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VIEWPOINT: IRS Issues Guidance on Implementing ARPA COBRA Subsidy
On May 18, 2021, the Internal Revenue Service (IRS) issued notice 2021-31 (Notice) which provides additional guidance and clarifications concerning the new COBRA premium assistance provisions enacted under the American Rescue Plan Act of 2021 (ARPA). Under ARPA, employers are required to provide temporary 100-percent COBRA premium subsidies for certain eligible individuals who elect continuation coverage that […]
VIEWPOINT: Governor Signs Law Waiving Evaluation Requirements for 2020-21 School Year
On June 7, 2021, Gov. Andrew Cuomo signed into law a bill that amends the tenure process for probationary teachers and principals to account for changes necessary to the normal procedure due to the COVID-19 pandemic regarding annual professional performance reviews (APPRs) for the 2020-21 school year. This bill would allow teachers and principals who were appointed
VIEWPOINT: Dear Rusty: When Is the Best Time to Claim Social Security?
Dear Rusty: I am now turning 64, and I’d like to know the best time to claim Social Security. Signed: Anxious to Retire Dear Anxious: First, please understand that there is no one “best time” to claim your Social Security benefit, because when you should claim depends upon several factors. These include your current health,
VIEWPOINT: The Art of Compliance: Doing What’s Right, Not Just What’s Required
The rest of society got a taste of what corporate compliance officers go through when the COVID pandemic forced restrictions and requirements on the entire population. Suddenly, people were told to wear masks, social distance, and wash their hands more regularly and thoroughly than ever before. Plenty of people didn’t like that, trying to dodge the new
CEO FOCUS: Help is Here for Firms Seeking State Pandemic Small Business Recovery Grants
We have heard directly from so many businesses, about the multitude of challenges they face, having been hit hard by the pandemic, including gaps in critical grant funding. [On June 3], along with New York State Assemblyman Al Stirpe, and the South Side Innovation Center, we announced opportunities are available for assisting companies in accessing the state’s
VIEWPOINT: Including More Voices in Decisions May Bring Discomfort & Results
When companies struggle, whether because of a bad economy, poor decisions, or other factors, top management’s reaction is often to become tight-lipped about the turbulent situation. Employees are shut out from strategy discussions, and any ideas they might have for fixing the problem go unheard. But in many if not most cases, such secretiveness is the wrong
VIEWPOINT: 5 Tips to Make Entrepreneurs Resilient When Challenges Threaten their Business
Many entrepreneurs discover that building a business brings difficult challenges, which in turn require resilience to overcome. But simply having the capacity to recover and keep going doesn’t always lead to better results. Resilience in the context of long-term business success also means learning from past difficulties and, as a result, changing direction to the right path.
VIEWPOINT: The Path to Business Success? Treat Employees as Assets, Not Expenses
Any number of factors can cause businesses to struggle. A lack of working capital. Poor planning. Ineffective management. But one factor that always affects business performance is employee engagement and the degree to which employees feel valued by their company. Your company’s profitability depends on its people — and you want your team to be composed of
VIEWPOINT: Record-high public pension-fund return won’t necessarily mean lower pension costs
The cost to taxpayers of New York’s generous (and constitutionally guaranteed) pension benefits for state and local-government employees depends largely on the performance of pension-fund investments. So when Comptroller Thomas DiNapoli announced recently that the state Common Retirement Fund had earned a record return of 33.55 percent last year — nearly five times the assumed rate —
VIEWPOINT: U.S. DOL Withdraws Independent-Contractor Regulations
On May 6, the U.S. Department of Labor (USDOL) withdrew its final regulations that would have revised the standard for determining whether a worker is an employee covered under the Fair Labor Standards Act (FLSA) or an independent contractor who is not subject to the FLSA’s minimum wage and overtime requirements. According to the USDOL, the independent-contractor
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