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NEW RESOURCES TO PROTECT WORKERS FROM HAZARDOUS CHEMICALS
November 19, 2013
Each year in the United States, tens of thousands of workers are made sick or die from occupational exposures to hazardous chemicals that are used in workplaces every day. To assist employers with keeping their workers safe, the U.S. Department of Labor's Occupational Safety and Health ...
PRESCRIPTION DRUG USE IN THE WORKPLACE CLIMBS
November 11, 2013
While overall drug use among American workers has declined over the past 25 years, the use of certain prescription medications—including amphetamine and opiates—continues to climb, according to a landmark analysis of workplace drug tests by Quest Diagnostics. The drug test ...
PROPOSED RULE TO CHANGE OSHA RECORDKEEPING REGULATIONS
November 7, 2013
The Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) has issued a proposed rule to amend its current recordkeeping regulations. The new rule seeks to improve workplace safety through improved tracking of workplace injuries and illnesses. The announcement follows the Bureau of Labor ...
NEW FORM W-9 RELEASED
November 5, 2013
The IRS has released a new Form W-9, Request for Taxpayer Identification Number and Certification and its instructions. Form W-9, which is used by a business to obtain the correct taxpayer identification number from a non-payroll worker, was revised to conform to the provisions of the ...
PROPOSED RULES ON EMPLOYER HEALTH CARE REPORTING
October 18, 2013
The Affordable Care Act (ACA) requires that certain employers report information regarding the health coverage they offer their full-time employees to the Internal Revenue Service (IRS). Known as Section 6056 reporting, employers with 50 or more full-time or full-time equivalent employees will ...
GOVERNOR SIGNS BILL RAISING THE MINIMUM WAGE
October 17, 2013
Last month we reported on the new minimum wage bill passed by the California legislature. Governor Brown has now signed the bill ( AB10 ) into law, officially raising the state’s minimum wage for the first time in five years. The California minimum wage will increase in two ...
OSHA RELEASES NEW FALL PREVENTION TRAINING GUIDE
October 16, 2013
A new OSHA Fall Prevention Training Guide with "tool box talks" is now available to educate workers on how to stay safe while working on roofs, scaffolding and ladders. According to OSHA, falls cause more deaths in construction than any other hazard. In 2011, falls accounted for over ...
MISCLASSIFIED WORKERS WILL COST EMPLOYER $1.5 MILLION
October 14, 2013
In yet another case involving employees misclassified as independent contractors, an Ohio cable and telecommunications company must pay nearly $1.5 million for failing to pay overtime compensation to some 250 employees. The U.S. District Court for the Southern District of Ohio held that the ...
FLOWCHART EXPLAINS INDIVIDUAL REQUIREMENT TO BUY HEALTH COVERAGE
October 12, 2013
A new flowchart is now available that details which individuals must purchase health insurance or pay a penalty under the Affordable Care Act (ACA). Produced by the Kaiser Family Foundation, the simple flowchart illustrates how the “individual mandate” works. Employers may ...
SPANISH VERSION OF FMLA POSTER & GUIDE RELEASED
October 11, 2013
The U.S. Department of Labor has finally released a Spanish version of the Family and Medical Leave Act (FMLA) poster. The release of the Spanish poster on September 30, 2013, comes some seven months after the department released a revised English version of the poster last February. Poster ...
