A recent U.S. Supreme Court decision that upholds an Arizona immigration law could have an impact on employers. The Supreme Court upheld lower court rulings that found Arizona’s 2007 Legal Arizona Workers Act is not pre-empted by federal law. Under the state’s law, companies that violate the law two times by knowingly hiring an illegal immigrant could lose their business license. The recent decision in Chamber of Commerce of the United States of America et al. v. Michael B. Whiting et al. was upheld in a 5-3 decision. According to the ruling, in Arizona, law requires that after hiring someone, every business in the state has to verify his or her employment eligibility by using E-Verify. This Internet-based system was established by Congress in the Illegal Immigration Reform and Immigrant Responsibility Act of 1996. The system allows employers to verify a worker’s work authorization status. In its ruling, the Supreme Court said the Immigration Reform and Control Act of 1986 pre-empts &ldquo ...

The U.S. Department of Health and Human Services is providing information on how a plan sponsor can show it’s not using reimbursements that are obtained under the Early Retiree Reinsurance Program (ERRP) as general revenue by upholding the level of its contributions to the plan. The ERRP gives partial reimbursement for the benefits paid to early retirees. It was established under the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act to encourage plan sponsors to keep up health coverage for workers who retire before they become eligible for Medicare. Here is additional information on the new rule: Measurement of contributions – When a plan sponsor can’t determine the exact extent to which its contributions under a plan fund health benefits, the sponsor may use any reasonable method to estimate the contribution. Baseline year – Plan sponsors must maintain their level of contributions for health benefits relative to a baseline year. The new rule allows plan sponsors to choose from a range ...

The Census Bureau will release its annual report on the number of people in the United States without health insurance next month. The report will include information on whether or not the improvements made in 2010 to the economy made any sort of impact in decreasing the uninsured population. Statistics show that in 2009, the number of uninsured people hit a record 50.7 million people. This is up from 46.3 million people in 2008. This comes at the same time the percentage of Americans who do not have insurance coverage rose to 16.7 percent (from 15.4 percent). In 2009, the percentage of people covered through employer-sponsored plans decreased to 55.8 percent. This also represents a record low. This number is down from 58.6 percent back in 2008. In 2009, the unemployment rate rose above 10 percent. This resulted in millions of people losing their health insurance coverage. The decline in employment-based health coverage came at the same time as the worst economic downturn since the Great Depression. The r ...

Every workplace has them at one time or another—the dreaded problem employee. Here are some things to ask yourself when trying to determine if a worker is a problem: Does he or she fit in? Let’s face it…not every employee is going to get along with everyone. And not every person you hire is going to end up being a great fit. An interview or two does not give you a full picture of what type of employee he or she will end up being. To get a better long-term picture, many employees are now hiring people for a probation period of three months. This will help give you a better idea if someone is an ideal candidate for a position. Workforce experts say you should also make sure every worker understands what is expected of them. This can be done through written policies and regular performance reviews.     Is he or she showing up for work? When an employee begins coming in to work late, leaving early or just not showing up, there could be a problem. This matter should be dis ...

Believe it or not, in worker’s comp world, it is possible for medical-only claims to become lost-time claims. Make sure you are armed with accurate information so you are not caught off guard with this happening to you! Always Send Injured Workers to the Doctor – Don’t take any chances when someone gets injured on the job. If an injury goes without being treated, it might get worse and become a larger problem than if it were addressed when it happened. Workers are sometimes concerned about missing work or having to pay for a doctor visit. Make sure all of your employees understand they should see a doctor if they are hurt. They should also know their pay will not be docked and will not have to pay for their visit to the doctor. Always communicate with your employees and let them know you care about them. Medical Care – Make sure injured workers go to the right type of medical provider. You can post a list of recommended doctors to go to in the event of an injury. Your worker’s ...