Offering employee benefits is one way a company must competes in today’s marketplace to retain old employees and attracts new ones. These benefit packages may range from offering basic health insurance to additional discretionary and perk benefits such as vacation and retirement packages. Benefit packages are often a large portion of employee costs and Federal mandates require an employer to carry and offer certain benefits even if they offer nothing else. Federally required employee benefits make up approximately a quarter of the costs associated with employer offered benefit packages. Some of these mandated benefits include Social Security, Worker’s Compensation Insurance, and the Family Medical Leave Act.
Social Security along with Medicare, are benefit taxes that are equally paid by the employer and the employee in the form of a payroll tax. This tax constitutes the largest portion of the federally mandated benefits with its purpose being to “help provide financial support to workers and their families when workers retire, die, or become disabled. Medicare provides healthcare assistance to older workers and to people with long-term disabilities … often referred to as FICA (Federal Insurance Contributions Act) or OASDI (old age, survivors, and disability insurance) for Social Security deductions and as MHI (Medicare hospital insurance)” (BLS.org, 2005). In other words, Social Security and Medicare provides for the needs of both individuals and their families. This program protects aging individuals and the disabled from expenses that they cannot afford and that may drain their savings. Social Security is an insurance system administered by the federal government and as stated before, it is mandatory for both employees and emp...
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...mployees for longer periods of time. These benefits give certain assurances for both the employee as well as the employer, therefore should remain the obligation of both the individual and the business providing them.
Employer benefits must be competitive to attract and keep quality employees but the federal government recognizes that “perk” benefits will not prepare and sustain employees for everything. Federally required employee benefits supported by both the employer as well as the employee such as Social Security, Worker’s Compensation Insurance, and the Family Medical Leave Act are important benefits to our society by providing certain assurances for a stable tomorrow.
Works Cited
http://www.bls.gov/opub/ooq/2005/summer/art02.pdf
http://www.primepay.com/insurance-benefits/mandated-employee-benefits.aspx
http://www.dol.gov/dol/topic/benefits-leave/fmla.htm
Commonly associated with pay for employees, benefits is the second biggest obstacle for management. Like Volkswagen starts employees off at the basic pay the unions would achieve, a similar benefits program should be implemented (Greenhouse, 2014). The passing of the Affordable Health Care Act has made it possible for many citizens to receive coverage but it is basic at best. GMFC should create a plan based off of the Health Care Act and unionized plans and allow for extras to be added on. This allows for employees to pick the benefits package that works best for them.
The push for Congress to pass legislation protecting the rights of employees and their retirement was inevitable. Retirement plans are extremely important for all working individuals. Having funds to keep or exceed ones current standard of living and to enjoy one’s life beyond expectations after retire...
When the government provides elders with medical case, they relieve the middle class from the burden of caring for their relatives, through medical bill payments. Both classes also benefit from the welfare state (social benefits provided by company employers). The federal government ensures social welfare through tax expenditures, whereby benefits are subsidized and the employer employee payments are not taxed. Tax expenditures allow the government to finance these classes without utilizing direct spending. These expenditures are costly to the government, however they make home ownership less expensive, which benefits society as a whole. Congress has tried to limit several programs, although their popularity trumps Congress’s
Medicare is a social policy many of our seniors look to for their stability when they reach 65
Medicare and Medicaid are one of important government programs. According to Medicaid.gov site, there are more than 4.6 million low-income seniors enrolled in Medicare and about 8.3 million people that are enrolled in both Medicare and Medicaid. Anyone that enrolled with Medicare and limited income and resources are eligible to get assistance paying for their premiums and out-of-pocket medical expenses from Medicaid. Not only does Medicaid cover additional services, but, services covered by both programs are first paid by Medicare with Medicaid in the difference up to the state’s payment limit (Medicaid.gov, 2015) .
Medicare was designed as a universal healthcare program for individuals 65 years old and older. This program is funded by Medicare taxes and general federal funding withholding taxes. Medicare is a partnership between federal and state with the goal to provide medical insurance to the elderly that is poor and disabled. Generally all people who are 65 years or older and qualify for social security will automatically qualify for Medicare.
Medicare and Medicaid are two of the United States largest broken systems, which must sustain themselves in order to provide care to their beneficiaries. Both Medicare and Medicaid are funding by a joint effort between the federal government and the local state government. If and when these governments choose to cut funding or reduce spending, Medicare and Medicaid take the biggest hit. Most people see these two benefits as one in the same, two benefits the government takes out of their pay check to help fund health care. While the government does deduct a sum from paychecks everywhere, Medicare and Medicaid are very two very different programs.
Insurance is a factor in the health of Americans. Most companies are required to offer insur...
The social security act was created by President Franklin D. Roosevelt so that he could put in place provisions in order to help the elderly. The social security act a document that helps impoverished citizens, such as the elderly and physically impaired receive benefits after retirement. Citizens’ in America during the great depression where expected to work weather elderly or physically disabled. These citizens weren’t afforded the financial stability to retire so work was a necessity to acquire money. “Prior to social security, the elderly routinely faced the prospect of poverty upon retirement” (U.S SSA). This effect of the great depression led to a lot death and homes turning into singled parent homes with no income. “The widespread of suffering brought numerous proposals of national old-age insurance system” (U.S SSA). Roosevelt and his administration saw a problem and creating the social security act. The social security act contributed to the elimination of the great depression and the impoverished America.
Social Security is a public program designed to provide income and services to individuals in the event of retirement, sickness, disability, death, or unemployment. In the United States, the word social security refers to the programs established in 1935 under the Social Security Act. Societies throughout history have devised ways to support people who cannot support themselves. In 1937 the government began issuing Social Security identification cards to all citizens. Each card had a unique number that the government used to keep track of a person’s earnings and the taxes collected from those earnings that went to finance Social Security benefits. The Social Security Act is an act in which taxes would be deducted from workers earnings to finance both old age benefits and unemployment compensation. The government began collecting Social Security taxes in 1937 and putting them in a trust fund. It was a fund that the government could use to pay benefits, cover administrative costs, and invest in securities to earn interest.
Medicare is a federally governed insurance program, primarily serving Americans over the age of 65, younger disabled meeting specific disability criteria, and dialysis patients having permanent kidney failure. Medicare is linked to Social Security, is not income based, and is available to every American meeting the requirements of the program. Those entitled to Medicare can select Original Medicare Part A (Hospital Insurance) and Part B (Medical Insurance) paying co-insurance and deductibles or opt to add Part C (Medicare Advantage Plans) paying a monthly premium and co-payments normally less than the out-of-pocket expenses for Original Medicare.
Medicare is a national social insurance program, run by the U.S. federal government since 1966 that promises health insurance for Americans aged 65 and older and younger people with disabilities. Being the nation’s single largest health insurance program, covering a large population for a wide range of health services, Medicare's funding is a fundamental part of it sustainability. Medicare is comprised of several different parts, serving different purposes, some of which require separate funding. In general, people at the age of 65 and older who have been legal residents of the United States for at least 5 years are eligible for Medicare. Same is true with people that have disabilities under 65, if they receive Social Security Disability Insurance benefits. Medicare involves four parts: Part A is hospital insurance. Part B is additional medical insurance, that Part A doesn't cover. Part C health plans, also mostly known as Medicare Advantage, are another way for original Medicare beneficiaries to receive their Part A, B and D benefits. Medicare Part D covers many prescription drugs, some of which are covered by Part B. Medicare is a major operation, not only needing adequate administering but the necessary allocated funds to keep this massive system afloat.
Health insurance is very important in life. It is for this reason that insurance companies have designed different types of insurance as a strategy to provide services to all categories of people. Before purchasing insurance for an organization, there are considerations that should be put in place in deciding the best insurance for the employees. One of the most important factors is the number of employees. The mode of employment also matters, such as whether employees are full time or part time.
The succeeding paragraphs will explain how innovations in employee benefits can improve the overall competitive compensation strategy of the organization. In order to maintain their competitive edge, companies need to fully understand that as the needs of their employee’s change, so does their benefit plans. Companies need to find innovative ways of engaging employees that encourage and support their commitment and improve their performance.
A compensation package includes salary but also includes other non-salary benefits such as: health-care benefits, 401(k) plans, PTO (paid time off) and other perks. Businesses often utilize experienced Human Resources professionals to review, update and create salary scales and compensation packages for new hires. The total compensation package is often used as means of attracting employees who will complement the organization and should be consistently reviewed, acting as an incentive for retaining qualified staff. “Organizations that are not able to develop competitive pay scales along with strong compensation packages, face the risk of a competitor offering a more attractive package, which can result in employee turnover” (Dias, 2011, pg.