Q. I have a fairly good 48-year-old employee who has a chronic problem with Workers' Comp claims. This individual is constantly getting injured and missing a lot of work because of these injuries. I am afraid he is building up to a permanent disability claim. Can I legally terminate him? A. Dismissing an employee for [...]
With the rise of artificial intelligence (AI), businesses across almost every sector find themselves entering uncharted territory. While still in its infancy, AI offers the potential to transform virtually every aspect of how companies operate. Brave New World AI is expected to increase revenue and profits, lower costs, drive improvements in customer service and assist [...]
Paydays are sacred in the workplace. Some employees who can't remember how many years they've been married or how long it's been since their last physical exam can tell you exactly how many days until the next paycheck arrives. Depending on their financial situations, other staff members may barely keep their bills paid between checks. [...]
The minimum wage remains a popular issue for legislators on a federal, state and local level. Recently, a bill was introduced in both the U.S. House and the U.S. Senate titled the "Raise the Minimum Wage Act of 2019." Since 2009, the federal minimum wage has remained $7.25 per hour. However, many states and localities [...]
The Social Security Administration and the IRS have issued a joint publication that offers valuable pointers for employers who want to clean up their old payroll files. In most (but not all) cases, that means following a four-year retention rule. The publication cautions that failure to meet record retention requirements can result in sizable penalties [...]
If you have an employee who has unfulfilled child support obligations, you might be contacted by authorities. In these cases, a local court or government agency may send you an order to withhold a portion of wages from the employee, to collect back child support. Complying with these orders is only required with workers who [...]
The U.S. Department of Labor's Wage and Hour Division (WHD) recently finished several investigations aimed at employers. The agency announced that seven different employers had violated federal laws involving minimum wages, overtime calculations, family and medical leave, the tip credit and work visas. Here are brief descriptions of the cases. 1. Minimum wage violations. A [...]
If your organization wants to claim the new family and medical leave credit, take note: The IRS has issued Form 8994, Employer Credit for Paid Family and Medical Leave, for use in 2018 and 2019 tax year filings. In addition, the IRS has posted new information about the credit on its website. Here's what you [...]
Today (and since 2004) salaried employees who earn at least $455 per week aren't eligible for overtime pay under the Fair Labor Standards Act, if their job duties are executive, administrative or professional (EAP) in nature. That's true no matter how many hours these employees work in a week. Under proposed regulations, the limit would [...]
Increasing numbers of National Guard and Reserve personnel have been sent to far-flung places around the globe in recent years. If your staff includes reservists and National Guard members who must interrupt their employment to fulfill their military service, you probably know that the law requires you to reinstate them once they returned from service (with [...]
