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Got Problems? Who Doesn’t?

An EAP is a great resource for employees to seek help with personal concerns. From anxiety and emotional distress to financial difficulties and relationship concerns, an EAP is here to help. The cost of an EAP for employers is minimal however; the benefits to both the employer and employees can be life changing.

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So you listened to your friends and advisors and finally established your company’s presence on Facebook, LinkedIn and Twitter.  Now you can control your company’s web presence, right?

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Well, that’s a relief.  The employer mandate for 100+ employee companies has been pushed back to 2015 and 50+ employee companies to 2016. No worries until then, right?

Unless you’re the guy who keeps kicking the can down the road hoping that something changes, you’re wrong. There’s a pretty good business book written by Rick Page called Hope is not a Strategy. I’m amazed at how many savvy business owners seem to think that it can be.

The simple truth of the matter is that the Affordable Care Act has changed everything you know or have ever known about health insurance. In fact, it’s completely changed the game. If you think you’ve protected yourself by getting grandfathered in, you’re just going to trip over that same can later.

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According to a recent article in Bloomberg’s Business News, HR departments are going to become increasingly busy over the next 12 to 18 months.  Why?  Because of a recent memorandum that was issued by the White House to the Department of Labor to “modernize and streamline overtime regulations and make more workers eligible under federal law.”

Burning the midnight oil might be more valuable for exempt employees in the near future.

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True or false: You can’t do anything to manage your company’s unemployment tax rates?

If you answered true, you answered incorrectly. But take heart because:

1. Many other business owners would have also answered “true”
2. There is actually a lot you can do to manage unemployment tax rates

Ahhhh---feel the ocean breeze blowing through your hair, your toes digging into the sand, and the cool drink in your hand. Your computer is nowhere in sight. That’s right, you’re on vacation!

As an employee, taking time off is important. It keeps you focused, gives you a break and lets you spend some quality time with your family or friends. As a company, administering a paid time off (PTO) policy is also important, and much less relaxing than taking the time off. 

With traditional PTO and sick time plans, your company is trying define and limit the liability of paying an employee for time they didn’t work. Sounds simple. 

But how do you keep track of it all? Without a streamlined system it can be easy to miscalculate PTO for your employees. Miscalculations mean lost money for your company. According to a 2010 survey by Kronos conducted with Mercer, poorly planned absences cost U.S. organizations over 8% of their payroll each year.

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What would you say if a prospective employer offered you perks like free catered meals, free fitness classes, tuition reimbursement, unlimited vacation days, and-- for the expectant parents out there-- four months of paid parental leave? 

You might be tempted to rip the contract out of his or her hand and sign it on the spot—right?

Well, we didn’t make those up. Practical benefits like these are real, and some are being implemented at companies that constantly rank at the top of employee satisfaction lists.

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There are a lot of factors that go into determining what your business’s workers’ compensation rates will be. But the simple truth is this: the more claims your employees file, the higher your rate will be.

Fortunately, there are two strategies you can follow that will limit the amount of time and money you spend dealing with workers’ compensation claims.

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You’re looking to hire a new candidate or thinking about promoting an employee from within your company.

But before you take a step further you want to run a background check. What are the legal requirements and information you need to be aware of as an employer before you start this process? We do our best to give you an overview on the process below.

Information requested for a background check depends on the employer and the job involved. For some jobs, a state or federal law requires the employer to conduct a background check. Working with children, the elderly, or people with disabilities are examples of jobs that require a criminal background check. 

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Imagine you’re the CEO of a company with 49 employees. You’re currently covered through a fully insured health plan, but are considering switching to a self-insured group plan due to the potential premium increases resulting from the Affordable Care Act.  

All of the companies you know with self-funded plans are larger companies (250+employees), so you aren’t sure if this is the right solution for you. You’re also concerned that since you would pay self-insurance claims directly, your company could be liable for a major claim if an employee has a serious health issue. 

What do you think - what would you do in this situation? Before you make a decision, consider the following key points. 

What happens when you have a major claim on a self-insured policy?

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