Day: December 6, 2011

Wellness—Doing the Fed’s Dance for Compliance

Wellness becomes a tricky dance once you want to base incentives on an actual health outcome—like reduced blood pressure or cholesterol. Fortunately, DOL offers a checklist to help you determine whether your program is in compliance. HIPAA’s nondiscrimination provisions generally prohibit a group health plan or group health insurance issuer from denying an individual eligibility […]

Gender Reassignment Surgery a Deductible Medical Expense

Expenses incurred for gender reassignment surgery and hormone therapy are now deductible medical expenses under Code Section 213. The IRS announced in Action on Decision (AOD) 2011-03 that it has acquiesced to a 2010 Tax Court ruling that these expenses are deductible. The AOD appeared in the Nov. 21 Internal Revenue Bulletin. The IRS announcement […]

Vote for Your Favorite Law Blog

The American Bar Association (ABA) Journal is once again holding an election to pick the most popular law blogs — blawgs — in the land. And the nominees include four by members of the Employers Counsel Network (ECN), a group of law firms in all 50 states, Washington, D.C., and Canada that advise and represent […]

Gift-Giving Policies for the Workplace

It’s the time of year when gift-giving shifts into high gear. Maybe a vendor sends an oversized tin of cookies or basket of fruit for the whole office to enjoy. Or maybe coworkers in neighboring cubicles pick out presents for each other. Sometimes a vendor or client hands over an expensive gift to one particular […]

US Labor Department, Colorado Department of Labor and Employment sign agreement to reduce misclassification of employees as independent contractors

Nancy J. Leppink, deputy administrator of the U.S. Department of Labor’s Wage and Hour Division, and Ellen Golombek, executive director of the Colorado Department of Labor and Employment, signed a memorandum of understanding Dec. 5 regarding the improper classification of employees as independent contractors. “This memorandum of understanding helps us send a message: We’re standing […]

Montana’s 2012 Minimum Wage Hits $7.65

By Jason S. Ritchie The Montana Department of Labor and Industry has completed its annual review of the cost of living and has determined that the minimum wage in Montana will increase to $7.65 effective January 1, 2012. Montana workers earning the minimum wage will see an increase from $7.35 per hour to $7.65 per […]

Simple Chart System Tracks Stacked FMLA Leaves

Here is a suggested charting system for tracking multiple leaves, says Southard, who is the founder of leave management firm Work & Well, and is principal of Southard Consulting in Somerville, NJ. Her remarks came at SHRM’s Annual Conference & Exposition, held recently in Las Vegas. FMLA Tracking Scenario #1 The facts: A Wisconsin employee […]