EMT Health Care Reform Summary Now Avaialbe

Navigating the ever changing landscape of the Affordable Care Act is not easy, so we invite you to download our Health Care Reform Summary for all employers.  Click Here to download.

WSRQ Sarasota Talk Radio Nilon Report featuring Rick Ratner

The Nilon Report featured Rick Ratner, Denise Kowal, Nick Joshi, and Kathryn Moroney on November 14th, 2013 who discussed the Nov. 19th free seminar about changes in employment law, hosted by The Employment Management Team.    Click to hear podcast. 

Treasury modify health flexible spending arrangements 'use-or-lose' rules

The U.S. Department of the Treasury and the IRS have issued a notice modifying the “use-or-lose” rule for health flexible spending arrangements (FSAs). The updated guidance permits employers to allow plan participants to carry over up to $500 of their unused health FSA balances remaining at the end of a plan year.

Under current law, employees eligible for health FSAs have been subject to the use-or-lose rule, meaning that any account balances remaining unused at the end of the year are forfeited. Plan sponsors have the option of allowing employees a grace period permitting them to use amounts remaining unused at the end of a year to pay qualified FSA expenses incurred for up to two and a half months following year-end.

Changes
The new guidance permits employers to now allow employees to carry over up to $500 of the unused amounts left in their health FSAs for expenses in the next year. Some plan sponsors may be eligible to take advantage of the option to adopt a carryover provision as early as plan year 2013.

In addition, the existing option for plan sponsors to allow employees a grace period after the end of the plan year remains in place. However, a health FSA cannot have both a carryover and a grace period: it can have one or the other or neither.

Source: www.treasury.gov

Improving Your Internal Communications

Good internal communication is an essential ingredient of business success. 

Companies that might be very good about communicating with suppliers and customers often fail to give their internal communications the same degree of attention. Communications need to flow between people who are coordinating projects and managers to ensure the success of the business. They also need to flow from those who manage the business to the people they manage. The Forte Newsletter, which provides tips for growing businesses, recommends the following strategies:

1.     Identify objectives. The objectives of your internal communication strategy will depend upon the culture of the enterprise, its business goals, and the particular challenges it faces. Typical objectives could include sharing information between management and team members, ensuring an understanding of the organization’s overall objectives, and enabling on-demand access to key company information.

2.     Audit current practices. Once the objectives have been determined, you need to audit your current communications systems and identify what additional pathways or technologies need to be introduced to meet them. Those who use the system and depend on it are well placed to assist in this task. Form a committee made up of team members from various parts and levels in your company to conduct the audit and make recommendations for improvements to the communications systems. 

3.     Target your audiences. Different methods of communication may be needed for different groups within the company. Some sections will require specific information not needed by other parts of the business. First, identify the various audiences—senior management, production personnel, sales, and marketing for example—and the types of information each requires. Then determine the communications methods each audience needs to both send and receive this information.

4.     Set up the right communications methods. Thanks to developments in technology, there is a wide range of communications methods you can use. The list includes fixed telephones, cellular phones, faxes, the Internet, a company intranet, emails, regular meetings, and the traditional printed pieces such as memorandums and newsletters.

Employers aren't 'Paying and Dumping' employees into exchanges

Even though the play-or-pay mandate for employers with more than 50 employees was pushed back to 2015 in July, the individual mandate is still on track to take effect Jan. 1, 2014. With many exchanges now open, it was anticipated we’d see employers preparing to dump employees into the exchanges in droves.

Up to this point, however, that has surprisingly not been the case.

Read the full story here....

Small Business Committee Hearing on Retirement Savings Notes Role of PEO's

The role of professional employer organizations (PEOs) in providing access to retirement benefits was highlighted October 3, 2013, during the House Small Business Committee’s hearing on the “Challenge of Retirement Savings for Small Employers.”

One witness testified about how using a professional employer organization (PEO) helps his company provide retirement benefits to its employees. “By using a PEO to access 401(k) benefits, QTS no longer has the administrative burden associated with a 401(k), my personal risk associated with being a plan administrator is minimized, and QTS is able to offer employee benefits that are competitive with larger companies,” said Ray Rucksdashel, chief financial officer for Houston-based Quest-Tec Solutions (QTS). PEOs provide payroll, benefits, tax compliance, and other HR services to more than 250,000 small and mid-sized companies nationwide. Through a PEO, the employees of small businesses gain access to employee benefits such as 401(k) plans; health, dental, life, and other insurance; dependent care; and other benefits typically provided only by large companies. Approximately 2.5 million people are covered by a PEO arrangement.

A recent study by economists Laurie Bassi and Dan McMurrer (McBassi & Company) showed that PEOs provide access to retirement plans for small businesses that may not otherwise sponsor them, and that the employees of these businesses participate at much higher rates. Ninety-eight percent of PEOs offer some type of retirement plan to their small business clients. By contrast, in 2011, only 16 percent of all employees of the smallest companies (those employing fewer than 10 workers), and 30 percent of those at companies with 10 to 49 employees, were offered any type of retirement plan, according to the Employee Benefit Research Institute (EBRI).

“If Congress is looking to increase small business access to retirement plans and participation in retirement plans, it need look no further than PEOs,” said Pat Cleary, president and CEO of the National Association of Professional Employer Organizations (NAPEO). “PEOs make it possible for hundreds of thousands of small businesses to provide retirement plans for their employees, and they make real retirement savings achievable for millions of small business employees.”

Click to read a one-page summary that Ray Rucksdashel referenced in his testimony.

Affordable Care Act: Exchanges will open despite government shutdown

Now that Congress has “shut down” the federal government, will the public exchanges open on time?

State and federal officials say yes. They believe enrollment can open, on schedule, and operate normally for a while even if the federal government has to function without “enacted annual budget appropriations.”

Click to read the full article in BenefitsPro.

Rick Ratner, President

EMT

How the Government Shutdown Could Affect Your Small Business

It appears all but certain that, effective tomorrow, the federal government will shut down.  If you run a small business, what can you expect?

Unfortunately, you will still have to pay your taxes on time.  However, according to an article in the Wall Street Journal this morning, there may be procedural changes as to how the payments are made and reported.  It is advised that you keep good records of your tax liabilities. 

Your third quarter Payroll Tax Returns are due this month.  You still need to submit them on time, but the article states that this filing could “fall by the wayside”, plus if you are in negotiation with the IRS over previous issues, you may not hear back from them for a while.

If you are doing business with a PEO – such as EMT – you needn’t worry about either of these, because we deal with the IRS, not you.

See the full article here and call us with any questions regarding this, or any payroll issue.

Rick Ratner,

President

Where Are Health Insurance Rates Going?

Many business owners are being advised by their insurance agents to purchase or renew their policies now before the small group health insurance skyrocket next year due to the Affordable Care Act. But will this really be the case? According to Healthcare 411 from 10 News in Tampa, some are predicting the opposite: the rates will actually fall.

Quoting from the report aired on September 25, 2013, "Kevin MCarty, Florida's Insurance Commissioner, is predicting a much larger increase under the Affordable Care Act.  In documents released in July, he suggested health insurance rates on the individual market could jump 30-40% in 2014."

But many feel that prediction is overblown. The Rand Corporation, a non-profit research group, recently released a report looking at the potential insurance costs for small businesses — fewer than 100 people in ten states, including Florida. The study found the cost of equal plans would likely drop about six percent under the Affordable Care Act.

"The main reason insurers can lower rates over time is that they have a larger base to spread the risk over," said Tom White, an insurance agent interviewed for the story. "And that's what we're really trying to do — get everyone insured."

Check out the report here.

I agree with Mr. White. Rates will be affected by the number of currently uninsured individuals who become insured. And to quote an old phrase: "the more the merrier".

Rick Ratner,
President
EMT

 

OfficeMax pays for bias and retaliation charges

OfficeMax in Sarasota agreed to pay $85,000 and change its recruiting practices to settle a retaliation lawsuit filed by the U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC). 

According to the lawsuit, a Hispanic sales associate was fired and complained to human resources that he was fired because of his race. Human resources ordered the manager to reinstate the associate, but after doing so, began to subject the associate to “unwarranted and disparate discipline, disciplinary actions based on false accusations,” and lowered the associate's hours in an attempt to have the associate quit. 

The associate continued to complain about the treatment before finally quitting. In addition to the monetary settlement, OfficeMax agreed to recruit more black and Hispanic applicants in the Sarasota/Bradenton area, among other provisions. 

The Greater Sarasota Chamber Expo Winner!

It was a pleasure to see so many organizations attend the expo hosted by the Greater Sarasota Chamber of Commerce! We had a raffle drawing for two dozen Titleist golf balls, and the winner was Dr. Alexander Gaukhman from Venetian Dental! Congratulations doctor!

Best Companies to Work For

Here is the list for Fortune Magazine's 100 Best Companies to Work For: Best Companies to Work For

What makes these companies great places to work? Why is it important? Happy employees are more productive, and since they are the face and voice of your company, you need them to exude a positive vibe whenever they interact on your behalf. If employees have mostly positive experiences while at work, there will be less absenteeism and turnover. Read what the top companies are doing differently. Then call us to help you determine and implement the smartest ideas for your company and employees.

12 Most Odd Excuses to Use Employee Sick Days

Here is a funny list of some of the most odd excuses employees have used to get their sick days:

• Employee’s 12-year-old daughter stole his car and he had no other way to work. 
• Employee didn’t want to report it to the police. 
• Employee said bats got in her hair. 
• Employee said a refrigerator fell on him. 
• Employee was in line at a coffee shop when a truck carrying flour backed up and dumped the flour into her convertible. 
• Employee said a deer bit him during hunting season. 
• Employee ate too much at a party.
• Employee fell out of bed and broke his nose. 
• Employee got a cold from a puppy. 
• Employee’s child stuck a mint up his nose and had to go to the ER to remove it. 
• Employee’s brother-in-law was kidnapped by a drug cartel while in Mexico. 
• Employee drank anti-freeze by mistake and had to go to the hospital. 
• Employee had a headache after going to too many garage sales.