Although health care is at the top of the domestic agenda we see the health of the U.S. workforce declining!
According to a report released by the Families and Work Institute (FWI) on September 22, 2009, both employers and workers must pay attention to how they can promote better health.
Sadly, overall U.S. health has declined in all income levels according to “The State of Health in the American Workforce.” Employees are experiencing more physical and mental stress levels in their daily working time. The research found the following:
- 62% of employees are overweight or obese.
- 49% of employees had not participated in regular exercise in the past 30 days.
- 41% of employees experience 3 or more indicators of stress.
- 28% of employees report their overall health as excellent as opposed to 34% in 2002.
- 27% of employees have experienced sleep problems affecting their job performance in the past month.
- 21% of employees receive treatment for high blood pressure
- 14% of employees are being treated for high cholesterol.
- 1 in 3 employees experience one or more symptoms of clinical depression.
- 1 in 4 employees smoke.
Our firm offers new wellness options designed to MINIMIZE YOUR HEALTH CARE COSTS.
Contact us to schedule an on-site re-evaluation of your benefits programs.
SOURCE: 10/1/09, SHRM Report: Health of U.S. Workforce Declining.
President Obama signed a FMLA coverage extension for Military Families on October 28, 2009. The 2010 National Defense Authorization Act (NDAA) extends FMLA exigency leave coverage to both active duty members of Armed Forces, Reserves and National Guard, and family members of active members of the Armed Forces, Reserves and National Guard. The FMLA provides 26 weeks of leave and is only for employers with 50 or more employees. This new laws covers FMLA caregiver leave for up to five years after the veteran ends active duty. Qualify exigencies are the following:
1. Short-notice deployment
2. Military event and related activities
3. Childcare and school activities
4. Financial and legal arrangements
5. Counseling
6. Rest and recuperation
7. Post-deployment activities and
8. Additional activities to address other events which arise out of the covered military members’ active duty or call to active duty.
President Obama approved the extension of Unemployment Benefits an extra 14 weeks of benefits in states with unemployment rates less than 8.5% and an extra 20 weeks in states with unemployment rates above 8.5%. Any individual whose benefits have expired will be eligible to re-apply for the additional benefits.
Click here to check the current unemployment rate in your state.
The shocking reality: Diabetes is the 5th largest killer disease and there is no cure. According to the American Diabetes Association (ADA), nearly 8% of the U.S. population (23.6 million people) have diabetes.
The most startling statistic is that about 5.7 million of those people who have diabetes are completely unaware of it and have not been diagnosed.
For more information on what you can do please visit the Diabetes.org website.
The Fair Labor Standards Act (FLSA) is a federal law that many employers mistakenly (and sometimes not so mistakenly) violate. From the miscalculation of overtime payment, mis-classifying non-exempt employees, expecting employees to work off the clock, to improper record keeping, more and more employees are challenging employers in court and the Department of Labor is cracking down on violators.
Employers must keep certain records for each non-exempt (hourly) employee. The law requires this information be accurate on all current AND past employees.
Here is the Checklist the DOL uses to audit YOUR files!
1. Employee’s full name and social security number.
2. Address including zip code.
3. Birth date, if younger than 19.
4. Sex and Occupation.
5. Time and day of week when employee’s workweek begins.
6. Hours worked in a day.
7. Total hours worked each workweek.
8. Basis on which employee’s wages are paid (hour/piece/weekly/commissions/etc.)
9. Regular hourly pay rate.
10. Total daily or weekly straight-time earnings.
11. Total overtime earnings for the workweek.
12. All additions to or deductions from employee wages.
13. Total wages paid each pay period.
14. Date of payment and the pay period covered by the payment.
If you have questions regarding these requirements please call DAS HR Consulting at (817) 343-0066.
Reference: Department of Labor Wage and Hour Current Regulations. http://www.dol.gov/
Congratulations to the winners of the 2009 Luna Awards! This coveted award is for women who provide services to the construction industry. The Regional Hispanic Contractors Association had their annual award luncheon on October 15th at the beautiful Omni Mandalay Hotel in Las Colinas, Texas.
Di Ann Sanchez and her client, Mary Longoria owner of Pink Ribbon Cleaning Service were both nominated in the “Established Service” firm category.
The U.S. Department of Labor plans increased enforcement of small-to-medium sized businesses after the September 2009 release of a 72-page report documenting what some call “rampant” violations of wage-and-hour laws by employers.
Martha Neil of the ABA Journal writes,
It [US DOL] is hiring 250 additional investigators to pursue claimed widespread practices by numerous employers of not paying the required minimum wage, not paying required overtime, and not allowing workers to take required breaks.
U.S. Secretary of Labor, Hilda Solis, issued a statement stating her department’s intention to audit small-to-medium sized employers.
According to Solis,
“During the first 6 months of the year, the Department of Labor (DOL) already has recovered more than $82 million in back wages for nearly 107,000 minimum wage workers.”
The U.S. DOL found the following violations:
- 1 in 4 workers (26%) were paid below minimum wage.
- 76% of those who worked overtime were not paid the required time and half.
- 69% of the employees did not receive their meals breaks.
- 70% of the employees did not get any pay for work performed outside their regular shift.
- 30% of tipped employees were not paid their tipped worker minimum wage.
- 57% of employees did not receive the mandatory pay stubs.
- 89% of employees working in home child care were paid less than minimum wage.
DAS HR Consulting, LLC advises employers to review their job descriptions and ensure proper Fair Labor Standards Act (FLSA) status.
The Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC) interprets the definition of a disability more broadly and expands the definition of “major life activities”. To learn more click here: Long-Awaited Proposed ADA Regulations Issued by the EEOC
Independent contractor issue heats up!
According to Andrew McIlvaine,
“desperate for revenue, state and federal officials are increasingly looking at the potential mis-classification of employees as independent contractors.”
Click here to read the entire article.
Here is the checklist the IRS Uses to audit for independent contractors:
Behavioral Control/Instructions -
1) Telling how, when, or where to do work.
2) Telling what tools or equipment to use.
3) Telling what assistants to hire to help with the work.
4) Evaluation systems of independent contractors.
5) Telling where to purchase supplies and services.
DAS HR Consulting, LLC wants all employers to be aware of the following compliance deadlines:
9/08/09 E-Verify:
Rule requiring all federal contractors to use the federal government’s E-Verify employment eligibility system. This is Executive Order 13464 mandating electronic verification of all employees working on any federal contracts awarded after 9/8/09 that includes the FAR (Federal Acquisition Regulation) and E-Verify Clause (73 FR 67704). The Department of Homeland Security has free webinars on their website regarding compliance with E-Verify.
9/30/09 VETS-100A Report:
By this date, federal contractors must file the VETS-100A Report for government contracts of $100,000 or more that were entered into, or modified, on or after Dec. 1, 2003, as well as the VETS-100 Report for any unmodified government contracts of $25,000 or more that were entered into prior to Dec. 1, 2003.
9/30/09 EEO-1 Report:
By this date, employers with federal government contracts of $50,000 or more and 50 or more employees and employers that do not have a federal government contract but have 100 or more employees must file an EEO-1 report with the EEOC.
10/09/09 Health insurance:
Michelle’s Law goes into effect on this date and amends the Employee Retirement Income Security Act (ERISA) to allow seriously ill or injured college students to take up to one year of medical leave without losing their health insurance.
11/21/09 GINA:
The employment provisions of GINA (Title II) takes effect with 15 or more employees. The Genetic Information Nondiscrimination Act protects an employee from an employer requesting, requiring or purchasing genetic information with respect to an employee or family member of an employee.
1/1/10 Health insurance:
Mental health parity provisions are effective for calendar-year plans. This law requires parity of mental health benefits with medical benefits annual dollar, lifetime limits, co-pays, deductibles etc.
