R Ur Employees Txting? 
Business requires communication. In order to stay competitive in a technology-ridden marketplace, employers may issue cell phones to employees to further business purposes. It seems almost inevitable that employees may use these devices for personal communication. Employers may establish policies restricting employee use of cell phones or limit the amount of personal calls or texts an employee may have. In order to protect employee rights while running an effective business, employers should clearly write a policy for cell phone usage and uniformly enforce the policy upon all employees.
Text messaging has grown in popularity and employees may see it as a convenient means of personal communication. Even if an employee may avoid making personal telephone calls, viewing them as a misuse of company time and resources, text messaging seems more harmless and less time-consuming. Employers may restrict employees' text messages, but these restrictions must be state unambiguously and employees must be given notice of the policy.
Occasions may arise in which employers must check text messages to ensure employee performance. If no clear policy is stated, employers may expose themselves to liability. Employees may bring claims of invasion of privacy, breach of contract, discrimination, and associational discrimination, or claims under the Family and Medical Leave Act (FMLA) or the Employment Retirement Income Security Act (ERISA).
In order to protect businesses, employers should take some simple precautionary steps. Even if an employer permits some personal use of cell phones, a policy should state that an employee has no expectation of privacy and may be subject to monitoring at any time. Employers should require employees to sign a confirmation form indicating that they have read and understood the ramifications of cell phone use on the job. Managers should avoid any contradictory informal practices that would undermine the policy. |
COBRA
The Consolidated Omnibus Budget Reconciliation Act (COBRA) gives some employees who lose their jobs the right to choose to continue their former employer's group health benefits. The COBRA subsidy applies to small business owners who employ 20 or more workers and offer them health insurance benefits. Eligible employees include only those let go for lack of work, not for disciplinary reasons.
In the past, former employees who elected COBRA were forced to pay the entire premium to continue coverage until they retain a new job or new health insurance. Due to a bill passed in February, employers now must subsidize up to 65% of their former employees' COBRA premiums for at least nine months. The employer is reimbursed through a payroll tax credit and the former employee pays the remaining 35%.
While the business owner is eventually reimbursed, there is a waiting period before the tax credit comes through. Employers must collect the former employee's 35% before claiming the payroll tax credit. Additionally, employers must file the paperwork and notify employees who are eligible to elect COBRA.
In order to keep track of payments made to COBRA, employers should inform third-party payroll companies to document these payments for tax purposes. The subsidy applies to employees laid off between Sept. 1, 2008, and Dec. 31, 2009. It is not available to individual former employees whose personal income is more than $125,000 or whose family income is more than $250,000. The IRS unveiled new information on IRS.gov that includes an extensive set of questions and answers about COBRA for employers. More answers are available at the Department of Labor website.
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