Employer Strategies

Being prepared for retirement is no longer an after-thought as President Barack Obama boldly claimed at last night’s State of the Union; TIAA-CREF’s new survey adds to this national conversation, noting that one-in-three covered Americans say they place guaranteed income at top of their retirement to-do list, but many are faced with problems that their traditional retirement offerings can’t answer.

The study of gerontology, the comprehensive analysis of aging and the problems of the aged, now makes up a new job description and possible new organization direction at Bank of America Merrill Lynch’s retirement plan and financial benefit business.

Among the steps the president outlined in his State of the Union address are raising the minimum wage to $10.10 for future federal contract workers and creating a retirement savings program for people whose employers don’t offer a 401(k) plan.

President Barack Obama offered more Americans the chance to save for retirement through payroll deductions with a plan for new government-sponsored savings accounts.

EBA recently introduced a concept several brokers across the country are embracing — the retail storefront. But one broker doesn’t just want to attract individual clients to walk-in, he plans to use the space to enhance offerings for his group client employees, too.

Google said Tuesday that it will work with VSP Global to offer its Google Glass prescription lenses and frames at a subsidized price.

Although plan sponsors aren't required by law to have one, the investment policy statement is one of the primary documents the Internal Revenue Service and Department of Labor request when they visit employers for plan audits.

One in four U.S. families struggled to pay medical bills in 2012, and one in 10 said they had costs they couldn’t pay at all, according to a government survey.

Republican U.S. senators opposed to Obamacare said the best alternative would be a narrower system of tax credits for Americans to buy health insurance without any of the mandates for people or companies to participate.

It’s undeniable – cloud-based technologies have fundamentally changed how businesses operate. As employers transition from on- to off-premise for HRIS, they are seeing increased productivity and profitability in the obvious ways: lower up-front costs, faster innovation, easier integration, and no nasty upgrade hassles. It’s quite possible, however, that a less-obvious HR cloud revolution may prove to be even more meaningful – one that is more about people and culture.