Workplace violence is defined by the National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health (NIOSH) as “violent acts (including physical assaults and threats of assaults) directed toward persons at work or on duty.” A serious safety and health issue, no federal law specifically addresses violence in the workplace; however, there are laws that impose a duty on employers to maintain a safe workplace.

For example, the Occupational Safety and Health Act (OSH Act) imposes a general duty on all employers to provide employees with a workplace that is free from hazards. Federal civil rights laws also require employers to keep the workplace free threats of violence, and state workers’ compensation laws make employers responsible for injuries sustained by employees at the workplace.

Health care workers experience substantially higher rates of injury due to workplace violence compared to workers overall.  According to a study conducted by the Government Accountability Office, the rate of violence against health care workers is up to 12 times higher.

In an effort to help stem the rising rate of workplace violence, Rep. Joe Courtney (D-CT) introduced bill H.R. 7141. The proposed legislation would direct OSHA to issue a standard requiring health care employer to develop and implement workplace violence prevention programs.
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With homeowner's insurance rates on the rise, you may be looking for ways to reduce your annual premium without skimping on coverage. After all, a large portion of your net worth resides in the same place as you do.

But there are a number of strategies you can use to chip away at your overall annual premium.
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When you have business insurance policies you will often hear the terms “insurance binder” and “certificate of insurance,” but do you know the difference?

A binder is a contract of insurance. It's called a binder because it "binds" your coverage and creates an insurance contract and is used temporarily until the policy is issued.

A certificate of insurance is a form of proof of insurance warranting that you have coverage for a specific period.
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More and more employers are being overwhelmed by all of the compliance requirements associated with managing employee benefits.  

The Guardian Life Insurance Company of America's "Benefits Balancing Act" study found that 60% of employers are feeling overwhelmed with the increased complexity of managing their benefits programs. One of the main reasons for the additional burden is the Affordable Care Act, with its myriad of compliance and reporting requirements.

The employer mandate and the documentation and new filing requirements with the IRS are high on the list of compliance issues, as are evolving Family Medical Leave Act (FMLA) and ERISA requirements. 
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Nonprofits usually have a certain demographic that they serve. Often the allure of a nonprofit organization is that it attracts like-minded individuals that have a passion for the cause that the nonprofit works on. And the most passionate of these individuals often become board members. 

At that point, they also enter a world of new liability should they be sued for malfeasance or making a decision that ends up affecting a third party or constituent of the organization. Any number of circumstances can lead to legal action that threatens both their financial security as well as that of the not-for-profit organization they work for.
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Employers do all they can to keep their employees' health insurance and health care outlays to a minimum. And while most of the effort is focused on the upfront cost of insurance, copays and deductibles, employers are now trying to help their employees control the very costs they actually have the most control over - and one of those areas is prescription medication.

Helping employees become wise consumers of health services may also reduce overall insurance costs, as well as help employees conserve more of their own funds if they have high copays and deductibles.
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The cost of drugs can vary greatly between pharmacies. And while your employees may have low copays for some drugs, if they go to the most expensive option when the insurance is covering the tab, it basically adds to the cost drivers for your insurance plan.
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It's a nightmare scenario for business owners. Employees log in to their workstations and attempt to access the usual systems, expecting to find customer reports. Instead, they find a message demanding money.

If the business wants to regain access to its software and data, it will have to pay a ransom. Until then, it is locked out. The business has become the latest victim of ransomware. 
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Ransomware is malicious software that hackers introduce into an organization's computer network to encrypt its data. The hackers hold the data hostage until their demands are met.
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Those demands are normally for money, often payable in a crypto-currency such as Bitcoin. The hackers threaten to encrypt the data indefinitely, or even start deleting it, if they do not receive payment.
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There are about 10 million adults over the age of 50 in the United States who provide care for their aging parents. During the past 15 years, the number of adult children providing primary financial or personal care for their parents has increased more than three times. About 25 percent of all adult children in the country today are the primary care providers for their parents. The same number is almost equal to the number of non-working adult children who help their parents.

​The Cost of Caregiving
These caregivers are also planning for their own retirement, and the task of being a primary caregiver can negatively affect saving efforts. A study from MetLife looked at the impact of caregiving on adult children and their future financial status.
 
According to MetLife's survey, the level of care provided by adult children to parents is about the same between male and female. However, men are more likely to provide financial assistance, and women tend to provide more personal care. The cumulative amount of lost Social Security benefits, pensions, and wages among these adult caregivers is around $3 trillion.
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Having a medical condition doesn't automatically disqualify you from buying life insurance. While finding coverage can be more difficult than it is for others, individuals with challenging medical histories and even severe conditions can usually find at least some coverage.
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Employers have options when it comes to their workers' compensation coverage. Before making a decision, it's important to understand the differences among self-insured, self-insured group, and fully-insured workers’ compensation insurance. Because a self-insured employer assumes the risk of paying the workers' compensation claim costs for its employees, it must have the financial resources to meet this obligation. Further, when considering a self-insured group, employers need to understand how the program works, the financial strength of the group, and how the group is managed.

Learn about these options in our article "Understanding self-insured vs fully-insured workers' compensation coverage," prepared for Iowa Association of Business and Industry.