Employee Benefits

Why You Won’t Regret Taking Advantage of an HSA

2023-04-17T11:12:15-04:00August 16th, 2022|2022, Employee Benefits, Health Savings Accounts|

You'll be glad you took the tax breaks. Outside of housing and maybe transportation costs, healthcare will likely be your largest retirement expense. It's unfortunate, but doctor visits become more frequent, and more health problems tend to pop up as you [...]

Agencies Issue Report on Mental Health Parity and Addiction Equity Act

2023-04-17T11:12:15-04:00August 4th, 2022|2022, Benefits Administration, Employee Assistance Program (EAP), Employee Benefits, Employee Benefits Compliance, Employee Benefits Legislation, Wellness|

The DOL, HHS, and IRS issued a report to Congress on the failure by group health plans to comply with the Mental Health Parity and Addiction Equity Act (MHPAEA). The report is required by the Consolidated Appropriations Act, 2021 (CAA), which [...]

Reminder: PCORI Fee Is Due Aug. 1 for Self-Insured Health Plans

2023-04-17T11:12:16-04:00July 19th, 2022|2022, Benefits Administration, Employee Benefits, Employee Benefits Compliance, Human Resources|

At the end of last year, the IRS raised the fee that insurers or sponsors of self-insured health plans pay annually to fund the federal Patient-Centered Outcomes Research Institute (PCORI) trust fund. The new fee is $2.79 per covered [...]

Employee Benefits: Building a Benefits Communications Strategy That Encourages Employee Engagement

2023-04-17T11:12:17-04:00July 18th, 2022|2022, Benefits Administration, Employee Benefits, Human Resources|

Seventy-seven percent of employees who ranked their benefits education experience as “fair or poor” also rated their employer as “fair or poor,” according to a survey by the Employee Benefit Research Institute (EBRI). Benefits satisfaction is critical to attract [...]

Connecticut Increases Minimum Wage and Expands Employees’ First Amendment and Cannabis Rights

2023-04-17T11:12:18-04:00June 15th, 2022|2022, Connecticut News, Employee Benefits, Employee Benefits Compliance, Employee Benefits Legislation|

The following laws take effect in Connecticut on July 1, 2022. They apply to employers of all sizes. MINIMUM WAGE INCREASES Connecticut’s state minimum wage will increase to $14.00 per hour. The minimum base wage for tipped service employees [...]

How Paid Family Leave and Related Programs Can Help Your Business

2023-04-17T11:12:19-04:00June 1st, 2022|2022, Benefits Administration, Employee Benefits, Human Resources|

Employment benefits that improve quality of life, increase flexibility, and enable people to attend to their personal needs rank high among both employees and job-seekers. And yet, according to the Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS), while 79 percent of employees have [...]

Labor Alert: Department of Homeland Security Ending Temporary Policy for Form I-9 Identity Documents

2023-04-17T11:12:55-04:00April 20th, 2022|2022, Benefits Administration, COVID-19 Updates, Employee Benefits, Employee Benefits Compliance, Human Resources, Labor News|

Beginning May 1, 2022, the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) is ending its temporary Form I-9 policy that allows employers to accept List B documents that expired on or after March 1, 2020. DHS adopted the temporary policy in [...]

Connecticut Department of Labor Issues Final Proposed Connecticut Family and Medical Leave Act Regulations

2023-04-17T11:12:56-04:00April 19th, 2022|2022, Benefits Administration, Connecticut News, Employee Benefits, Employee Benefits Compliance, Employee Benefits Legislation, Labor News|

For months, employers have been eagerly awaiting updated regulations that address the revisions to the Connecticut Family and Medical Leave Act. At last, on March 22, 2022, the Connecticut Department of Labor released its final proposed amended FMLA regulations, answering questions [...]

Positive Drug Tests For U.S. Workers at Highest Level in 20 Years

2023-04-17T11:12:56-04:00April 1st, 2022|2022, Employee Assistance Program (EAP), Employee Benefits|

Paced by a continuing increase in marijuana positivity rates, the positive drug test rate for U.S. workers reached its highest level in two decades in 2021, according to an annual analysis conducted by lab services provider Quest Diagnostics. Researchers [...]

Cutting Workers Compensation Claims Through Mental Health Support

2023-04-17T11:12:59-04:00March 9th, 2022|2022, Employee Benefits, Safety Tips, Workers Compensation|

Employers have a large opportunity to reduce absenteeism, cut workers’ compensation claims and improve staff engagement by adapting how they manage mental and behavioral health in the workplace. Behavioral health claims do not only affect the individual employee, they [...]