Granite Insurance Brokers

Take a look at our important news and updates for November 2015 - they are worth checking out. Find out the 2016 changes to tax benefits and retirement plan limits. Learn why there will be no social security benefit increase for 2016. And check out our section on holiday bonus know-how: 3 Guidelines for Employers as well as get more ideas on how to reward your employees. 

In this age of technology and communication convergence, you cannot help but be involved in technologies and innovations that revolve around computers, cellular phones and the World Wide Web. But as we go around our daily lives with these technologies, there are times that we are vulnerable to cyber security breaches.October 2015 marks the 12th Annual National Cyber Security Awareness Month 

Enrollment season is upon us, making it prime time for your benefits broker to unveil new and different ways to engage employees and help them make their benefits decisions.

I wanted to pass on some useful information to you. As you may know in 2016 (for reporting on calendar year 2015) employers are expected to be compliant with ACA reporting requirements. Incorrect filings will not be penalized for calendar year 2015 filing (reported in 2016) if employers file on time and make a good faith effort to comply, but it is never too early to get a grasp on reporting requirements.

Open enrollment season is just around the corner for many employers, are you ready? This is the time of year when eligible employees start reviewing your companies offerings and decide which benefits to select.  Your plans may stay the same this year, with adjustment for any changes in the law, while other plans may feature significant new benefits. You can make the open enrollment process easier by proactively promoting employee engagement and making resources readily available to employees. 

Take a look at our important news and updates for September 2015 - they are worth checking out. Be prepared and know what to expect for Q4 renewals.You will find that access to health care remains high on the list of employer-provided benefits.Learn how to satisfy disclosure requirements for group health plans by using the wrap summary plan description (SPD).Find 3 guidelines for handling a difficult employee and get tips on how to maintain a positive and productive workforce.

Did you know that certain ACA provisions may apply to your company depending on your workforce size and structure? I thought you may find this infomation useful to help you know which provisions apply to your business. The IRS is reminding employers that the size and structure of their workforce will help determine which parts of the Affordable Care Act (ACA) may apply to them. Calculating the number of employees is especially important for employers that have close to 50 employees or whose workforce fluctuates during the year.

In the past few weeks Covered California sent out a letter notifying members that they must give their consent to Covered CA to verify their income and family size to determine their subsidy eligibility for their health plan in 2016. If you have employees that are members of Covered CA it is a good idea to send them a reminder to provide consent no later than the deadline of 9/30/15 so that they may be eligible for the 2016 subsidy. If they do not reply by the deadline their subsidy will automatically end on 12/31/15. 

There's been changes made to the new statewide paid sick law. As you know, effective July 1, 2015, California's new mandatory paid sick leave law requires virtually all employers to provide workers a minimum of three days of paid sick leave each year. After the rollout of the new law, just two weeks later on July 13, 2015, in an attempt to treat some critical areas of concern and clarify others, amendments were approved. In the amendments you will find clarification regarding which workers are covered, how the paid time off is accrued/calculated, and protections for employers that already provide paid sick leave. Key highlights of the changes are presented below that you may find useful:

This month you will find many new news updates that are worth a read! There are proposed changes to overtime eligibility rules for "White Collar" works, the ACA information reporting penalties will increase in 2016. You will also find ways to avoid employee misclassification under the FSLA and be sure to checkout the 5 guidelines to protecting employees from heat stress in this hot summer month.