July 2010

Question: I have a hard time getting managers to tell me the reason why they didn’t choose to hire or interview a particular applicant. Is it necessary to include this information in my applicant flow log?

On May 20, 2010, the Department of Labor issued a final rule on the Notification of Employee Rights Under Federal Labor Laws. The rule stems from Executive Order 13496, issued by President Obama on January 30, 2009. The Executive Order was “designed to promote economy and efficiency in Government procurement” by ensuring work performed under federal government contracts “will not be interrupted by labor unrest.”

December 2009

Question: In a compliance evaluation, how does the OFCCP decide whether to ask for more compensation data?

November 2009

Question: I consistently have female and/or minority placement goals for my entry-level positions. These positions are almost exclusively filled through a temporary agency. How can I get the temporary agency to send me a more diverse candidate pool?

October 2009

Question: During the summer, my company employs several interns who are hired in the spring and terminated in the fall when they return to school. The interns are paid but do not receive benefits.
 
Are they actually employees? Do we have to track applicants, hires and terminations for internships?

September 2009

The Veterans' Employment & Training Service (VETS) has announced that the VETS-100 and VETS-100A filing deadline has been extended to October 31, 2009.

January 2008

Question: I consistently have female and/or minority placement goals for my entry-level positions. These positions are almost exclusively filled through a temporary agency. How can I get the temporary agency to send me a more diverse candidate pool?

November 2007

Question: Our company is currently in the midst of a compliance evaluation with the OFCCP. Our auditor has asked for several pieces of documentation in support of our AAP for Veterans and Individuals with Disabilities, including copies of our most recent VETS-100 form. One of our other sites was audited last year, and we were not asked to provide this documentation. Is this part of a new initiative or is this standard practice?

June 2010

The debate of who is properly classified as an independent contractor (as opposed to employee) has been challenging employers for decades. Recently there has been in increase in litigation, legislation, and enforcement over the misclassification of independent contractors.  
 
What is clear is many governmental agencies, from the IRS to the New York State Department of Labor, are involved in cracking down on employers misclassifying workers.

June 2010

Following negative publicity relating to unpaid internships -- including young workers who were forced to sanitize door handles and sweep bathrooms for no pay -- the U.S. Department of Labor has released a new set of standards for interns.

June 2010

According the NYS Department of Labor in their May 21, 2010 edition of the Labor Buzz, The House and Senate announced last week that they had reached an agreement to extend the eligibility dates for unemployment insurance and COBRA benefits through the end of the year.

March 2010

According to a local source, an employer in Upstate NY, acting as their own plan administrator, was recently fined over $17,000 for failure to comply with federal Employee Retirement Income Security Act (ERISA) Summary Plan Description (SPD) regulations.  
 
Based on an estimate from a local employee benefits firm, only 10% of companies have the required plan documents. Here are some basics of plan document compliance.

January 2010

Since January is typically the month we make resolutions for the year, here are our top recommendations to do in early 2010.

1. Review and update your employee handbook to ensure compliance with employment regulations and to keep up with best practices. Click here to see a recent article we published in the RBJ on this topic.

December 2009

On December 19, 2009, President Obama signed the 2010 Department of Defense Appropriations Act, which includes amendments to the Federal American Recovery and Reinvestment Act of 2009 that provided health care premium assistance for certain individuals.

December 2009

Regulations in New York were recently amended, requiring employers to notify employees hired after October 26, 2009, in writing, of their rate of pay, overtime rate for nonexempt employees, and regular pay date.

September 2009

On August 27, 2009, the Federal Department of Homeland Security's U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) announced a new edition of Federal Form I-9 dated (Rev. 08/07/09) that extends the form's expiration date to August 31, 2012. The previous edition of Form I-9 dated (Rev. 02/02/09) expired on June 30, 2009.

Employers are responsible for completing and retaining the Form I-9 which verifies employment eligibility for each individual they hire to work in the United States.