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Compensation & Benefits

Employers forecast health benefit costs to rise slightly in 2014

10/16/2013
U.S. employers expect health benefit cost per employee will rise by 4.8% on average in 2014, according to early responses from an annual survey by consulting firm Mercer. Cost growth slowed to 4.1% in 2012, a 15-year low. The projected increase for 2014, while still relatively low, represents a slight uptick in the rate of growth.

IRS/DOL extend benefits to all same-sex married couples

10/16/2013
Under new IRS and DOL guidance, legally married same-sex couples are entitled to all federal spousal tax and ERISA benefits, even if they live in states that don’t recognize same-sex marriage.

Lady Gaga assistant’s suit moves closer to trial

10/14/2013
Jennifer O’Neill, former personal assistant to entertainer Lady Gaga, is one step closer to getting her day in court. She claims Mother Monster kept her on call 24 hours a day, seven days a week, for over a year. Her lawsuit seeks overtime pay for every hour of each of those days.

Sheetz execs take N.C. recognition party on the road

10/14/2013
Sheetz execs celebrated the convenience store chain’s placement on a statewide “best companies” list this summer with a rolling party that brought them to all 56 of the organization’s North Carolina locations.

May we collect ‘walkout’ shortages from tips?

10/10/2013
Q. We operate several restaurants and have issues with customers who walk out without paying. We expect our ­servers to help prevent this and want to implement a program that makes servers responsible for these losses. May we deduct the amount of the shortage from employees’ gratuities instead of their wages?

State High Court rules that tips are always wages

10/10/2013
A class of 750 bartenders, waiters and security guards who worked for the now-defunct Drink and Spin nightclubs in Minneapolis has won a wage lawsuit that made it all the way to the Minnesota Supreme Court.

To pay or not to pay for donning & doffing?

10/10/2013
A few years back, the U.S. Supreme Court ruled that chicken processing employees had to be paid for time spent putting on and taking off special protective clothing before and after their shifts. Since then, numerous lawsuits have challenged “donning and doffing” pay practices. Now, the 8th Circuit Court of Ap­peals has provided a bit of clarification.

You can’t force tip-pooling on waitstaff

10/10/2013
Here’s a reminder that Minnesota law prohibits employers from forcing waiters in traditional restaurant environments to share their tips with bartenders and other support staff. It doesn’t matter what you call those who play a supporting role, either.

4-point checklist clarifies open enrollment

10/10/2013
With key pieces of health care reform going into effect, employers that offer health benefits have even more to consider when implementing this year’s open enrollment. Make the most of your annual benefits sign-up by following this checklist.

Paying workers with debit cards isn’t as easy as it seems

10/10/2013
More employers are pushing their workers to receive pay via debit cards. But not all employees want to be paid that way—and the law is often on their side.