If employee benefits can be broken down to their absolute cost--in other words, if 1+1 always = 2--then companies can eliminate benefits altogether, simply increasing pay to offset the loss. It would be a simple and transparent solution. If that concept is making your hair stand on end, it is likely that you understand that more is at stake.
J. Mark Iwry of The Brookings Institution likes the idea of personal freedom offered by the 401(k) plan. At the same time, he believes that many people faced with a large account balance at retirement are taking the wrong course when they choose to take their entire account balance in a lump-sum distribution. The problem, he says, is for an individual to determine without guidance how much of the balance can be used each year with a reasonable expectation that the money will last a lifetime.
Recently, the Supreme Court, in a 5-4 decision, reversed the 6th Circuit's holding that a state's disability retirement benefits plan violated the Age Discrimination in Employment Act (ADEA) . The case serves as an example of how employers with even well-intentioned benefit plans run the risk of being accused of violating ADEA.
As you struggle to stay ahead of medical care cost increases, providing medical benefits for your retirees may not be at the top of your priority list. Yet for some companies, where promises have been made to particular groups of employees, retiree medical may be something that you are contractually obligated to provide. Or maybe your corporate culture demands that you help employees as much as you can during their retirement years. Either way, funding retiree medical benefits as economically and advantageously as possible may be critical to your ongoing success.
While a 70+-hour work week may be less common than it once was, the legal profession is intense and demanding. Women (and men) who are in the early stages of climbing the ladder in their chosen field are also often at the point in life when they want to start a family. These two aspirations collide, and women may decide to quit the field entirely. What can law firms do to address these issues?
Ingrid Provencher took a hard look at the demographics in her area. As Human Resources director at Central Florida Health Alliance (CFHA), it is her responsibility to make sure the hospitals making up the alliance are well-staffed. With that in mind, she asked herself, "What do people in this area want and need from an employer?"
The U.S. Department of Labor recently issued new regulations aimed at bringing transparency to employer-sponsored benefit plans. Though much of the debate over enhanced fee disclosure has revolved around the impact new rules will have on the service providers who must do the disclosing, plan sponsors have also recognized that, if finalized without change, these proposed rules will affect them too.
Since they came screaming onto the scene in the years immediately following World War II, Baby Boomers have changed a lot of things. Some might even say they've changed everything. Now, as they reach that milestone commonly known as retirement, the Baby Boom generation continues its sweep across social conventions. Retirement, as our parents knew it, may soon cease to exist.
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.
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.
