Employee benefits

The first day of summer presents a good opportunity to reflect on whether employees are taking enough vacation time and, as such, recharging their batteries to a point where they are on track for becoming healthier, happier and more productive. It’s also worth revisiting a familiar U.S. public-policy debate on the link between paid time off and worker engagement, productivity and performance relative to other nations, especially during austere times when stress is heightened.

Companies that measure corporate culture have more engaged and committed employees, according to the results of a study from Critical Metrics, LLC. The findings also revealed that although most employees and senior leaders think that measuring corporate culture is important, few companies measure it, and even fewer do it well.

While the vast majority of companies involved in mergers and acquisitions use retention agreements to retain key talent, a new survey by global professional services company Towers Watson shows companies that are more successful at retention begin the process early — identifying people and tactics — and don’t rely solely on money.

In its annual review of employer attitudes toward health plans, J.D. Power and Associates finds that although fewer than 15% will drop health coverage altogether, close to half of companies are likely to shift health benefits to a private exchange model.

Republican Mitt Romney last week laid out his vision for a "consumer market" health care approach to replace President Barack Obama's sweeping reform law, whether or not the U.S. Supreme Court overturns the legislation this month.

In its annual review of employer attitudes toward health plans, J.D. Power and Associates finds that although fewer than 15% will drop health coverage altogether, close to half of companies are likely to shift health benefits to a private exchange model.

The lines of demarcation between work and life beyond office walls may have largely disappeared in many organizations, but that’s not to say employees are always accessible when they’re out of the office. With summer officially kicking off on Wednesday, there could be mounting anxiety about reaching vacationing coworkers.

Although employers should proactively strive to create and maintain a safe work environment, no amount of preparation is guaranteed to prevent conflicts. In the unfortunate event that a credible threat of violence arises, established protocols and awareness can help address the issues promptly in an effort to protect everyone's safety. …

Between 2003 and 2006, Standard Textile - a company that manufactures textiles and apparel for a variety of industries, including health care and hospitality - watched its benefits costs per employee jump by 60%. That got the attention of the CEO, and the company embarked on a more aggressive health and wellness journey.

The preliminary results of a pilot project involving a large, self-funded employer and a new mobile application, myDrugCosts, show that 42% of employees who used the voluntary benefit reported saving money on their prescription drug costs.

Building a culture of health at any organization can be challenging, but doing so reaps valuable rewards in curbing health care costs and engaging employees in making healthy decisions. In a recent webinar series sponsored by the International Foundation of Employee Benefit Plans, the health director from Dow Chemical and the compensation and benefits manager at Pinellas County, Fla., shared the building blocks for creating a culture of health - and how employers in both the public and private sector can find the reasons and resources needed to make such an effort successful.

Zone had grown weedy. As the corporate intranet for Quintiles - a biopharmaceutical services company headquartered in North Carolina - QZone had remained virtually unchanged for eight years. It was a fairly traditional intranet containing corporate news, links to various applications and calendars, along with benefits information. But it had stopped growing and evolving with the rest of the company's digital strategy. It was time for a change.

Later this month, employers will know - based on the Supreme Court ruling whether to uphold the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act - if their employees must have health insurance. Should the law and all of its provisions be ruled constitutional, the cost of offering health benefits may prove too much for some employers, allowing employees to seek coverage from state-run insurance exchanges.

As a (very) busy mom and wife, I sometimes find myself regarding circus performers with unadulterated scorn, thinking to myself, "Look at him, juggling his knives like it's hard or something. Pfft! Try juggling a full-time job, a husband, two (almost three) kids, one dog, four schedules, a house, and bills - and then ask me how tough juggling just plain knives is!"

When you know better, you do better, so the saying goes. For Brocade, a Silicon Valley-based high-tech company, the knowing came in the form of a trust survey the organization conducted in 2009 as part of its participation in the Great Place to Work Institute surveys. That trust index survey revealed that women ranked Brocade lower than their male counterparts in 95% of categories. And even though Brocade ranked high overall - achieving a spot on the nation's Great Place to Work list in 2009 - CEO Mike Klayko wanted to dig deeper into what was going on.

Ever wonder what makes successful advisers successful? Independence and technology are the leading factors, according to four advisers at TD Ameritrade Institutional’s Elite Summit, but some of the other factors were even more surprising.

Despite taking proactive steps to keep their finances in check, only a third of American workers (34%) believe they are saving enough money in order to live comfortably in retirement, according to new research from the Principal Financial Well-Being Index.

A National Partnership for Women & Families report released for Father’s Day, “Dads Expect Better: Top States for New Dads,” includes an analysis of state laws and regulations governing paid leave and workplace rights for new fathers in the United States.

The annual growth rate for U.S. health care spending will hover near historic lows in 2013 and rise at a modest pace for much of the next decade, even if the Supreme Court allows the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act to proceed, according to a government report released this week.

A full 42% of employee benefit managers hope the Supreme Court will this month rule that the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act is unconstitutional, according to research conducted by Employee Benefit News.