SalaryTrends 
 
FreshView
a publication of Cascade Employers Association
 

NOVEMBER 2011    

   Dollars & Sense Poll

  In This Issue:

 

 

 

2012 Oregon Business Climate: Rebound or Bust?

By Jerry Bumgarner, CCP
Director, Research and Compensation Services
jbumgarner@cascadeemployers.com

All Oregon employers are faced with decisions involving the business climate for 2012, but does anybody really have the answers? Will the state’s economy improve in the coming year? What are business leaders thinking about their industries and what business strategies will they use?

We would all love to have crystal balls to look into the future, but other than general local information in the news, how do we find out specific trends from the businesses all around us? Trends like hiring, employee benefits, and indications of salary changes.

At Cascade, we want to know the answers too, and so we are taking the initiative to ask the questions. To provide some of the information Oregon executives need to make their critical business decisions, Cascade is conducting its second annual survey to determine economic trends within both Oregon and across the nation. The survey, consisting of just 12 multiple choice questions is designed to take as little of your time as possible.

Will you join in? Just click on the following link to start the survey: www.periscopeiq.com/piq/generatesurvey.asp?7812

For your participation, a complimentary report covering Oregon and other states will be available for viewing and to download in December at SalaryTrends.com. The deadline for participation is November 21st.

TOP

Most Employers Have Restored 401(k) Matching Contributions

Source: CCH/Towers Watson

The vast majority of U.S. employers that suspended their 401(k) plan matching contributions during the recent economic downturn have since restored them, according to new analysis by Towers Watson.

According to the analysis, 75 percent of 260 employers that suspended their 401(k) matching contributions have now restored them. Among those employers, about three in four (74 percent) reinstated the matching contributions to their previous level, while 23 percent of employers restored them at a lower rate. Just 3 percent increased their matching contributions to a higher rate.

The most frequent employer match formula before and after the suspension matched 50 percent of employees’ salary deferrals, up to 6 percent of pay. The median duration for match suspensions was 12 months.

"Many employers are making it a priority to contribute to their workers’ retirement accounts," said Robyn Credico, a senior retirement consultant at Towers Watson. "Employers understand the importance of helping and encouraging their employees to save for retirement. With 401(k) plans now the primary retirement savings vehicle for most workers, it is very encouraging to see that the vast majority of employers have reinstated their matching contributions."

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Survey Spotlight

By Tina Hamel, Survey Manager
thamel@cascadeemployers.com

SalaryTrends surveys from Cascade Employers Association cover the pay practices of diverse organizations from various markets (Oregon, SW Washington, Northwest Regional, and National), and include multiple relevant data summaries. These valuable tools enable users to evaluate their competitiveness within specific talent markets.

Now Open for participation:

Contact us with questions at surveys@salarytrends.com.

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VETS100 ONLINE REPORTING NOW AVAILABLE

By Lynn Morris, PHR, HR and Compensation Consultant
lmorris@cascadeemployers.com

The Department of Labor has activated their website for employers to electronically submit their VETS 100 or VETS 100a reports. When submitting your report, please make sure that you are using the 2011 forms because both the 2010 and 2011 forms are available on the website. Any report filed on a 2010 form will be required to be resubmitted.

Contractors have until December 30, 2011 to submit their report(s). Reports will not be accepted for the 2011 filing cycle after December 30, 2011.

As a reminder, below are the rules for determining whether the VETS 100 or VETS 100a report (or both) must be submitted for your company.

  • If your company has a federal contract of $25,000 or more entered into before December 1, 2003, which has not been modified after that date, you must submit the VETS-100 report.

  • If your company has a federal contract of $100,000 or more created or modified on or after December 1, 2003 you must submit the VETS-100A report.

Link to the DOL’s VETS 100/100a information site: www.dol.gov/vets/programs/fcp/main.htm.

Link to the VETS 100/100a reporting application: webapps.dol.gov/vets100/

If you have questions about submitting your VETS 100/100a reports, please contact us so we can assist you.

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FreshView on Compliance

By Cascade Staff
info@cascadeemployers.com

FreshView Question: Our production needs fluctuate throughout the year and we are just hitting our down time now. Can we require employees to take unpaid time off if we stop production for a couple of weeks?

Answer: Yes.

Even if employees have vacation or other paid time off available, you can require employees to take unpaid time off. Keep in mind, under the Fair Labor Standards Act employers can reduce an exempt employee's salary as long as the employee does not work any part of a workweek. If the unpaid time off is less than a workweek, you are required to pay the salaries of your exempt employees. This rule does not apply to non-exempt employees.

TOP

Did You Know?

Ah, the dress code policy. Everyone loves to hate it, but what do other companies set as their practice? Most non-union employers with up to 500 employees say that business casual is just fine, on an average of at least 3.5 days a week. Only 1.8% of employers only had a business casual dress code in the summer, most followed the same policy year around. Unfortunately, the survey does not help us define the exact parameters of “business casual,” and didn’t give an indication of what the employees were to wear the other 1.5 days of the week!

How does your company compare?

Cascade Members, would you like a sample dress code policy? Just log in to the Member Toolbox on the Cascade website to download the comprehensive policy that is available for you to use.


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