Employer Strategies

A handful of letters from trade groups and the Chamber of Commerce reject as “premature and imprudent” the DOL’s proposal to require retirement plan service providers supply guides to fee disclosures.

A new proposal to raise Pension Benefit Guaranty Corporation premiums to the tune of $25 billion over the next decade for companies that offer defined benefit pension plans is being contested. Not surprisingly, many in charge of administering their company’s pension benefits see the increase as crippling to their industry and the economy.

The breakdown of states running their own health insurance exchanges versus those using the federally facilitated marketplace will change in due time – but exactly how it will change is still up in the air, said a speaker at Wednesday’s National Health Insurance Exchange Summit, held in Washington, D.C.

The concept of limiting coverage of spouses through the implementation of a surcharge or waiver program has been talked about for years. This is a microcosm of the employee benefits environment where employers are considering every possible cost-control strategy.

Analytics and the use of big data by corporate America are increasingly growing as companies look to make better business decisions. Client, internal information and databases collected over long periods of time are helping companies better understand their business and where to spend their money. The same is true for public retirement systems.

Flexibility, tax benefits and the overall attractiveness of Roth 401(k) plans are encouraging more employers to offer them.

There’s an end to ambiguity on whether direct payments — for certain kinds of coverage — are taxable or not.

An increasingly discussed abandonment of the ever-delayed portion of the ACA would not eliminate your employer clients’ need to comply with the health law.

Many studies have shown that the average 401(k) participant earns at least 2% to 3% less each year than the mutual funds in their plans. Because so many of us give in to our emotions and chase markets higher, buying at tops. Then we get scared and sell when markets fall.

The do-it-yourself approach may be all the rage for home renovations but when it comes to benefits, employees still need guidance from their employers.