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.

Internet Giving Workers the Upper Hand in Salary Negotiations

Web-based providers of salary information, such as Compensation.BLR.com, allow job seekers or workers lobbying for a raise to tell you “what I’m worth” even before you make an offer. Here’s what to do to counter the trend. It used to be that, when buying a car, the dealers held all the cards. They alone knew […]

Are You Overpaying Your Employees? Here’s How to Know

If you’re making compensation decisions based on national norms, somebody could be coming up short … and it might be you! Here are the criteria you should be using. You’re hiring a payroll clerk or an engineer … or even an HR manager. How much should you pay? If you make that decision on the […]

Dump Your Health Insurer for Good!

You may be able to do it by self-insuring. It’s not just for “big business” anymore, says BLR’s Best Practices in Compensation & Benefits newsletter. Self-Insurance Doesn’t this phrase have a siren song, especially when it comes to healthcare coverage? Just think about it. You take the premiums paid to your current health carrier and […]

Survey Identifies Four Factors that Control Healthcare Cost Increases

A recent survey of 585 businesses identified major growth in companies offering high deductible healthcare plans, and noted four ways to restrain cost increases. Once upon a time, if you worked for a good company and you got sick, you went to any doctor, hospital, or pharmacy and handed them your health plan card. That […]

In executive compensation, one size doesn’t fit all

A solid executive compensation program both recruits great new leaders and keeps your present team intact, but be sure it matches your organization’s profile and stage of development. If, as is often said, the speed of the team is the speed of the leader, good executives can supercharge your company’s performance. But if your executive […]

Is your company’s compensation plan shortsighted?

These days, employers need to put their compensation plan through the same thorough analysis as their capital spending, pricing and other elements of strategic planning Senior managers who think a compensation plan just salary and benefits, and don’t let their HR professionals view the plan in a wider way, may be shorting themselves by ignoring […]