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Please Click HerePosted on February 10, 2009 by Ruder Ware Alumni
2009 Senate Bill 46 was submitted in the Wisconsin State Senate on February 5, 2009. If adopted, the Bill will affect grievance arbitration and complying with fair-share agreements in collective bargaining agreements during contract hiatus. Under the current Municipal Employment Relations Act (MERA), an employer must maintain the status quo during contract negotiations (i.e., commonly […]
Posted on February 4, 2009 by Ruder Ware Alumni
We wish to alert you to a pending Wisconsin Senate Bill which could have a devastating impact on employers if it becomes law. The Wisconsin Fair Employment Act (WFEA) protects employees and job applicants from discrimination on certain protected grounds, such as age, sex, race, disability, marital status, arrest or conviction record, etc. Under the […]
Posted on February 2, 2009 by Ruder Ware Alumni
Employers must complete a Form I-9 (i.e., immigration) for all newly hired employees. We previously provided you with information in regard to the new I-9 form and the date it would be effective, today, February 2, 2009. The U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) has announced that it has delayed, by 60 days, until April […]
Posted on January 30, 2009 by Ruder Ware Alumni
On January 29, 2009, President Obama signed into law the Lilly Ledbetter Fair Pay Act. The Act is the first bill signed into law by President Obama since taking office. Under the new law, it is now easier for workers to sue their current and former employers for pay discrimination. The Ledbetter Fair Pay Act […]
Posted on January 23, 2009 by Ruder Ware Alumni
The Senate approved a bill today, Thursday, January 22, that will make it easier for workers to sue their employers and former employers for pay discrimination. It will likely be the first legislation that President Barack Obama signs into law. The bill overturns a 2007 Supreme Court decision that many believe resulted in workplace injustice. […]
Posted on January 13, 2009 by Mark D. Munson
Medicaid is a joint federal and state program, known as Medical Assistance in Wisconsin, which provides health care coverage to financially eligible individuals. It is the only program that pays for long-term nursing home care. Federal legislation, effective February 8, 2006, and adopted by Wisconsin, effective February 1, 2008, changed many important aspects of Medical […]
Posted on December 29, 2008 by Mary Ellen Schill
In an effort to minimize tax and financial burdens associated with IRAs and certain retirement plans (1) in current market conditions, Congress recently passed, and on December 23, the President signed into law, the Worker, Retiree, and Employer Recovery Act of 2008 (the Act). Two components of the Act, which are summarized below, provide IRA […]
Posted on December 22, 2008 by Mark D. Munson
The Wisconsin Court of Appeals recently determined that the assets within an irrevocable trust (a type of trust that cannot be revoked or amended by the person who creates it) were available to the trust-maker and had to be used for nursing home and related long-term care expenses. The case underscores the importance of having […]
Posted on December 12, 2008 by Ruder Ware Alumni
The United States Department of Labor (DOL) has released the final revised, and long awaited, regulations implementing the federal Family and Medical Leave Act (FMLA). The revised regulations are over 750 pages in length and adopt most of the positions the DOL outlined in the proposed revisions to the regulations issued in February 2008. A […]
Posted on December 11, 2008 by Mary Ellen Schill
Yesterday afternoon the IRS issued a notice delaying the date Code Section 403(b) plans must have a written plan document. Prior to this notice, Code Section 403(b) plan sponsors had to have a written plan document in place by January 1, 2009, fully compliant with the final Code Section 403(b) regulations issued in July 2007. […]