From East to West Coast, hurricanes and wildfires recently created huge losses of lives, property, and emotional wellbeing. In the middle of the United States, crippling natural disasters can range from blizzards to river flooding to tornadoes. News reports naturally focus on homes and families,...
Technological hardware keeps many organizations running these days. Unfortunately, hard-mannered technical employees can be bad for business. Many technical staff members — be they information technology support employees, data analysts, or equipment maintenance workers — chose their professions because they like to focus on technology, not...
Under the Affordable Care Act (ACA), certain employers must report health care plan information to the IRS and employees. Specifically, IRS Forms 1094/1095-B (B Forms) and IRS Forms 1094/1095-C (C Forms) may need to be submitted for the 2017 tax year. The agency recently extended...
If someone were to burst into your office one day and demand to know how effective your organization handled its human resources (HR) obligations, what would you say? At the very least, you would probably shrug and say, “Pretty well,” and “Could you close the...
As you are likely aware, Congress passed and the president signed into law a new tax bill in December. The technical name of the act is rather long and unwieldy, so it is commonly referred to by an earlier and simpler title: the Tax Cuts...
It will surely go down as one of the biggest news stories of the year. From the world of entertainment to Capitol Hill, allegations of sexual harassment have disrupted the status quo and made headlines at a remarkable rate. Meanwhile, on social media, the #MeToo...
Many employers hire seasonal workers this time of year. If your organization is one of them, you might worry about becoming subject to the Affordable Care Act’s (ACA) employer mandate — also known as the ‘play or pay’ provision. To determine whether you may be...
Many employers use background checks as a regular part of their hiring processes, but “many” does not mean “all.” In fact, recent research conducted by the Society for Human Resource Management indicates smaller businesses tend to skip this important hiring step. Among companies with less...
Many employers feel obligated to hand out holiday bonuses. If you have been distributing such checks for years, without regard to merit or longevity, maybe it is time to rethink this practice. Merit-based rewards Citing economic uncertainties or philosophical changes, some employers have done away with holiday...
The act of terminating an employee is one fraught with legal peril. To guard against this risk, an employer may be tempted to consider requiring terminated employees to sign a release of employment-related claims against the organization to receive ongoing health care coverage under the...