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Compensation & Benefits

On-the-job fatalities increase in Texas, bucking national trend

10/01/2006

Texas employers recorded 495 fatal occupational injuries last year, compared to 440 fatalities in 2004, a 12.5 percent increase, according to a newly released annual report from the Texas Department of Insurance, Division of Workers’ Compensation (DWC) …

New workers’ comp rules on medical peer reviews

10/01/2006

The Texas Workers’ Compensation Commission recently adopted new rules to clarify the qualifications and functions of designated doctors and peer reviewers in the Texas workers’ comp system …

You may soon need a lawyer at unemployment comp hearings

10/01/2006

It’s enough to give employers a case of whiplash. First, Pennsylvania courts said corporate employers couldn’t hire nonlawyers to help them at unemployment compensations hearings. Then the legislature reversed course, passing a law that OK’d nonlawyer representation. That should have been the end of the issue, but not yet …

Help boomers use FMLA accurately for elder care leave

10/01/2006

As your baby boomer employees watch their parents enter their 80s and 90s, more of them are taking time off to care for those aging parents. The problem: More than 60 percent of employers believe they’ve granted FMLA time off that was unfounded, according to a Society for Human Resource Management survey. That spells unwarranted absenteeism, which can disrupt work flow …

Employee feedback helps revamp parental leave policy

10/01/2006

When Rob Keeling, director of diversity at Capital One, wanted to improve the McLean, Va.-based credit-card company’s parental leave policy, he didn’t have to look far for suggestions. The company’s female employees, through their employee network, told him what to do …

Mandatory sabbaticals help retain call center staff

10/01/2006

Employees who celebrate their sixth anniversary at ServiceNet, a Jeffersonville, Ind., warranty service company, don’t get lapel pins to commemorate the occasion. They receive alarm clocks. Each clock counts down the year until the company boots the employee out the door … for a mandatory paid sabbatical …

Urge Senior Managers to ‘Detach’

10/01/2006

Nearly two-thirds of senior executives admit they can’t stop thinking about work even while they’re on vacation, according to a survey from NFI Research. The study’s advice: Encourage the top brass to take a real break to recharge their batteries …

Recertification request won’t guarantee FMLA extension

10/01/2006

By law, employees can take up to 12 weeks of FMLA leave each year. Your organization can, if it chooses, grant an extension …

You can alter job description for worker on FMLA leave

10/01/2006

When employees return from FMLA leave, you’re required to restore them to the same position or a comparable one. That requirement might make you hesitant to make any changes to employees’ jobs or conditions of employment while they’re out on FMLA leave. However, a new court ruling shows that you can make minimal changes to a job description without worrying about FMLA violations …

Attorneys’ Fees Added to Award in Wage-Collection Case

10/01/2006

The Pennsylvania Wage Payment and Collections Law, the state law that requires you to pay workers on time, also says you must pay employees’ legal fees when you violate the law …