HR Alerts – July 2017

HR Alerts For July 2017

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Louisville and Lexington Minimum Wage WILL NOT Increase in July

You may have a reminder on your calendar for July 1 that says the minimum wage in Louisville and Lexington is increasing. We’re here to remind you…That is NOT happening.

Back in October of 2016, the Kentucky Supreme Court rejected Louisville Metro Government’s ordinance that set the city’s minimum wage at a rate higher than the state’s rate.

The court said in an opinion that although Louisville Metro Government has broad authority, “the sovereignty of the state still rules supreme.” The court also struck down Lexington’s similar ordinance.

The current minimum wage in Kentucky is $7.25 an hour.

How The Senate Health Care Bill Would Impact Employers

Unless you’ve been avoiding all news channels, then you’re heard about the health care bill released by the Senate on June 22, the Better Care Reconciliation Act (BCRA).

The House passed its version of a replacement bill, the American Health Care Act (AHCA), on May 4. If the Senate approves its bill, which is not expected to receive any Democratic support, the Senate and House versions would need to be reconciled by a joint committee.

SHRM wrote a very informative article on how these bills would impact employers (compared to the Affordable Care Act).

Here’s the overview (and click here to read SHRM’s complete article):

Both bills would:

• Eliminate employer mandate penalties and ease employee tracking/reporting requirements
• Eliminate individual mandate penalties
• Keep but delay the “Cadillac tax,” and eliminate other levies
• Raise health savings account (HSA) contributions
• Repeal tax increases on HSAs
• Repeal the limit on contributions to health flexible spending accounts (FSAs)

You can read about how the bills differ on subsidies, essential health benefits, affordability parameters, reporting requirements, Cadillac tax, HSAs, and the ACA Market reforms on SHRM’s website here.

OSHA Delays Electronic Filing Deadline To December 1, 2017

We previously reported on a new OSHA rule, which would require certain employers to submit injury and illness data electronically. The new reporting requirement was scheduled to go into effect on July 1, 2017. Last month, we sent out an alert that this deadline had been postponed.

Thanks to our friends at Advanced Safety & Health, we have more information! OSHA now expects to launch the data collection system by August 1, 2017. Then, employers will have four months to submit their data in time for the new due date of December 1, 2017.

For more information, please read this article on Advanced Safety & Health’s website.

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