Week In Review
September 08, 2015
Annual EEO-1 survey now open
The Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC) announced that it has completed its mailing of the 2015 EEO-1 survey notification letters and the survey is now open. The EEO-1 is an annual survey that must be filled out by all private employers with 100 or more employees, and federal government contractors or first-tier subcontractors with 50 or more employees and a contract/subcontract of $50,000 or more. The filing deadline is September 30, 2015. The EEOC noted that the EEO-1 report provides valuable employment data by race/ethnicity, gender, and job categories and is used by researchers, private attorneys, and human resource staff in developing affirmative action plans. It is also used in the Commission’s Title VII enforcement activity.
Employer plans that do not provide hospital coverage and physician services do not provide minimum value
The IRS has issued proposed regulations providing that an eligible employer sponsored group health plan does not provide minimum value (MV) if it excludes substantial coverage to employees for in-patient hospitalization services or physician services. An employee or family member who is offered coverage under an eligible employer-sponsored plan that offers affordable MV coverage is not eligible to receive a premium tax credit for coverage in a qualified health plan. An applicable large employer may be liable for a shared responsibility assessment if one or more of its full-time employees receives a premium tax credit. An eligible employer-sponsored plan provides MV only if, in addition to covering at least 60 percent of the total allowed costs of benefits provided under the plan, the plan benefits include substantial coverage of inpatient hospitalization and physician services. The proposed regulations will apply for plan years beginning after November 3, 2014. However, for purposes of the employer shared responsibility provisions, the changes to the minimum value regulations may not apply before the end of the plan year beginning no later than March 1, 2015.
DOL will not extend comment period on FLSA overtime proposal
The Department of Labor (DOL) will not extend the time for submitting comments on its controversial proposal updating and substantially changing overtime regulations. The period closed on September 4, 2015. A key feature of the proposal is its revision of the so-called “white collar” exemptions that establish the threshold above which employers are not required to pay certain employees overtime wages. The proposal would more than double – from $23,660/year to $50,440/year – the current floor below which the white-collar exemptions from overtime would not apply.
SESCO recommends that clients review all applicable policy and practices to ensure compliance. For assistance, contact us at 423-764-4127 or by email at sesco@sescomgt.com
