California employers will recall that Cal/OSHA last November issued COVID-19 emergency temporary standards that were controversial. Now the agency is looking to implement revisions to the standards to make them less burdensome and more reflective of the current state of the pandemic in the U.S. as more and more people get vaccinated. The Cal/OSH Standards…
With the recent news of Colonial Pipeline paying nearly $5 million to hackers after the criminals had made the largest fuel pipeline network in the nation inoperable, many businesses are concerned that their operations could be next. While most firms aren’t operating sprawling fuel pipelines that millions of drivers rely on, ransomware criminals are happy…
California Insurance Commissioner Ricardo Lara has approved a regulatory filing that will change the premium threshold for employers to qualify for an experience modifier (X-Mod). The approval was part of a larger regulatory filing the Workers’ Compensation Rating Bureau made to also change expected claims costs, eliminate a few class codes and make new rules…
As summer nears many companies are ramping up hiring of teen workers, and many companies are taking them on as they deal with the labor shortage as the country emerges from the pandemic. Others employ them year round. Taking on a teen worker comes with added responsibility in terms of compliance with state and federal…
In an unusual move, the Workers’ Compensation Insurance Rating Bureau of California has filed with the Department of Insurance a recommendation that benchmark workers’ comp rates in the state be increased by an average of 2.7%, effective Sept. 1 of this year. Typically, the Rating Bureau will only file for Jan. 1 or mid-year rate…
Two U.S. senators have introduced legislation that would require employers around the country with 15 or more workers to provide up to seven days of paid sick leave annually to their staff. The effort is part of a rumble that started at the state level, where a handful of states have enacted paid sick leave…
As the economy starts opening up again, so are offices, restaurants and other worksites, but because we’re not yet out of the pandemic woods, employers will need to contend with a myriad of paperwork issues, how to phase returning workers back, workplace safety compliance, and more. The process of reopening and bringing staff back needs…
The deadline is fast approaching for employers with 50 or more staff in California, and who do not already offer their employees a retirement plan, to register for the CalSavers Retirement Savings Program. As of April 7, more than 10,000 employers had already registered for the program, which will allow employees to set aside a…
The majority of employee thefts are occurring in organizations with 500 employees or less and the median loss is $357,650, according to a report by Hiscox, a specialty insurer. The main types of theft are outright theft of cash and check fraud, with rogue employees writing checks to acquaintances and trying to cover their tracks…
The costs for businesses when their employees are involved in car accidents on and off the job are staggering, at $72.2 billion a year, according to a new study. The “Cost of Vehicle Crashes to Employers ― 2019” study, released in March 2021 by the Network for Employers for Traffic Safety, looks at how much…