| Issue: # 27 |
January 16, 2009 |
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Introducing a New Resource For Advantage Benefits Clients!
Beth Graham, Your On-Call Human Resource Advisor
Got An HR question? Then Ask Beth...
Dear :
After more then 20 years of working with our clients to help them manage their employee benefits, we have learned that listening is the most important part of building a strong relationship. Recently we have noticed an increase in HR related questions from our clients, often about issues that go far beyond health and disability benefits. To address this growing need, we have added a new resource here at Advantage Benefits.
Beth Graham is a certified PHR (Professional in Human Resources). She will be available to our clients by phone or e-mail to answer basic questions, provide guidance and problem solve on HR issues. These basic consultations are available to Advantage Benefits clients free of charge. In the event you need something more formal - like an official employee handbook, an on-site training session, etc., Beth can work with you directly to provide these services on a paid consultant capacity.
Beth can tackle a wide range of issues including hiring & firing policies, wellness programs, current labor law disclosures & communications, FMLA, COBRA, eligibility, etc. Over the coming months we will feature some of the questions Beth gets (anonymously) and her answers here in this email newsletter, to help others who may have the same issues to deal with. There are some examples below.
Many of our clients have found these newsletters to be quite helpful and access archived newsletters on our website quite often. If you know anyone who may find this information of interest, please forward them this newsletter (there is a link on the bottom), and they can subscribe themselves. We would appreciate the referral.
Sincerely,
Bill Randell, CLU, CHFC Vanessa Costa, CLU,CHFC
Advantage Benefits Group, Inc.
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Labor Law Postings
Are You In Compliance |
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As a small business owner, there are many requirements to be met on both the state & federal level. One such requirement is the posting of various labor laws in a place where all of your employees can see them. The U.S. Federal government has 6 general required labor law postings, that are combined into one poster. These are required to be posted by ALL employers in the U.S.
In addition to these general postings, there are up to 5 postings that some workplaces are required to post. For a complete list of federal poster requirements for small businesses, click here.
Each state also has its own specific poster requirements outlining various wage/labor laws. As laws and guidelines change, the posters need to be updated to reflect the appropriate changes, in order to stay in compliance with federal and state law. There are many online businesses that sell the posters and some offer update notifications, as well. Click on this link to take you to one such site.
If you want I can review the needs of your business myself and post all the appropriate signs, e-mail me for a quote.
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| AskBeth
Q & A |
| Q. I know that an hourly employee that works 40 hours per week is considered full time, but what if they only work 36 hours per week? Would they then be considered a part time employee?
A. In most states, "part-time" and "full-time" are not legal terms. They are just HR shorthand and can mean whatever the company intends them to mean. Generally, the biggest reason for classifying employees as part/full time is to define who is eligible for benefits. That is strictly your call as an employer, unless your benefit plan specifically states a required amount of hours for employee eligibility. In general, full-time status is usually defined as anywhere from 30 hours on up - some companies say 32, while others say 35. It's best to make that determination based on your workforce and be sure that your employees are aware of the dividing line when they are hired, or if they cut back on hours at any time during their employment with you.
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| Ask Beth
Q & A |
| Q. I have an employee that was discharged on Dec. 15th. It is now mid January, and I have not received any premium payment from him. How long a period without payment do I need to wait before I remove him from our plan?
A. The initial premium payment must be made within 45 days after the date of the COBRA election by the employee. If he elected COBRA on the day he left, then his payment would be due to you by Jan. 29th. If you do not receive payment by then (which should include premium payment for the rest of December and all of January), then you can cancel him from the plan. Once he sends the initial payment, he will then be responsible for making payments on a regular basis by the first of the month for that month. Generally, a 30 day grace period is appropriate for sending in payments before cancelling coverage.
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