […]
This morning, Secretary of Labor Hilda Solis hosted a live webcast promoting the passage of and fielding audience questions about the Paycheck Fairness Act (PFA). The webcast, which featured Lilly Ledbetter as cohost, emphasized the current administration’s efforts to eliminate wage discrimination while promoting wage transparency in the workplace, noting that passage of the PFA […]
The U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) recently announced that almost 2,000 employers were accepted into the Early Retiree Reinsurance Program created by the health care reform legislation. These employers will start receiving reimbursements for employee claims from the program this fall. The approved applicants represent the broad spectrum of the economy, including […]
by Daniel C. Stockford The long-running saga of sexual harassment in the City of Westbrook Fire Department has come to an end with large settlement payments to two female firefighters. Under the settlement agreement, firefighter Kathy Rogers is set to receive about $480,000, while her colleague, Lisa Theberge, will receive about $370,000. Rogers and Theberge […]
On September 3, 2010, the IRS issued guidance addressing the changes made by the health care reform package (the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act and the Health Care and Education Affordability Reconciliation Act of 2010) to the use of certain health care accounts. More specifically, effective in 2011, the health care reform legislation limits […]
Just because a disaster affects your organization doesn’t mean your legal obligations in the workplace are put on hold. With (1) Hurricane Earl barreling toward the East Coast and at least two more hurricanes behind it, (2) another oil rig accident in the Gulf of Mexico, and (3) a terrible hostage situation at the Discovery […]
by Susan G. Fentin Governor Deval Patrick recently signed the Massachusetts Economic Development Bill into law. The law, which is retroactively effective to August 1, includes some well-known provisions that authorize a new state sales tax holiday and grant tax breaks for certain businesses. The bill, however, also contains several lesser-known provisions, including one that […]
By Nancy Williams Last April, the Ninth U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals gave the green light to a nationwide sex discrimination class action against Wal-Mart Stores, Inc., the nation’s largest employer. Unwilling to permit the suit to proceed without a further challenge, Wal-Mart has now petitioned the U.S. Supreme Court to revisit the class certification […]