Category: Benefits and Compensation

This topic provides guidance on how to handle compensation issues in a way that attracts and retains the best talent and advances the strategic goals of your business. You get news and tips on what’s going on nationally and in the states, and updates on changes in regulations, possible governmental action, and emerging compensation trends.

Dental Plans—A Little Long In the Tooth

In the 1950s, life may have been simpler—but dental care certainly wasn’t. Some people saw it as a luxury that they couldn’t afford. Most people suffered from tooth decay, and dentures became common. Then employers started to offer a new benefit, the dental insurance plan, to help employees take care of their teeth. Five decades […]

Initiative, Incentives for Preventive Healthcare Seen as Remedy for Costly Medical Claims

The Orange County Library System (OCLS) may not be able to single-handedly curb rising healthcare costs, but it can have a pronounced impact on employees’ health and wellness and take steps to lower costly medical claims over the long term. Employee Awareness OCLS, which consists of a main library and 14 branches throughout Orange County, […]

Overcoming the Employee Fear Factor and Reluctance to Relocate

by Renita Charrlin, Runzheimer International, and Margery Marshall, Vandover The changing economic landscape plays a critical role in employee relocation, both for employers and employees. Overall unemployment rates in the United States have reached 10%, the promise of real estate recovery has yet to be realized, and mortgage guidelines are more stringent. Employers are facing […]

Resource Group, Partner Benefits Help Create Inclusive Workplace

It’s easy for an employer to say that it values a diverse workforce; it’s another thing to show that. By earning a perfect scores in the annual Human Rights Campaign’s Corporate Equality Index survey, Diageo (www.diageo.com) has demonstrated its commitment to creating an inclusive workplace for gay, lesbian, bisexual, and transgender (GLBT) employees. “Diageo not […]

Benefits on the Web: Why Companies Should and Why the Excuses They Use Not to Aren’t Relevant

by Jennifer Benz, Benz Communications A benefits-enrollment system on the Internet and information on a corporate intranet are not sufficient to engage employees and improve adoption rates in the age of social media. Companies need to get their benefits information to the decision maker, which isn’t always the employee, and make sure the information is […]

Gatekeeper Approach to Mental Health Care

Worried about the rising the cost of your health care? If so, you may be searching for something—short of dropping coverage for mental health and substance abuse—that can help. The twofold answer may be right in front of you: your employee assistance plan (EAP) and managed care techniques.  John Kamilis, LCPC, clinical director of CuraLinc […]

Boosting Employees’ Financial ‘Health’ Pays Off for Employers

by Kristie Howard, Longfellow Benefits With the adoption of worksite wellness growing as a key business strategy to improve workers’ health and productivity, leading employers are already seeing bottom-line benefits from investing to keep employees healthy. As bad news continues to mount on the economic frontand people become more stressed about their personal finances, employers […]

Common Mistakes to Avoid in Broad-Based Variable Compensation Plans

As the economy crumbled around our collective feet, the proper design of a compensation program may not have seemed like a priority. But with more candidates than jobs available and the U.S. unemployment rate determined to break into double digits, you may be surprised to learn that compensation programs continue to play a vital role […]

COBRA Premium Subsidy Law —What a Difference a Year Makes

Last year around this time, COBRA administrators were waiting with dread to see if Congress would enact yet ANOTHER extension to the continuation coverage premium subsidy law. The law had been extended three times before, so why not four? But due to the political shifts in Congress as a result of the 2010 elections, and […]

More Reasons for Wellness in the Workplace

These findings illustrate how providing exercise facilities at the workplace is in business’ self-interest. Well: Less Active at Work, Americans Have Packed on Pounds. Click here for the actual study. Have you ever looked at the black and white pictures of Americans (waiting in line, working, at a baseball game … whatever) before 1965 with […]