Quick Hits - October 14, 2020 - American Society of Employers - ASE Staff

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Quick Hits - October 14, 2020

Raises in 2021 unlikely for many workers:  Weaker financial results and uncertainty over the Coronavirus pandemic is driving some companies to abolish pay raises for employees next year — or hand out smaller increases than initially planned.  Roughly one in six U.S. workers won’t get a raise in 2021, according to the results of a survey late last month by human resources consulting firm Willis Towers Watson PLC. About a third of the 705 companies that participated said they have reduced the money budgeted for pay increases for next year. The surveyed companies, which employ a combined 14.3 million workers, said decisions to reduce or eliminate raises mostly stemmed from expectations that they will post weaker results and broader concerns about costs. Around half of the respondents said they plan on going ahead with their planned raises.  Source: Bloomberg 10/8/20

 

Mercer reports 4.4% employee benefit cost growth in 2021:  Employers expect moderate health benefit cost growth for 2021 of 4.4% on average compared to 2020, according to early results from Mercer’s National Survey of Employer-Sponsored Health Plans 2020. The increase, based on 1,113 employer responses since early July, is largely in line with the average annual cost growth over the past six years.  Still, health benefit cost growth is now far outpacing the Consumer Price Index and wage growth, which have fallen to nearly zero.  Even amid economic uncertainty caused by the COVID-19 pandemic, only 18% of employers responding to the survey say they will take cost-savings measures for 2021 that shift more healthcare expense to employees, such as raising deductibles or copays.  In fact, the majority of survey respondents (57%) will make no changes whatsoever to reduce cost in their medical plans in 2021. That compares to 47% making no changes last year, and just 44% in 2018.  Other enhancements planned for 2021 by responding employers include voluntary benefits (22%), such as critical illness insurance or a hospital indemnity plan and adding or improving behavioral healthcare resources (20%). More than half of employers (59%) have provided managers with training on how to support employees’ emotional and behavioral health since the onset of the pandemic or are planning to do so.  Source:  Mercer 10/1/20

 

Employees will be taking a closer look at benefits during open enrollment:   According to a new MetLife survey on open enrollment, employees are placing heightened importance on the benefits election process – with nearly half (48%) saying open enrollment is more important this year than last.  Two-thirds of these employees (67%) cite a pandemic-related reason for the increased importance placed on this year’s employee benefits enrollment. Other leading concerns are personal finance issues (34%) – including worries over financial security or losing income due to COVID-19 – and rising healthcare costs (31%).  According to the survey, employee interest in specific benefits has also grown. Roughly one in four employees are more interested in life insurance and dental insurance this year, and one in five are more interested in pre-tax health and flexible savings accounts (i.e. HSA, FSA), as well as financial planning/education tools. 40% of employees say they intend to spend more time selecting benefits from their employer this year. Nearly six in 10 (57%) previously spent a few hours or less researching and choosing their benefits, with one in eight (13%) saying they previously spent more time picking out what to watch on TV or streaming services than making selections during open enrollment.  Source: Metlife 9/22/20

Drive through job fairs: While many job fairs and hiring processes went virtual, the Wisconsin Workforce Development Board set up a series of drive-through job fairs — a move that has been well-received by employers and job seekers alike.  "We heard that there was a group in Lincoln, Nebraska, that was putting together a drive-through job fair that had had good results," Bobbi Miller, business solutions manager at the Fox Valley Workforce Development Board, said. "We decided to have our first one in July, and all 11 boards across the state of Wisconsin partnered on that first job fair [...] It gave good clarity to both companies and job seekers that on one day, one time, we were going to have a concentrated effort to get all sorts of opportunities out to job seekers." Miller said nearly 700 companies and 4,000 jobs seekers statewide participated in the July event, so they decided to keep running them. Another one held in September had similar participation across 21 locations, she said.  Source:  HR Dive 10/7/20

OSHA investigations due to COVID-19  complaints: Data given to The Washington Post showed that through the beginning of August, the Occupational Safety and Health Administration(OSHA) had opened up investigations for 348 of 1,744 complaints from workers who said their companies retaliated against them during the pandemic. 54% of the complaints were dismissed or closed without investigation, according to the report from the National Employment Law Project (NELP), a worker advocacy group. Just 2% of the total were investigated and resolved.  Source:  Washington Post 10/8/20

EEOC is requesting comments on proposed rule on conciliation process:  The Federal Register  published the U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission’s (EEOC) Notice of Proposed Rulemaking (NPRM) on conciliation, proposing to amend its procedural rules in order to enhance the effectiveness and accountability of the conciliation process.  The public now has 30 days to provide comments on the NPRM. The NPRM proposes to amend its procedural conciliation regulations governing Title VII, ADA, GINA, and the ADEA cases to outline steps that the Commission will take in the conciliation process.  The Commission believes that these requirements will enhance efficiency and transparency, and better encourage a negotiated resolution when possible. The Commission may only commence a civil action against an employer if the Commission has not been able to secure a conciliation agreement that is acceptable to the Commission.  The Commission is seeking input through the notice and comment process on the question of whether these proposed amendments will result in additional challenges to the Commission’s conciliation efforts, and whether such challenges would delay or adversely impact litigation brought by the Commission.  Source: EEOC 10/9/20

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