Employee Benefits / Employment Law / HR

Showing 529–544 of 653 results

  • Do as I write, not as I say – Avoid mishaps with written ERISA benefits

    June / July 2010
    Newsletter: Employee Benefits Update

    Price: $225.00, Subscriber Price: $157.50

    Word count: 662

    Abstract: Qualified retirement plan sponsors must ensure that information provided to plan participants is accurate and reliable and follows the plan document provisions. As pointed out by one recent court case, Ladouceur v. Credit Lyonnais, poor communication or misinformation has the potential to cause significant problems for a plan sponsor if participants attempt to use incorrect information. This article provides a lesson on what employers may or may not communicate orally to employees about ERISA benefits as compared to what they must put in writing.

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  • IRS updates – Are your plan distribution and benefit accrual reduction notices up to date?

    June / July 2010
    Newsletter: Employee Benefits Update

    Price: $225.00, Subscriber Price: $157.50

    Word count: 773

    Abstract: A distribution from a retirement plan should be a fairly simple process. Unfortunately, many participants equate such distributions as a withdrawal from the local ATM machine. Strict rules and guidance control the circumstances under which a participant can take a distribution and the procedures that sponsors must follow. This article summarizes two notable changes to such notices and their implications.

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  • Know your plan limits – Taking the confusion out of differing plan limits

    June / July 2010
    Newsletter: Employee Benefits Update

    Price: $225.00, Subscriber Price: $157.50

    Word count: 787

    Abstract: Defined contribution plans are subject to numerous annual limits, all of which employers and plan administrators must keep straight. At times these limits can appear to be at odds with each other, leaving many plan sponsors to ask, “How do we know which limit applies?” This article reviews several relevant limits and their relationship to each other.

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  • A not uncommon quandary – Another employee vs. independent contractor case to consider

    May / June 2010
    Newsletter: Employment Law Briefing

    Price: $225.00, Subscriber Price: $157.50

    Word count: 738

    Abstract: The U.S. Court of Appeals for the Fifth Circuit had to decide whether welders for an electrical contractor were employees entitled to overtime or independent contractors. The court noted that the facts appeared to be evenly balanced between employee and independent contractor status, but weighed a number of factors before siding with the employees. A sidebar discusses legal contexts for this recurring “employee vs. contractor” dispute.

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  • Is a leave of absence a “reasonable accommodation”?

    May / June 2010
    Newsletter: Employment Law Briefing

    Price: $225.00, Subscriber Price: $157.50

    Word count: 770

    Abstract: The “reasonable accommodation” clause of the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) is the crux of many a legal argument. Such was the case involving a paper inspector who had developed a bone spur. After lengthy periods of time off and light-duty work, he accepted disability retirement — and then sued, alleging disability discrimination.

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  • Age discrimination case involves stolen property

    May / June 2010
    Newsletter: Employment Law Briefing

    Price: $225.00, Subscriber Price: $157.50

    Word count: 889

    Abstract: A company fired a tool crib attendant after an internal investigation produced evidence that he’d stolen company property for his own financial gain. The 56-year-old plaintiff commenced an age-discrimination lawsuit. He established that the company had made the charge over a year after the firing, and that a number of younger employees weren’t fired — despite their alleged complicity in the theft. The court permitted a trial on the age discrimination claim. A sidebar discusses another age-discrimination case involving an employee who’d complained about a salary freeze.

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  • Before and after: Employee commute drives FLSA case

    May / June 2010
    Newsletter: Employment Law Briefing

    Price: $225.00, Subscriber Price: $157.50

    Word count: 711

    Abstract: A technician filed a lawsuit seeking compensation for time spent commuting to job sites in company vehicles and for time spent on preliminary and follow-up activities performed at home. In the first instance, he claimed that the commute amounted to a condition of his employment and he was required to use the company vehicle, which he couldn’t use for personal pursuits. The court disagreed, and also rejected his claim regarding his preliminary off-the-clock activities. But his follow-up activity — sending a transmission to his superiors concerning all the jobs he’d performed that day — was another matter.

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  • COMPLIANCE ALERT – Upcoming compliance deadlines:

    April / May 2010
    Newsletter: Employee Benefits Update

    Price: $225.00, Subscriber Price: $157.50

    Word count: 47

    Abstract: A brief list of key tax reporting deadlines for April and May.

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  • Are you ready for your 403(b) plan audit?

    April / May 2010
    Newsletter: Employee Benefits Update

    Price: $225.00, Subscriber Price: $157.50

    Word count: 365

    Abstract: Many nonprofit organizations offer 403(b) plans to their employees, just as for-profit businesses offer 401(k) plans. In the past, 403(b) sponsors had a very limited filing requirement compared to their 401(k) sponsor counterparts. But that’s all changed. This brief article highlights the new requirements for 403(b) plan audits.

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  • Bond … ERISA bond – You may need one, so learn the requirements

    April / May 2010
    Newsletter: Employee Benefits Update

    Price: $225.00, Subscriber Price: $157.50

    Word count: 502

    Abstract: ERISA requires that all fiduciaries of qualified retirement plans be bonded. These bonds are sometimes referred to as ERISA bonds, fidelity bonds, surety bonds or fiduciary bonds. This article summarizes what an ERISA bond covers and the statutory requirements.

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  • Why making changes to your employer contributions is important

    April / May 2010
    Newsletter: Employee Benefits Update

    Price: $225.00, Subscriber Price: $157.50

    Word count: 863

    Abstract: Following a dismal financial fourth quarter in 2008, many companies in 2009 elected to forgo funding their qualified plan employer contributions. This includes employer matching contributions, profit sharing contributions and other employer funding arrangements. As a result, many qualified plans consisted solely of employee contributions during the year. While the financial markets recovered by the end of 2009, many participants’ retirement funds may not show signs of recovery. This article describes how adjusting matching contributions may be one way to help employees recover some lost ground.

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  • Retirement plan expenses – Getting better value, not just cheaper services

    April / May 2010
    Newsletter: Employee Benefits Update

    Price: $225.00, Subscriber Price: $157.50

    Word count: 771

    Abstract: During times of cost cutting, it’s understandable that plan sponsors are looking for ways to save money on their retirement plans. Sponsors may be negotiating price discounts, fund and fee ratios, and employer contributions. Yet, while containing costs is at the top of many sponsors’ minds, using an inexpensive service provider isn’t always the best option. This article reviews how plan expenses operate, whether it’s from company pockets or plan assets.

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  • Two things that don’t usually go together – Age discrimination meets technology misuse

    March / April 2010
    Newsletter: Employment Law Briefing

    Price: $225.00, Subscriber Price: $157.50

    Word count: 712

    Abstract: Age discrimination and the misuse of technology are no strangers to the employment law arena. But one recent case brought the two together. An older worker was fired — and replaced by a younger worker — for allegedly accessing prohibited Web sites, even though the company’s log book of the infractions didn’t always correspond with the employee’s presence at work. But the appeals court found that his actual innocence of his employer’s proffered accusation was irrelevant as long as the employer reasonably believed it and acted on it in good faith.

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  • How does state of mind affect giving FMLA notice?

    March / April 2010
    Newsletter: Employment Law Briefing

    Price: $225.00, Subscriber Price: $157.50

    Word count: 893

    Abstract: To invoke the protection of the Family and Medical Leave Act (FMLA), an employee must give his or her employer sufficient and proper notice. But how does an employee’s alleged state of mind affect that invocation? In one case, when a worker stated he’d had a nervous breakdown, the supervisor believed he was intoxicated and making unacceptable excuses for missing work. After more absences, the worker was demoted, and he eventually quit — and sued, claiming that that the company had interfered with his rights under the FMLA. An appeals court disagreed.

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  • ADA case turns on participation in accommodation process

    March / April 2010
    Newsletter: Employment Law Briefing

    Price: $225.00, Subscriber Price: $157.50

    Word count: 495

    Abstract: The accommodation process is a key part of the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA). But who’s at fault when the single accommodation offered is rejected and no other alternatives are discussed? This was the situation in a case involving a worker who was exposed to chemical fumes as a part of her job, but who rejected an accommodation without offering an alternative.

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  • Silence is costly – Plaintiff’s inaction key in racial discrimination case

    March / April 2010
    Newsletter: Employment Law Briefing

    Price: $225.00, Subscriber Price: $157.50

    Word count: 966

    Abstract: When an African-American worker experienced several episodes of racial harassment, management took a number of steps to nip it in the bud, and the HR representative asked the worker to keep him informed of any further incidents. Such incidents continued, but the worker kept silent. He eventually quit and then sued, alleging that he’d been subjected to a racially hostile work environment and constructively discharged. This article discusses an appeals court’s findings, while a sidebar discusses a different outcome in a similar harassment case.

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