Healthcare Reform 2010

It’s all over the news and possibly in the courts soon.  Healthcare Reform will be signed into law today.  What does this mean for small business and everyday people?  Here’s a quick summary of what is in the bill.  However there is a Compromise Plan that was passed by the House and needs to be debated in the Senate which can change what is in the current bill.

Here’s a breakdown of the current bill as it stands:

• If you have less than 50 employees, you will NOT be required to provide healthcare coverage
• If you have less than 25 employees and meet certain conditions, you may be eligible for a tax credit for providing coverage
• There will be ban on lifetime limits on coverage
• By 2014 states will be required to set up Small Business Health Option Programs (SHOP)  – this will allow small employers to pool together to get better rates
• Dependant children can be coverage until the age of 26 (some states already have this)
• If an individual couldn’t get coverage due to a pre-existing condition – they may be eligible for subsidized high-risk coverage
• Starting in 2013 – families earning over $250,000 will pay an additional medicare tax of 3.8%
• Medicaid to be offered to those earning up to 133% of the poverty level
• In 2014 individuals may be fined (earning over certain income levels) for not having coverage
• In 2018 – tax on so-called “Cadillac” plans
• In 2020 – the “hole” in Medicare prescription coverage will be fixed
• Children cannot be denied coverage for pre-existing conditions

There is still a lot of political maneuvering going on so these items may change.  Stay tuned for more details.

What are your thoughts – did it go far enough? Too far? Just right?

Employee Surveys the good, the bad and the ugly

Want to know what your employees are thinking? Want to ask them in a way that they will feel free to share without repercussions?  Do a survey!

Here’s the thing about surveys – know what you are getting into before you start.  In other words only ask if you really want to know and will take action on the feedback.  I know for some of you that seems obvious, just understand the good, the bad and the ugly of employee surveys. 

The Good: if you ask the questions, really review the answers and take action (where you can) – you have won the loyalty of your employees.  They now feel you are truely interested in what they have to say. Summarize the findings and pass it along, they will provide you feedback any time you ask for it.

The Bad: you ask the questions, but not the tough ones.  You are asking questions to show on the surface you have an interest – they can see through you.  No more sharing, a decrease in morale.  Or worse they think “OK, he got his ego boosted – now what”.

The Ugly: you ask the tough questions, you don’t look at the results and you don’t follow up.  No more sharing – not now or even when walking out the door to a new job.  You have lowered morale to its lowest point and will not take any future surveys or questions seriously.

If you have been in the bad and ugly category – you can recover but over time.  Start doing it right and they will come around.

Employee Satisfaction. Why does it matter?

When talking with small business owners the conversation will eventually turn to employee satisfaction and why its important.  Before getting into why it matters, lets review what it is and isn’t.

Employee satisfaction is NOT –

• giving employees what they want
• making them smile everyday
• paying them a high salary
• letting them do what they want
• letting them take two hour lunches

So then, what IS it:

• Listening to employee ideas & concerns
• Treating them with respect
• Setting up expectations
• Follow through on expectations
• Making sure they have the tools they need to do their work
• Providing extra training where necessary

I realize this sounds simple and it theory it should be.  What makes it difficult? The priorities and fast pace of the day, basically we get caught up in what he have to do.

Well, I still haven’t answered the question – Why does it matter? Believe it or not the answer to the question is simple – PRODUCTIVITY.  Yes, it has been proven many times that satisfied employees are more productive employees. Doesn’t every business want that. Again – Yes.

So think about what you can do each day to improve employee satisfaction.  Have a great tip – share it here!