Most people agree that the explosion in technological advances over the past century has made the world a smaller and more closely linked place. And it’s also changed and expanded the way that people do business and made it easier to overcome previously impenetrable geographic barriers. Despite the ease and utility provided by modern technology, companies still continue to send their employees abroad in record numbers. And they do so for a variety of reasons. Some large MNCs (multi-national corporations) view international work experience as a core competency. Smaller businesses may see expansion into a new market via business development and marketing as critical to diversifying their consumer base. Some companies look to offshore certain parts of their operations to achieve cost savings. If your organization is considering sending even just one employee overseas, think carefully about how you plan to address the following things:

When used properly, ICs (Independent Contractors) can be an excellent way to augment business services and operations. Classification continues to be hot button issue with the IRS. Misclassifying a position as an IC (also referred to as a 1099) when the position should be classified as an employee can create significant liability for a business, small or large. One of the more well known cases in recent memory involved a suit that Microsoft settled with a group of Independent Contractors for nearly $100M. At issue in the Microsoft suit was participation in various benefit programs, including employee stock options. But even small companies may find themselves targets of litigation. To help you understand exactly what is at stake, here are some areas of risk to keep in mind:

With the rising cost of healthcare, employers have never been more aware of the connection between employee health and the company bottom line. A recent study showed that 75% of healthcare costs in the US stem from chronic illnesses like heart disease and obesity that can be addressed through wellness initiatives.

A client recently came to me to as her HR Consultant to let me know that she was going to be having twins through surrogacy and wanted to discuss the short term disability benefits that she would receive as a result of having a child. As a human resources professional, I provided her with a straight forward response – you will not receive short term disability insurance if you are not physically having the baby yourself, as short term disability benefits are a result of a medical condition, childbirth for example, that prohibits you from physically doing your job. After talking through this with her further, we moved on to discuss the differences between the company’s medical leave policy that specifically referenced childbirth (this particular organization does not offer FMLA) and parental leave policy, which offered four fewer weeks of leave than the medical leave policy. This particular employee’s frustrations were around one single question: Why am I offered less leave for the adoption of a child than if I had given birth – I still have an infant to take care of? I realized through conversations with my colleagues that parents who adopt children often have this same frustration and do not understand why they are not offered the same leave benefits as employees who give birth to a child. We are seeing more and more organizations developing leave benefits for employees that take adoption into consideration; while this does not necessarily provide equal benefits to adopting parents, it does provide them with significant benefits that were not previously provided to them. Below is a comparison of leave benefits that may be available to a new parent who is either adopting or giving birth to a child.

At Helios, we have had a number of clients implement Unlimited Paid Time Off (PTO) policies. This approach to leave is a growing trend for innovative companies working in all industries. Numerous companies are utilizing unlimited PTO to encourage a culture of freedom and responsibility.

The first of the calendar year is a popular time for Flexible Spending Account (FSA) renewals and enrollments. However, as an HR professional, I have found employees do not always have an understanding of what an FSA is and the benefits of an FSA enrollment. Nevertheless, let’s explore a few of the typical problems and questions that come up during FSA renewals and enrollments.