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Am I Required to Offer COBRA?

Question: How do I determine if I have to offer COBRA to our employees for their health insurance? We are ‘on the bubble’ with 21 employees this year, but some are part time.  Answer: According to the Department of Labor, group health plans for employers with 20 or more employees on more than 50 percent […]

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Voluntary Classification Settlement Program

Question: What is the new Voluntary Classification Settlement Program (VCSP) and what, if anything, does my company need to do? Answer: The new Voluntary Classification Settlement Program (VCSP) was developed by the IRS to provide payroll tax relief to employers that reclassify their workers (as employees) for future tax periods. Part of the Fresh Start initiative […]

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Paying for Smartphone Usage

Question: Many of our employees have smartphones. Do we have to pay them for every time they use it outside of regular working hours? Answer: This is becoming a much bigger issue, as more companies are using smartphones as a tool to improve efficiency, productivity, and accessibility for their employees. When talking about nominal usage […]

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Volunteer Time

Question: Can my employee volunteer time to my non-profit organization or an event sponsored by the employer? Answer: For an exempt employee, ABSOLUTELY! There are no concerns regarding payment for an exempt employee under the FLSA, and they can actually be required to assist as part of their job, if it is part of their […]

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Snow Storm Pay

Question: What do you pay when a snow storm hits? Answer: This winter has been one for the record books, and with nearly two months of winter left to go there is a good chance that companies will be faced with this question. Fortunately, two Labor Department opinion letters help clarify the confusing issue of […]

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When to Offer a Part-Time Employee Company Benefits

Question: How quickly do we need to offer benefits once a part-time employee is working 40 or more hours per week? The employee is regularly scheduled to work 30 hours per week and is ineligible for coverage. However, the employee is currently working on a major project where the hours worked tend to often exceed […]

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Exemption Status of Inside Sales

How do you handle the exemption status for Inside Sales employees?

NEWSLETTER DISCLAIMER

The recommendations and opinions provided by Strategic HR and its staff are advisory only and are based on general human resource management fundamentals, practices and principles, and are not legal opinions or guaranteed outcomes. This information is provided with the understanding that the user assumes the risk of verifying information used from this site when interpreting it for their own use. We strongly recommend, as part of a team approach to management, that companies consult with their legal counsel to address specific legal concerns related to human resource issues.