Compliance

Most employers have become accustomed to the IRS and Department of Labor periodically auditing their qualified retirement plans. Now, employers must also be ready for HIPAA audits.

An Eastman Kodak employee filed a civil lawsuit against Kodak's board members and other fiduciaries of the photography companies' retirement plans, saying they breached their duties as the company was spiraling toward bankruptcy.

On January 3, 2012, the Internal Revenue Service issued Revenue Procedure 2012‑6, which formally changes and eliminates certain features of its determination letter program for qualified retirement plans. According to an earlier announcement of these changes (in IRS Announcement 2011-82), the IRS concluded that the features being eliminated are “of limited utility to plan sponsors in comparison with the burdens they impose.” However, the changes will significantly restrict the determination letter service on which plan…

Wage laws are tricky. But it is an area of law all employers need to familiarize themselves with. It's necessary to compensate employees —sometimes even when you least expect it. In fact, there are times when employees need to be paid for...not working.

I recently read an article about a company wellness program that consisted primarily of a company health fair. At the health fair, an employee who thought he was otherwise healthy took a Prostate-Specific Antigen test and discovered he had elevated PSA levels. He was encouraged to follow up with his doctor, who discovered he had prostate cancer. He was ultimately cured and his doctor said he probably would have died had it not been for…

The Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act requires employers to report the aggregate cost of employer-sponsored health coverage on the Forms W-2 of its employees. In March 2011, the Internal Revenue Service issued interim guidance on the Form W-2 informational reporting requirement in the form of 31 Q&As. Recently, the Internal Revenue Service revised this interim guidance by issuing Notice 2012-9, which clarifies several of the original Q&As and adds some Q&As. …

Broker-dealers are up in arms over a little-known provision of the Department of Labor's 401(k) plan fee disclosure rules.

An official at the Department of Labor acknowledged that it may not be feasible for securities industry groups to immediately provide all of the data it requested for use in a cost-benefit analysis it is conducting.

Although it is probably not high on the list of priorities for plan administrators, the end of a calendar year usually means means the start of the process of preparing 5500s. They may not be due right away, but it is always good to know what information you will have to provide when you eventually file them. The Employee Benefits Security Administration has made an informational copy of the 2011 5500 available, with instructions, on…

In the midst of the holiday season, many of us spend time reflecting on the past year and identifying opportunities to improve ourselves in the one ahead. As you make your personal New Year’s resolutions, why not make some professional resolutions as well? A 2012 review and update of these 10 personnel policies will help manage employee expectations, limit company liability and ensure regulatory compliance. …

While it is well known that the National Labor Relations Board governs issues involving unions and unionized employers, it also protects employees' rights to engage in "protected concerted activities," defined as two or more employees conferring or taking action for their mutual aid or protection regarding terms and conditions of employment. It does not matter if the employees are unionized. If an employer disciplines or discharges an employee for engaging in such activities, it may…

On December 5, 2011, the United States District Court for the Western District of Missouri granted preliminary approval to a proposed settlement of the Wal‐Mart 401(k) fee lawsuit (Braden v. Wal‐Mart Stores, Inc.). Under the proposed settlement, the defendants will pay a total of $13,500,000. The settlement also describes several potential changes to the plan's investment options, investment education programs and participant disclosures. …

The United States on Wednesday faced the prospect of an imminent government shutdown for the third time this year as a year-end fight between Republican and Democratic lawmakers in Congress over taxes and spending turned nastier.

Companies are shaking up their 401(k) retirement plans, trimming lists of mutual fund offerings and shaving the fees workers pay as they prepare for new federal rules that will put more plan information in front of employees.

Employers who pay out severance to their employees run certain risks that need to be considered beforehand. Some employers have learned the hard way that severance agreements aren't always the best course of action. Last year, the University of Oregon received bad press when it was discovered that former head coach Mike Bellotti received a substantial payout upon his departure. …

Walmart, the world’s largest private employer, and Merrill Lynch, without admitting to wrongdoing, have agreed to pay $13.5 million in a class-action lawsuit accusing them of breaching their fiduciary duty to two million past and present Walmart workers. The suit was settled in Kansas City federal court.

After decades in relative obscurity, a legal doctrine that holds corporate officers liable for company wrongdoing is finding its way back into some high-profile health care prosecutions.

Prior to 2006, employers were required to submit determination letter requests to the IRS during certain periods. These periods - during which plans were required to be amended for various tax acts, such as the Economic Growth and Tax Relief Reconciliation Act of 2001 - are referred to as the remedial amendment periods. In Revenue Procedure 2005-66, as modified by Revenue Procedure 2007-44, the IRS created a staggered determination letter program. This process was established to spread the IRS' work over a period of years, thus freeing up resources to perform retirement plan audits. The periods to submit qualified retirement plans for determination letters are based upon a plan sponsor's employer identification number.

Last Thursday, Sen. Johnny Isakson (R-GA) introduced the Representation Fairness Restoration Act (S. 1843), a bill that would effectively revoke the National Labor Relations Board’s recent decision in Specialty Healthcare, and establish criteria for determining an appropriate bargaining unit. In Specialty Healthcare, the Board determined a petitioned-for unit will be deemed appropriate so long as that unit consists of a clearly identifiable group of employees. If an employer contends that the unit should include additional…

Harassment training? If you read the title of this blog out loud and heard groans from other people in your office, I understand. In fact, when I have done harassment training for clients, I have heard every complaint and bad joke about harassment training there is. Harassment training is one of those dreaded exercises by employees and management alike. Indeed, harassment training has become comedy fodder for many a tv sitcom. My personal favorite is still…