The Consolidated Omnibus Budget Reconciliation Act provides employees with continued access to health insurance coverage, helping them bridge the gap between losing employer-sponsored health coverage and finding alternative plans. COBRA is used so that employees can continue with insurance under circumstances — job loss, reduction...
Question: We have a longtime employee who’s no longer meeting expectations. The owner is afraid to hold them accountable because they’re over 40 and therefore in a protected class. What can we do? Answered by the HR Experts: In general, you shouldn’t let an employee’s protected...
By the end of the process your payroll system, tax information, benefit plans, and any personnel records (i.e., phone lists, email systems, and other employee lists/systems, etc.) should be updated, but here is some guidance on when and how to update: Prior to updating your...
Are you finding it difficult to fill job openings because not enough people are applying? You wouldn’t be alone. One avenue organizations are taking to expand their applicant pool is to forgo the college degree requirement and instead adopt a more inclusive, skills-based approach to...
On April 23, 2024, the Federal Trade Commission (FTC) announced a new rule that essentially bans do not compete clauses. The FTC banning non competes means that companies will no longer be able to use non-compete clauses to stop workers from quitting and getting new...
In a typical year, the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC) secures over $400 million for EEO victims. As a small business owner, being involved in an EEOC case can quickly get expensive. If you become the target of an EEO complaint, an average case can easily cost...
While the Pregnancy Worker Fairness Act (also known as PWFA ) went into effect June 27, 2023, Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC) issued its final regulation to carry out the law April 15, 2024 which goes into effect June 18, 2024. This final rule provided...
On April 23, 2024, the Federal Trade Commission issued a final rule banning virtually all noncompete agreements. It takes effect 120 days after publication in the Federal Register, which probably means an effective date sometime around the end of August. The rule prohibits employers from enforcing...
Question: Do managers need to be classified as exempt? Answer: No, it’s fine to classify managers as nonexempt. You are under no obligation to classify any employee as exempt, even if they meet the criteria under the Fair Labor Standards Act. You could have an entire...
Question: Are there questions or topics we should avoid during the hiring process? How can we be sure we don’t accidentally get into one of those topics? Answered by the HR Experts: You should avoid asking questions that could be viewed as discriminatory or that infringe...