United States Department of Labor Case Study - Assignment Example

?   United s Department of Labor Case Study Captivating features and how each feature used to monitor employees’ benefits The Consolidated Omnibus Budget Reconciliation Act (COBRA) supplies the employees and their households; without health benefits, with the rights to continue with group health benefits. This effect for a certain timeframe, under unusual situations which includes resignations and unavoidable cases of unemployment abridged hours of work, shifts in jobs, death cases, divorce or separations, and other life occurrences. Individuals who qualify for the programs require disbursing the premium exclusively to cover a maximum of one hundred and two percent of the plan cost. COBRA assimilation by parliament took place in the year 1986, and its health benefits provisions prove accredited. The law reviews the ‘Employee Retirement Income Security Act’, the ‘Internal Revenue Code’ and the ‘Public Health Service Act’ ensure continuation of collective health coverage which would not have been in existence (United States & United States, 2007). Employers with more than 20 employees, for more than a year in the program, have the benefit of extension of health coverage, designed for their employees and their families, in cases where the coverage plans deems ending. Cobra gives out the methods by which the employees and their families can elect coverage continuation through their employers (United States & United States, 2007). Compliance with the federal laws Cobra ensures that it complies with the federal laws and any other related agencies. Its department of labor and treasury has power over private sector collective health plans. The Department of Health and Human Services expresses the operational law coverage affecting public sectors health plans. The labor section’s deductive and authoritarian accountability confines the release, and notification needs of COBRA. Number issuing done to customers in case one needs clarifications of any form. COBRA’s activities are regulated by the Internal Revenue Service, Department of the Treasury, it monitors their qualifications regarding, coverage and premiums, the continuation coverage needs for collective health plans. The departments responsible for implementation of these provisions are the labor and treasury departments (Jasper, 2009). How employees use this information to ensure that their right are protected Information is useful in ensuring the rights of employees are protected in that when the employees know who is legible for compensation, and in what cases they can claim compensation; there would be fewer cases of grievances in the organization. The employees are provided with contacts on who to consult in case they have any query relating to temporary extension of their health returns. Employees should always ensure that; COBRA or any other organizational plan is in use, depending on their organizational strategies to avoid any inconveniences. Continued coverage takes various forms as it may cover union members with collective bargaining agreement. The requirement, for employers and health plan administrators, of supplying a general notice in case they deem entitled to COBRA benefits is inevitable. COBRA subjected employees always receive notifications of their membership immediately after assimilation in a COBRA registered organization (United States & United States, 2007). In case of termination of an employee’s legibility to health coverage, the employer is responsible for providing notifications concerning the right s of the employees to COBRA continuation returns. Plan administrators wholly depend on employers for notifications concerning termination or lessened work hours to enable them successfully terminate the health benefits of the affected employees. The employer must provide information concerning the affected employee thirty days after the alteration of the employee’s contract. After which the plan administrator provide information to the employee within the fourteen days of the after receiving of the information. The information helps the employee elect COBRA coverage within the specified 60 days after the issuing or the end of health coverage period. Failure to comply with the above information the employee stand a chance to lose all the rights accompanied with COBRA. The employees households including the spouses and children covered in the health plan are also entitled to electing coverage in case of illness (Jasper, 2009). Explain a benefit plan as part of an overall competitive compensation strategy and policies to administer the benefits. A benefit plan is the strategy used by an organization to cater for urgent needs of employees especially after retirement period. The amount payable to the benefit plan is entirely catered for by the employer. A number of established benefit plans allows an employee to receive the required future incomes into a lump sum amount when retiring. Individual who retrieve their retirement payments monthly is catered for by the federal pension insurance plan whereas; those who withdraw the entire lump sum are left alone to invest their amount wisely (United States, 2007). The strategies used in a benefit plan include monthly pay or even the benefit may come in the form of medical coverage for employees. The employer might even apply the use of insurance covers; to help employees and their family members seek medical attention, either at a subsidized cost or no cost at all as the case in COBRA (United States, 2009).  The policies governing retirement benefits depend on various factors such as the age of the employees. The older the employee the more the contribution towards the benefit plan; the reverse is true. Secondly the policies depend on the income of the employees, the more he/she earn the greater your benefits earned. Thirdly, the benefit plan focuses on years of service in the organization; the more years he or she spends with an organization, the greater the reward they experience. Last but not least, the benefits depend on final rate of pay, where the two directly relates. Other factors to be considered while administering reward system include the employment contract, the nature of the job one undertakes amongst other factors. The most famous benefit plan is the social security fund project. It offers the retired employees an annual pension on the basis of their lifetime incomes, which frequently adjusts to fit in the rates of inflation experienced (United States, 2007).  Evaluate organizational policies that facilitate the administration of benefits Organization policies that facilitate the administration of benefits differ from one business to the next in relation to the state of economy and the profits made in the organization. Some organization even goes as far as issuing policies according to the values one add to the organization. The united states health care system depends significantly on private health insurance; the main coverage for the majority of the Americans, to deliver health benefits. The rest of the citizens especially low income breadwinners and family and a significant number of top citizens attendance occurs in the public programs. Examples of publicly owned insurance covers include Medicare, national social insurance; Medicaid, sponsored by the central government and the state, but operated at a state level; and SCHIP, a central-state partnership handling children and families that unqualified for the sponsorship of Medicaid. Supplementary, public programs include forces health benefits catered for through TRICARE and the Veterans health Administration. Most countries have set aside additional schedules to cater for the low income earners in the communities (United States, 2002).  Total rewards Reward is the compensation entitled to employees, from an employer for services rendered. Reward takes different forms; being the monetary rewards and the non monetary rewards. Rewards range from comfortable office environment, excellent interpersonal relationships in the work environment, involvement in companies policy formulations, growth prospects, the challenge and sense of achievement amongst others. Total reward strategy is the compilation of four components being. Benefits attributed to employees include the flexible or cafeteria benefits; this is a working system that supplies employees with an opportunity to influence the contents of their pay and benefits. This way employees are able to create a system that well suit their preferences and needs (Jasper, 2009). Issues in total reward Total reward management is a perfect model that if implemented successful will result into high performance reduced costs and satisfied employees. The obstacles surrounding reward management strategies lies in incorporating reward strategy to business plans. Total reward aims at creating a friendly environment for people management. The issues surrounding implementations of reward management ranges from contractual arrangements, Communication to employees, Valuation of benefits, Cultural dynamics, and Specific problematic items. On contractual arrangements, organizations needs to chip in to clarify the policies and the benefits employees entitled to avoid faulty decisions that can bring down the patronizing name of the organization. Communicating to employees; educating the employees on the extent of their benefits to avoid misunderstandings (United States & United States, 2007). References Jasper, M. C. (2009). Veterans' rights and benefits. New York: Ocean United States. & United States. (2007) . The United States government manual 2006-2007. Washington, D.C: Federal Register United States. (2002). Association health plans: Improving access to affordable quality health care for small businesses. Washington, D.C: U.S. Dept. of Labor. United States. (2007). Department of Treasury, Internal Revenue Service; Department of Labor, Pension and Welfare Benefits Administration; and the Department of Health and Human Services, Health Care Financing Administration: Interim rules for health insurance portability for group health plans. Washington, D.C: The Office. United States. (2009). Protecting America's pension plans from fraud: Will your savings retire before you do?: hearing of the Committee on Health, Education, Labor, and Pensions, United States Senate, One Hundred Ninth Congress, first session, on examining protecting America's pension plans from fraud, focusing on the Department of Labor's Employee Benefits Security Administration's enforcement strategy, efforts to address weakness in its enforcement program along with the challenges that remain, June 9, 2005. Washington: U.S. G.P.O. Read More