Recruiting Top Talent Requires a Top Relocation Package
December 28, 2007—With a waning housing market and increasing transportation costs, relocation packages are more important than ever. After all, the first factor a prospective employee or transferee faces when considering a job change is how he or she will afford to move. This means that companies must examine and revamp their relocation policies as a way to help seal the deal.
Predicting the Future of Retiree Health Care
December 17, 2007—Healthcare costs for active and retired populations now exceed 8% of payroll. In the 1990s, the Financial Accounting Standards (FAS) Board enacted its rule #106, formalizing the accounting for retiree medical costs and creating unfunded liabilities for employers. Before FAS 106, 66% of firms with more than 200 workers sponsored retiree health care. That figure in 2007 was 33%. So where is retiree health care headed next?
Workforce Management Systems Reduce Payroll Costs
December 10, 2007—All businesses experience variations in the workload, but none so much as retail. If you're in the retail business, you know the frustration: you prepare for a busy time by bringing in extra staff, but shoppers fail to show up. Or, you expect a slow Sunday afternoon but soon have irritated customers waiting in long lines for service because you haven't brought in enough help. Both situations affect the bottom line--you're either spending too much on payroll, or you're losing sales. What if you could avoid all that, by simply managing your workforce better?
Health Insurance Continuation/COBRA—Feature Articles—Federal
Does COBRA Apply to You?
November 30, 2007—Under COBRA's "small employer" exception, an employer's group health plan is required to comply with COBRA if the employer "normally" employed 20 or more employees in the previous calendar year. But what does "normally" mean? Which employees count? How is a part-time employee counted?
5 Simple Steps to Controlling Workers' Compensation Costs
November 23, 2007—Doug McCoy, a recognized expert in workers' compensation and the author of several manuals providing practical advice for employers, offers his five steps for controlling workers' comp costs.
Corporate Lactation Programs: Cost Effective, Gaining Popularity
November 16, 2007—According to a new survey, most of Working Mother's "100 Best Companies for Working Moms" now consider a corporate lactation program essential for their employees. And while this is good news for babies, the companies also benefit.
Pay Practices Converge in Private, Public Companies
November 09, 2007—The fight for top executive talent sometimes feels like choosing up sides in the school yard: the big boys (public companies) always seem to beat out their smaller counterparts (privately held firms). When the dust settles, the private companies are left standing at the curb while the big kids take the cream of the crop and go off to play. Steven Slutsky, total compensation director for PricewaterhouseCoopers' Private Company Services practice, explains how this perception is changing--and why change was inevitable.
What Lies Ahead in Employee Benefits for 2008?
November 06, 2007—Employee benefits, and particularly health care, is a primary concern of American workers. As medical costs continue climbing, the issue will only become more critical for businesses of all sizes. David A. Proctor, president of Proctor & Company, an employee benefits firm, offers an assessment of what companies can look forward to in 2008.
Hearing Health Leads to Greater Productivity
October 30, 2007—The third most common chronic disorder in the United States is affecting your employees. According to the National Institutes of Health, hearing loss affects twice the number of Americans who suffer from vision loss; that?s more than 30 million people, 20 million of whom are in the workforce.
Health Insurance Continuation/COBRA—Feature Articles—Federal
COBRA Alternatives Worth a Look
October 29, 2007—When an employee leaves the company, employers routinely offer him or her continuation of health insurance coverage through the Consolidated Omnibus Budget Reconciliation Act (COBRA), but the cost of that coverage can be staggering. While not for everyone, short-term insurance policies can benefit people who would otherwise only have considered COBRA.
