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  • As the third quarter comes to an end, that means it’s time to start thinking about open enrollment. Open enrollment is the annual period when individuals can begin enrolling in a health insurance plan for the upcoming calendar year. Your employees may choose to add or drop health insurance, allowing them to make changes to their coverage. As a small business owner, this time of year can become overwhelming. Open enrollment for 2023 runs from November 1st, 2022, to January 15th, 2023.

    Due to recent changes, signing up for benefit plans during the open enrollment period has transitioned into a more digitalized process. Not only does this help you as an employer, but it also streamlines the process, making it less stressful for your employees. As open enrollment approaches, it’s crucial to increase engagement from year to year for your program to be successful.

    Raising Engagement During Open Enrollment

    Make an impact with your employees during the open enrollment period and drive engagement to an all-time high with the following advice:

    • Clearly communicate dates to your employees
    • Create engaging benefit planning meetings for all employees
    • Ask your employees what they want
    • Provide simple and engaging resources
    • Continue the benefit conversation
    • Put emphasis on creating goals and tracking progress

    Understanding what your employees want and need is the key to successful open enrollment. By taking a continuous and proactive approach throughout the year, you can ensure that your employees know the resources and support available.

    Stress No More

    Benefits are complex making it easy for employees to become overwhelmed by the information they need to make informed decisions. When you partner with GMS, we take on the burdens of the open enrollment period so you can focus on other aspects of your business. Your designated benefits account manager works diligently with you and your employees to provide the best benefit plans while also educating your employees. You gain access to a team of experts who can train employees on how their plan works and answer difficult coverage questions. We get it. Health insurance is complicated. Let us provide guidance on how to utilize your plans best, maintain compliance, and stay on top of the Affordable Care Act regulations. Contact us today.

  • In the wake of the pandemic, employees’ views of work-life balance have significantly changed. As a result, the term “quiet quitting” was established. While there is not one specific definition, the term rejects the notion that employees should go beyond their job description without additional benefits.

    According to NPR, “supporters argue that quiet quitting is a way to safeguard your mental health, prioritize your family, friends, and passions, and avoid burnout.” However, the term has nothing to do with quitting, completing the bare minimum, or slacking at work. When it comes to quiet quitting, Americans are working to integrate their personal lives with their work lives.

    How It Works

    According to Forbes, the following are attributes of quiet quitting:

    • Showing up to work on time, no earlier
    • Taking a lunch break, not eating at their desk
    • Leaving on time
    • Turning off emails and calls outside of work hours
    • No extra activities
    • Not volunteering for work events
    • Helping eas other’s workloads

    Is It Effective?

    Despite the popularity of the quiet quitting trend, disengaging entirely from the workplace may not be the best option. As an employer, begin taking note of situations when employees become distant. If you notice that an employee is less driven when completing everyday tasks, communicate with them. By communicating with your employees, you can establish a plan that best works to suit their needs.

    Many believe that by setting boundaries at work, they are less likely to experience burnout. However, addressing the challenges head-on can help employers regain control. If the employee is not completing their everyday tasks, it might be time to part ways.

    GMS’ Support

    When you partner with GMS (Group Management Services), you gain immediate access to an HR Account Manager. This support can guide you in the best way to manage a disengaged employee, who may be taking part in the phenomenon of quiet quitting. Communication is key to managing quiet quitting. Employees want to know their efforts are being recognized. Contact GMS today to learn more.

  • Assembly Bill (AB) 152 would extend California’s COVID-19 supplemental paid sick leave (SPSL) to December 31st, 2022. The California SPSL law is set to expire on September 30th, 2022, if Governor Gavin Newsom does not sign the bill. The law provides qualified full-time California employees with up to 80 hours of SPSL when they cannot work for the following reasons related to COVID-19:

    You are caring for yourself:

    • Subject to a quarantine or isolation period
    • Advised by a healthcare provider to quarantine
    • Experiencing COVID-19-related symptoms and seeking a medical diagnosis

    You are caring for a family member:

    • Child whose school or place of care is closed or otherwise unavailable for reasons related to COVID-19 on the premises
    • A family member who has COVID-19 or who is subject to a quarantine or isolation period

    Vaccine-related – you or a family member are:

    • Attending an appointment to receive a vaccine
    • Recovering from symptoms of a vaccine

    How AB 152 Could Help Small Businesses

    If AB 152 is approved, it will establish the California Small Business and Nonprofit COVID-19 Relief Grant Program within the Governor’s Office of Business and Economic Development (GO-Biz). GO-Biz serves as the State of California’s leader for job growth, economic development, and business assistance efforts. The program would provide small businesses and nonprofit organizations grants up to $50,000 but “no more than the actual costs incurred for” SPSL between January 1st, 2022, and December 31st, 2022.

    In addition, employers would not be obligated to provide additional COVID-19 SPSL to employees who have already used their allotment for 2022. Employers should evaluate whether SPSL obligations pertain to their employees and whether they qualify for the small-business grant relief.

    GMS Is Here For Additional Support

    While rules and regulations are constantly changing for small business owners, GMS experts are here to set you at ease. Our team partners with small business owners to take on the HR administrative burdens that shouldn’t stop you from growing your business. We will keep you up-to-date on rules and regulations vital to your business. In addition, we provide small businesses with benefits outsourcing services that allow your business to offer competitive, cost-effective benefits. Contact us today.

  • Governor Henry McMaster signed Bill S. 11 at the state house on August 25th. The bill allows employees in the state of South Carolina paid family leave for the birth of a child, adoption of a child, and fostering of a child. This follows McMaster’s call for a family leave bill in March 2020.

    The paid family leave bill includes:

    Birth of a child

    • Six weeks of paid leave for the employee who gives birth
    • Two weeks of paid leave for the employee who does not give birth but is a new parent

    Adoption of a child

    • Six weeks of paid leave for state employees who are the primary caregivers of the child
    • Two weeks of paid leave for the employee who is not primarily responsible for the care of the child

    Fostering a child

    • Two weeks of leave for employees who foster

    This bill will go into effect on October 1st, 2022. This bill helps families and helps the state retain its best employees with an additional benefit.

    Benefits Administration Outsourcing With GMS

    As a business owner, it’s crucial to keep and attract quality employees so you can continue to grow your business. However, offering a quality benefits program is becoming increasingly expensive. Implementing benefits within your business can be a timely process. At GMS, our benefits outsourcing services allow your business to provide competitive, cost-effective benefits while you focus on growing your business. Learn how GMS can help you with added bills and ever-changing laws and regulations. Contact us today.

  • Many businesses have been forced to adapt to new working conditions due to the COVID-19 pandemic. As a result, many workers maintain a hybrid or remote work schedule. With the rise of remote employment, the focus has shifted to developing clear communication. This is vital to employers being able to communicate and meet the needs of their employees. Another major concern for employees stems from rising inflation and talk of an upcoming recession. This is the time when employees look to their employers for guidance. Let them know you care during the open-enrollment period by developing a plan that fits everyone’s needs.

    Communication Means Success

    As open enrollment is approaching, the need for effective and open communication is the biggest asset employers can implement. It’s imperative that employees have access to all information about each plan and can ask questions about it. Employees want to communicate with their employers. As the open enrollment period begins, they will be looking for guidance. Developing an open line of communication will create a happy, healthy, and productive workforce.

    Virtual communication is not likely to change anytime in the future. Even as businesses welcome their employees to return to in-person positions, virtual communication is here to stay. At the click of a button, employees can access their information when and where they need it. This will allow employees to understand their benefit plan offerings. When there is easier access to learning, employees will be more likely to take advantage of the offerings provided.

    GMS Steps In

    Many employers question which benefits their employees want to see during the open enrollment period. GMS can help you develop a plan that is right for your employees, along with creating a personalized experience working with a benefits account manager. Finding a plan that fits your business during open enrollment can be overwhelming. Let GMS simplify the process every step of the way, easing the line of communication with your employees. Contact us today to learn more.

  • California passed a program known as CalSaver in 2016, which stated that employers who don’t sponsor an employee-retirement plan must participate in a state-run retirement program. CalSavers is a retirement savings program for private sector workers whose employers do not offer a retirement plan. It gives employers an easy way to help their employees save for retirement without employer fees, no fiduciary liability, and minimal employer responsibilities.

    If you’re an employer who sponsors or participates in a retirement plan, including a 401(k) or pension plan, you are not required to participate in CalSavers. Eligible employers are defined as a “person or entity engaged in a business, industry, profession, trade, or another enterprise in the state, excluding specified federal, state, and local governmental entities, with five or more employees and that satisfies certain requirements to establish or participate in a payroll deposit retirement savings arrangement.”

    What The New Plan Means

    Governor Gavin Newsom recently signed Senate Bill (SB) 1126, expanding the definition of an eligible employee. Expanding eligibility will reduce complexity for employers and expand access to CalSavers to small businesses with one to four employees currently not covered. Ultimately, this bill will improve employee recruitment and retention across California. In addition, it’s estimated that SB 1126 will expand access to CalSavers to approximately three-quarters of a million California workers.

    A payroll deposit savings arrangement is required for employers with five or more employees that do not offer a retirement savings plan within 36 months of the board opening the program for enrollment. In addition, all eligible employers with one or more employees would need a payroll deposit savings arrangement by December 31st, 2025, if they don’t provide a retirement savings program.

    GMS Is Here To Help!

    Implementing a 401(k) retirement plan will help attract and retain great employees. It shows employees they are critical to your company’s success by rewarding them for their hard work. So, how does a PEO help you? PEOs such as GMS can leverage group buying power to reduce plan costs for small businesses and take on the fiduciary burden to ensure you remain compliant with your 401(k). GMS can help you set up fully customizable retirement savings plans that make your company more attractive to quality employees. Contact us today to learn more.

  • The Business Group on Health released its annual survey, which dictated that cancer is now the biggest driver of employer health costs. This annual survey examines large employers’ strategies around benefit design, cost management, and other healthcare strategies. This year, 13% of employers who partook in the survey said they had seen a significant increase in late-stage cancers among their employees. The survey was completed by 135 large employers covering more than 18 million lives within the U.S.

    The top three conditions that are fueling health care costs include:

    1. Cancer
    2. Musculoskeletal conditions
    3. Cardiovascular disease

    Why Cancer Is Now The Top Driver

    After analyzing the results from the survey, cancer is now the top driver of employer health care costs, most likely due to COVID-19 increasing delays in care and preventive services. Between 2019 and 2020, there was no increase in health care costs. As a result, there was an 8.2% spike in 2021.

    In 2022, employers expect to cover 82% of their workers’ health costs. This number has risen from 80% in the previous year. Employers are more reluctant to shift costs onto employees due to rising healthcare costs. Now, employers are considering alternative reforms, including advanced primary care and centers of excellence. A center of excellence is a program within a healthcare institution assembled to supply an exceptionally high concentration of expertise and related resources centered on a particular area of medicine, delivering associated care in a comprehensive, interdisciplinary fashion to afford the best patient outcomes possible.

    Additionally, employers are focusing more on policy efforts to lower healthcare and prescription drug costs. Prescription drugs accounted for 21% of employer health costs in 2021. More than half of that percentage was just for specialty medications. Employers are more concerned than ever about the increase in prescription drug costs.

    What Will You Do As A Business Owner?

    While this new survey dictates that cancer is now the top driver in health care costs and prescription drugs are on the rise, as an employer, how will you protect your employees and your business? When you partner with GMS, you gain access to a GMS’ Rx specialist in addition to HR, benefits, payroll, and risk management expertise. Your Rx specialist will aid in searching for the most competitive prices on any prescription costs to save both you and your employees time and money. We offer flexibility, control of premiums, access to data and networks, and overall options that you can’t find elsewhere. Allow your employees to get the healthcare they need. Contact us today.

  • President Joe Biden announced a three-part plan to provide additional breathing room to America’s working families as they continue to recover from the effects of the COVID-19 pandemic. In his announcement, he shared that the federal government would cancel up to $20,000 of federal student loans for millions of individuals.

    More specifically, those earning less than $125,000 annually will receive $10,000 off their student loan debt. In addition, individuals who received Pell grants will have $20,000 in student debt removed. Federal Pell Grants are typically awarded only to undergraduate students with exceptional financial needs who have not earned a bachelor’s, graduate, or professional degree. However, not everyone with debt will qualify for student loan debt relief.

    What You Can Do As A Business Owner

    As an employer, your employees are your biggest asset. Without them, your business would not be able to grow. Alongside the most common employee benefits, including health insurance and retirement plans, providing student loan relief helps companies to attract and retain employees. A survey by the Employee Benefit Research Institute displayed that 17 percent of employers currently offer student loan debt assistance. In addition, 31 percent of employers plan to provide student load debt assistance in the future.

    However, many business owners are finding ways to lower costs, and cutting benefits has been one of them. There are additional steps you can take as an employer to provide your employees with student debt relief, including the following:

    • Offering student loan payment counseling
    • Third-party low-interest or interest-free educational loans
    • Debt consolidation
    • Refinancing services
    • Tax-advantaged repayment support

    What Next?

    While President Biden’s student loan repayment announcement leaves you with questions and concerns as a business owner, GMS is here to put you at ease. If you’re a business owner considering offering your employees additional student loan relief, our benefits department has you covered. We work with you to provide your employees with the benefits they need. Don’t let the ever-changing rules and regulations keep you up at night. Contact us to learn more.

  • During the COVID-19 pandemic, many employers increased their mental health and well-being benefits. Heading into 2023, many employers are poised to continue offering these benefits. However, for many Americans, this can still be challenging to implement.

    Why Implement Coverage

    When healthcare plans offer a wide selection of in-network providers, mental health support becomes more accessible and affordable. Easy access to voluntary benefits lets your employees know they are supported. Survey results released in August by America’s Health Insurance Plans (AHIP), a health insurers’ trade association, shared:

    • All respondents provided some telehealth coverage for mental health services
    • The number of in-network behavioral health providers grew by 48% in three years
    • 89% of health plans are actively recruiting health care providers
    • The number of providers eligible to prescribe medication-assisted therapy (MAT) for substance disorders has grown 114 percent over three years

    “More than half of Americans, nearly 180 million, have employer-provided coverage for their health care needs – which offers an essential path to accessing much-needed mental health support,” stated AHIP.

    Access To Care

    Many therapists prefer to remain out of network, allowing them to receive direct payment from their patients. This limits those with lower incomes from receiving the care they need. Other therapists may only allow a certain number of clients that are unable to pay out of pocket. When it comes to improving access to care, one way to do it is through telehealth. Virtual appointments give patients more options while reducing the cost to practitioners.

    GMS’ Support

    There is a significant payoff when you alleviate the burdens of accessing mental health and wellness services. Employees feel a sense of validation through quality benefit offerings. You and your team can benefit from a streamlined approach when you partner with GMS. Telemedicine is just one way to enhance the employee experience by supporting their mental wellness goals. Learn how to get started today!

  • On August 8th, 2022, the Senate approved bill H.R. 5376, the Inflation Reduction Act of 2022. This bill will make a historic down payment on deficit reduction to fight inflation, invest in domestic energy production and manufacturing, and reduce carbon emissions by 40 percent by 2030. In addition, the bill will allow Medicare to negotiate prescription drug prices and extend the expanded Affordable Care Act Program (ACA) for three years.

    While Democrats and supporters of the legislation believe it would lower health care costs, prescription drugs, and energy costs, and make the U.S. tax code fairer, others disagree. Individuals argue that the new spending would further aggravate inflation and stifle growth. While the bill must still pass in the House of Representatives and be signed by President Joe Biden, it’s more than likely to become a law.

    What This Means For Small Business Owners

    To stay compliant, small business owners must keep up with changing laws and regulations. Following the passing of the Inflation Reduction Act, it’s important to understand the following provisions:

    • 15% minimum tax on corporations with over $1 billion in revenue
    • 1% excise tax on corporate share buybacks
    • $80 billion more in IRS enforcement

    The following are health care provisions:

    • Extend the ACA subsidies through 2025
    • Allow Medicare to negotiate drug prices, starting with 10 drugs in 2026
    • Cap Medicare recipients’ drug expenditures at $2,000 per year

    Uncertainties Relieved Through GMS

    Despite the uncertainty surrounding the new Senate bill, GMS experts are ready to help your small business. We provide you with resources and guidance to get you through unprecedented times. Our benefits services allow your business to offer competitive, cost-effective benefits such as health insurance while you focus on what you do best. Get back to focusing on what’s important, your business. Contact us today.