“Your most valued asset isn’t your house, car, or retirement account. It’s the ability to make a living.” No one foresees needing disability benefits.  But, should a problem arise, the educated and informed employee can plan for the future by purchasing disability insurance to help cover expenses when needed. When you ask people what is the number one reason disability insurance is needed, most…

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While there’s plenty of talk about work/life balance, many employees want to feel human while at work, too. Being able to bring their whole selves, according to “3 Ways to Create a More Human Workplace,” from Workforce, is an essential piece of a welcoming, inclusive workplace environment. Putting employees first as a defined company value means helping team members feel connected, valued, and like their…

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It’s too long, inconsistent, or redundant. Like with your house, when you live with an employee handbook for a while, you collect things and it gets cluttered. Your handbook gets longer and runs the risk of having internal inconsistencies. Once or twice a year, it’s a good idea to give it a thorough review to remove inconsistent or redundant policies, plus make it shorter and…

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  The world is connected nowadays through our screens. Whether it be email, texting, websites, Facetime, or social media; we all use technology to connect us to others. According to Hubspot, an online marketing and sales software provider, consumers are on social networks more than ever before. They wrote:   “In our survey of 1,091 global internet users, we’ve found people have dramatically increased content…

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Summer internships offer students opportunities to gain real-world experience and hands-on career development. Conversely, internship programs give employers access to highly motivated and educated young workers and give junior managers more experience training and supervising. There are benefits for everyone involved. However, there are some potential legal and administrative pitfalls that many employers overlook. One of the largest issues is determining what interns should be…

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Friday, April 27, the Internal Revenue Service (IRS) announced that the 2018 annual contribution limit to Health Savings Accounts (HSAs) for persons with family coverage under a qualifying High Deductible Health Plan (HDHP) is restored to $6,900. The single-coverage limit of $3,450 is not affected. This is the final word on what has been an unusual back-and-forth saga. The 2018 family limit of $6,900 had…

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  Being a savvy customer can save you money on your prescription drugs!

Curious about when you should notify a participant about a change to their health care plan?  The answer is that it depends!  Notification must happen within one of three time frames: 60 days prior to the change, no later than 60 days after the change, or within 210 days after the end of the plan year. For modifications to the summary plan description (SPD) that…

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Did you know that you can save time and money on your prescription drugs by simply signing up for a discount card online? With savings as much as 80% off, these discount cards keep your health care costs down even when the prices of prescriptions are sharply rising.  At no cost to the patient, discount drug programs negotiate the price of medicines with pharmacies and…

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