Employco Blog

An employee’s well-being is defined by various factors, both inside and outside of work—including physical, mental, social and financial well-being. Overall well-being is something that employees desire but can be challenging to achieve. Not only can employees who achieve well-being thrive in their personal and professional lives—they offer immense benefits to organizations.

The good news for employers is that the efforts they take to ensure employee well-being can not only help their employees and their bottom line, but are also very attainable. A Harvard Business Review survey found that 95% of employees feel that their organization has at least some control over employee well-being, with 38% reporting that they feel their organization has a high degree of control.

In response to the coronavirus pandemic, many employers find themselves revamping their remote work arrangements. According to a study from PwC, 55% of executives plan to have employees work remotely at least one day a week post-coronavirus. Likewise, the same survey found that 72% of employees would prefer to work from home at least two days a week. While some employees may desire to go back-and-forth between an on-site and remote location, 32% of employees reported that they would prefer to work entirely remotely. That means that, as leaders plan to achieve a high level of employee well-being, remote employees should be accounted for.

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With Joe Biden on pace to become the 46th president of the United States, employers can expect several changes to the workplace legal landscape over the next four years. Here are the TOP 5 expected changes following Biden’s inauguration on January 20, 2021:

1. Affordable Care Act (ACA) – President-elect Biden has pledged to strengthen the ACA including an expansion of coverage to more uninsured and underinsured. The Supreme Court’s decision in California v. Texas, which has the potential to significantly affect the future of the ACA, is expected in early 2021.

2. Employee Leaves of Absence – The U.S. workforce is anticipating the introduction of a new federal paid leave law.  Although the nation got a glimpse of temporary federal paid leave under the Families First Coronavirus Response Act (FFCRA), a new program could provide employees with up to 12 weeks of paid time off.

3. Labor Relations – Biden has been vocal with his eagerness to bolster union representation including additional protections for organizing activity and new appointments to the National Labor Relations Board (NLRB).

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Each year, the Kaiser Family Foundation conducts a survey to examine employer-sponsored health benefits trends. On October 8, 2020, Kaiser released this year’s survey results – the following notes summarize the main points of the 2020 survey:

Worker Contributions – The average worker contribution toward the premium (payroll deduction) was 17% of the total premium for single coverage and 27% for family coverage. Employees at organizations with a high percentage of lower-wage workers (where at least 35% make $25,000 or less annually) made above-average contributions toward family coverage—35% vs. 24% when compared to employees at firms with a smaller share of lower-wage workers. In terms of dollar amounts, workers contributed $1,243 and $5,588 per year toward their premiums for single coverage and family coverage, respectively.

Plan Enrollment – The following were the most common plan types in 2020:

• Preferred provider organizations (PPOs)—47% of workers covered
• High deductible health plans (HDHPs)—31% of workers covered
• Health maintenance organizations (HMOs)—13% of workers covered
• Point-of-service (POS) plans—8% of workers covered

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On September 30, 2020, the Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) published two additional answers to its list of COVID-19 frequently asked questions (FAQs). The new answers clarify when employers must report COVID-19 in-patient hospitalizations and fatalities.

Reporting Hospitalizations – OSHA requires employers to report in-patient hospitalizations only if the hospitalization occurs within 24 hours of an exposure to COVID-19 in the workplace. As a result, employers must report COVID-19 hospitalizations only if the hospitalizations are:

• For in-patient treatment; and
• The result of a work-related case of COVID-19.

The report must be submitted within 24 hours of the time the employer determines there was an in-patient hospitalization caused by a COVID-19 case. Hospitalization for diagnostic testing or observation only is not “in-patient” hospitalization.

Reporting Fatalities – OSHA requires employers to report fatalities that occur within 30 days of an exposure to SARS-CoV-2 in the workplace. Fatality reports must be submitted within eight hours of the time the employer learns that the fatality took place and that it was due to a work-related exposure.

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