Benefits Employee Benefits: What Managers

Benefits Employee Benefits: What Managers are Required to Know Legally required benefits Unemployment Compensation Worker's Compensation Benefits Payment for time not worked F. Findings G. Conclusion In these recessionary times, employment benefits have never been more important. For some people, these benefits mean the difference between survival and destitution. Legally required employment benefits comprise nearly one quarter of the benefits package that employers provide. These benefits include employer contributions to the Social Security program, including unemployment insurance and workers' compensation insurance.

Such benefits together comprise approximately twenty-one and a half percent of payroll costs ("Chapter 21 -- federal insurance," 2011). In terms of importance, it is critical that both employers and employees understand these benefits fully and the need to make their contributions regularly. The system can not function without the fair contributions of all of the stakeholders. The primary issue is one of education to ensure and maximize participation. However, this is not the only issue.

Employers also need to be knowledgeable about the regulations to avoid legal disputes that can be costly and time consuming both for the employer and for the employee. B. Legally required benefits Social Security Social Security is the insurance system that is administered by the federal government. Both the employer and employee are legally required to pay into the system. This includes up to a fixed percentage of the employee's pay up to a maximum limit.

The most notable exceptions are for state and local government employees in retirement systems that existed before the passage of the Social Security Act ("Social security," 2011). Social Security provides an insurance plan that is designed to insure that the individuals against a loss of earnings which may result from unemployment, retirement, disability, or death. The plan does not pay off except in cases where there is a loss of income due to the loss of employment that has occurred.

To be eligible for old age and survivors insurance (OASI) and disability and unemployment insurance under the Social Security Act, the individual must have been engaged in employment that is covered by the Act. Most private employment, self-employment, active military service and employment in certain nonprofit organizations and governmental agencies are covered under the Act ("Social security," 2011). C. Unemployment Compensation Unemployment insurance gives coverage of workers whose jobs were terminated through no fault of their own.

Financial payments are provided for a period of time or until the person can find a new job. Unemployment payments are meant to provide the unemployed worker with time to find new employment that is equivalent to that which was lost, reducing financial distress. Without this benefit, many workers might be forced to take employment for which they were much overqualified or end up on public aid. This compensation has also been justified on the grounds of providing the economy with consumer income during periods of economic recession.

The payment system is shared between the federal and state governments. The law was written in such a manner as to encourage individual states to establish their own systems ("Unemployment insurance (ui)," 2011). D. Worker's Compensation The purpose of workers' compensation insurance is to protect employees from the loss of income and/or to cover the extra expenses that are associated with job-related illnesses or injuries. These may include accidents where the employee does not lose time from work.

In addition, it is generally allowed in the case of accidents in which the employee loses time from work, including temporary partial disability, permanent partial or total disability, occupational diseases, death, noncrippling physical problems, such as deafness. This also includes injuries or issues suffered at employer-sanctioned events including social events, travel to organization business and disabilities or injuries that can be attributed to an employer's negligence. Several states now allow workers' compensation payments for the job-related cases of depression, anxiety and also mental illnesses.

Though some kind of workers' compensation is exists in all 50 states, the particular requirements, procedures and payments vary among them. Certain provisions are part of virtually all state programs. In general, the laws provide for the replacement of lost income, medical expense payments, rehabilitation, survivor death benefits and lump-sum disability. Employee's do not have to sue the employer to get this compensation. It is normally paid through an insurance system that is financed through premiums paid by the employers.

Workers' compensation premiums are based upon the accident and illness record of that organization. Obviously, larger numbers of paid claims results in higher premiums. The medical expenses are normally covered in full the under workers compensation laws. This is a no-fault system. In it, all job-related illnesses and illnesses are covered regardless no matter where the fault for the disability is placed. The workers' compensation coverage is compulsory in almost all states. In some states, it is elective for the employer.

When this is so, employers who reject the insurance coverage and give up many legal protections. The benefits paid out are provided generally for four types of disability, including permanent total disability, partial disability, temporary total disability and temporary partial disability (Workers' compensation, 2011). E. Payment for Time Not Worked Many times even if one is not engaged in performing your job, federal law entitles them to earn pay for that time spent under the employer's control or benefits. Commuting to and from work is generally not included.

However, a person may be entitled for compensation for other time that they cannot spend freely because of their employment responsibilities. If your job requires a person to attend a meeting, lecture, or for training time, the employee must be paid for this time. This includes the time the employee spends traveling to the event.

Required service calls (on-call time) refers to time that they have little or no control over and cannot use for themselves The job is required to pay for the time a person is required to remain on the premises while waiting for the work assignment. The type of payments may even require sleep breaks for certain types of employment or shift work where the person is required to be available for on-call duty ("Receiving payment for," 2011). F.

Findings Many workers are not always paid the benefits that they are eligible for under the law. This is especially the case with payment for time not worked. Now, the boundary between work and non-work time is significantly blurred. Many employers expect employees to check emails at home or work remotely from home. Many are working flex-time or varying types of schedules and under conditions that had not.