According to a recent Resume Builder survey of 1,000 U.S. companies with more than 100 employees, 66% of executives have taken a pay cut during the last six months, with 94% of those executives stating that they took a pay cut to avoid layoffs of other employees. Additionally, 67% of the executives claimed that other executive employees at their company also had taken pay cuts in the past six months. Similarly, Read More
2023 Challenges for Employer Background Screenings
Employers will likely experience various challenges in 2023 as they conduct background screenings for prospective employees. These challenges will arise from heightened government oversight of automated screening technology, laws limiting access to public records and criminal history, and expanded marijuana legalization. Automated Screening Systems Employers have long had to comply with the regulations and Read More
Court Holds That Health Insurer’s TPA Activities Are Subject to ACA Section 1557
An Illinois federal judge has ruled that an insurer that acted as a third-party claims administrator (TPA) for self-insured health plans violated Section 557 of the Affordable Care Act (ACA) by excluding coverage for gender-affirming care. In C.P. v. Blue Cross Blue Shield of Ill., 2022 WL 17788148 (W.D. Wash. 2022), a class action lawsuit filed by a transgender individual and his parent, the judge found that the Read More
Case Weighs Religious Accommodation for Sunday Sabbath
The U.S. Supreme Court has agreed to hear the case of Groff v. DeJoy, an appeal from the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Third Circuit. In this case, the Court will consider what types of religious accommodations are reasonable without constituting an undue hardship on an employer’s business. Gerald Groff is a former postal worker who sued the U.S. Postal Service (USPS) for failing to accommodate his observance of Read More
DOL Updates Civil Penalty Amounts for 2023
The U.S. Department of Labor (DOL) has issued its 2023 annual updates to various civil monetary penalties that it imposes for benefit-related violations. The 2023 adjusted penalty amounts are effective for penalties assessed after January 15, 2023, and they apply to violations after November 2, 2015. The following summarizes some updated DOL penalty amounts for failing to comply with various DOL rules and Read More
How Employers Can Leverage Retirement Law Changes
By Anne Tyler Hall and Phil Koehler (March 29, 2023) The Setting Every Community Up for Retirement Enhancement, or SECURE, Act 2.0, enacted at the end of 2022, ushered in some of the most sweeping changes for retirement plans and individual retirement accounts since the passage of the Employee Retirement Income Security of 1974, as amended. Some of the changes are immediate while others become effective in 2024 Read More
CA Judge Gives Final Approval of US Women’s National Soccer Team’s $24 Million Pay Equity Settlement
A California federal district court judge has given final approval to a $24 million deal that settles a pay equity class action between the U.S. women’s national soccer team and the U.S. Soccer Federation Inc. The judge had preliminarily approved the settlement in August. The court still will consider whether the $6.6 million in attorney’s fees for the team’s lawyers is excessive. The women’s soccer team’s quest Read More
Proposed IRS Regulations Would Permanently Allow Remote Spousal Consent Elections
The Internal Revenue Service (IRS) issued a proposed rule on December 27, 2022, that would permanently allow remote witnessing of spousal consent elections under certain circumstances. The proposed rule would go into effect six months after publication in the Federal Register. Taxpayers can continue to make remote spousal consent elections according to the proposed rule until it formally goes into Read More
No Surprises Act Gives Plan Sponsors Savings Opportunities
By Grant Shuman, Tim Kennedy and Anne Tyler Hall (March 22, 2023, 5:36 PM EDT) The No Surprises Act, enacted as part of the Consolidated Appropriations Act of 2021 and made effective Jan. 1, 2022, was designed to protect patients from surprise bills for emergency services at out-of-network facilities — or out- of-network providers at in-network facilities — holding patients liable only for in-network Read More
SEC Declines to Fine McDonald’s After Corporation Claws Back Former CEO’s $105 Million Salary
The U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) highlighted the duty of public companies to protect their shareholders and cure misconduct in an enforcement action concerning McDonald’s Corp. and its former CEO, Stephen J. Easterbrook. In a recent development, McDonald's, Easterbrook, and the SEC reached a deal by which Easterbrook agreed to a $400,000 fine and a five-year ban on serving as officer or director to Read More
