Lori B
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Hi Chari For whatever it is worth, may I suggest following: 1. Go directly to trustee with concerns about lack of adequate array of investments. Trustee is the one who is ultimately responsible for ensuring adequate mix of investment risk. 2.…
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As shaky as the market is, I think you are doing a horrible disservice to ever discourage someone from participating in 401k. Our role is to inform and educate - let the ee decide. Who are we to actually provide investment advice? There is a diff…
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Think about the pros and cons of your strategy. We actually prefer to have ees use paid time off before going on disability. The higher the disability claims, the higher your premium at next renewal.... Just a thought as you decide which cost is …
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I think you are confusing pretax salary deferrals for retirement plans with pretax contributions for a 125 plan. They are governed by different sections of the tax code so different rules apply. A 125 plan (flex spending for dependent care, medica…
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We offer EAP as part of COBRA. We charge $1.50/month for it. No one has ever elected to continue it though.
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Nothing illegal here...happens a lot with union or multi-state emploeyrs. The carriers hate it. You need to negotiate going in so that carriers know other plans exist and how they will coexist. Otherwise, most insurance carrier contracts specical…
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If you lump everything into a PTO bank, you will have to pay it out at termination in Illinois once the time is accrued. IDOL looks at it like just one big bank of vacation time. Watch out for your reference to "personal days." Same thing applies…
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Hi Anne We rolled out 529s this year. It has been a hit with those who understand them, but lost on the bulk who don't. It requires a lot of communication/education to get ees to grasp what a neat tool they are. We do not contribute. It is a pu…
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Thanks for the good info Anne. One question we wrestle with: we have ees who want to bring their families onto our plan now b/c their employers with calendar year plans are hitting them with such high increases. (Our plan year is fiscal.) Does an…
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Actually, this was loosened up in the new regs of a year or so ago. A change in day care provider cost is a qualifying reason now for mid year changes. This rule, which used to be very harsh, is now quite flexible. It sounds like the employer has…
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We run our vacation and leave times concurrently. However, if the person qualifies for STD or other types of paid disability, we don't make them burn the vac days.
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We pay 70-80% of the premium depending on which plan and which tier of coverage they elect. It is scaled back for dependent coverage and people electing the more expensive PPO plan.
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I agree in this situation, but be careful in others. If the pay period exceeds 12 weeks I would COBRA right away. Most health contracts contain provisions that the covered participant must be "actively at work." They typically build in a 12-week …
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Hi Paige Our health/dental/vision has a 60 day waiting period. It used to be 90, but we shortened to avoid ees being forced into COBRA to avoid the 63-day break in service rule under HIPAA. The life and disability policies have a 6-month waiting p…
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We typically pay 80/20 for ee coverage of HMO, and 75/25 for ee coverage of PPO. The ratio drops to about 70/30 for family coverage. We faced a large increase last year and polled our ees about their options: 1. Flat rate increase for them 2. S…
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Hi Rose If you close the facility, you pay the exempts, period. Taking the 2 days from their PTO banks just invites a FLSA challenge. As far as the nonexempts, there is no rule to treat the two the same here. I'd pay the exempts (and not take i…
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Hi I believe you need to pay the exempts b/c you closed the facility. Remember: they are due their entire salary for a week regardless of hours worked. If they take a personal day off, that is one thing. If you close the facility on them when th…
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It is growing b/c we now promote it. When the EAP was never promoted, we had about 5 ees a year use it out of 500. Through payroll stuffers, newsletters, emails, posters, etc., we now see about 20 ees per quarter using it. Interest is continuing …
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You are correct. ERISA and the Tax code make the 1000 hours a cutoff point. An employer that tries to require more service, would jeopardize the tax qualification of their plans.
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There are 2 primary ways to offer these programs: one is to require the coursework to be directly job related. These expenses are always deductible for the company and no 5500 is required. The other is to set up a plan under 127 of the Internal Re…
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Hi Merlin I wouldn't rule out 401k too quickly. Yes, there is an admin cost, but the company (and the ees, especially the owners) stand to gain a lot more from a tax perspective. Many people forget that retirement plans are popular with companies…
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Hi Terri My current company doesn't offer this but is contemplating it. Do you have a 125 plan in place for things like pretax spending for dependent care and/or medical reimbursements? You can add adoption benefits as another component to a 125 …
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40 hours sick per year. We prorate in year one based on when hired. Nonexempts can't take it in the first 6 months. We don't combine sick and vacation b/c it creates larger payout obligation problems in Illinois when they terminate. (Quirk in ou…
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Be careful. There are tax implications with this scenario unless you structure it properly. We have contemplated this one, but not pursued it further yet. I came across the following information from a seminar I attended earlier this year. (We t…
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We have approx 500 ees. We pay roughly 80% of HMO health premium and 75% of PPO health premium. There is a sliding scale so that ee picks up slightly more of cost of family coverage is elected. Our health plan includes Rx and full vision. Dental…
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Ceridian has rolled out a very comprehensive EAP but you could probably scale back the services that may be overkill for you. Another player: Workplace Solutions. They are based in Illinois but have a nationwide presence. 847/981-3687. To find …
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Take a careful look at your health insurance contract. Most carriers require that ees be "actively at work" to be covered under a group health plan. They allow an exception for up to 12 weeks to correspond to FMLA leaves. If you continue to carry…
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You should definitely do this. Any employer that passes up the opportunity to convey total comp costs, including benefits, to ees, is missing a grand opportunity... We periodically run articles about this in our company newsletter. Sometimes we u…
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Hi Alice You will learn a lot just reviewing these message boards. Good luck & don't look back! While federal COBRA applies to group plans of 20 or more, watch out for state versions of COBRA law. Many states have this with a much smaller t…
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Hi Missy We bridge service for things like vacation if ee rejoins us within 2 years. Our insurance benefits are goverened by contracts so we can't bridge for that. Retirement plans are also governed by plan document. You need to be careful here …