Under the Affordable Care Act, employers who provide health benefits may use financial penalties and incentives to encourage staff to participate in wellness programs which seek to evaluate and encourage workers' healthy behaviors and other lifestyle choices. Programs which incentive workers to lose weight, quit smoking, eat healthy and partake in yearly health screenings, have become increasingly popular with the passage of the ACA in order for businesses to bring down healthcare costs for preventable conditions.
Wellness Incentives and Employer Provided Healthcare Plans
Department of Labor to Propose New Overtime Rules
The Executive Branch has pushed for the expansion of overtime availability. Last year, President Obama used his executive authority to trigger a review and revision of the current overtime rules, which currently prevent certain classes of salaried workers from receiving overtime compensation. Specifically, Obama asked the Department to reevaluate the salary threshold at which employers are no longer obligated to pay employees overtime. That weekly threshold has been $455 since 2004. A change in that threshold level could make low-level supervisors in retail, fast food, health care and other industries eligible for overtime pay.
