(CNN) — Cara Pressman sobbed in the big red chair in her living room. The 15-year-old tried to absorb the devastating news relayed by her parents: that their insurance company, Aetna, denied her for a minimally invasive brain surgery that could end the seizures that have haunted her since she was 9 years old. "When [...]
Key Democrats want a government funding bill to maintain the solvency of pension plans for hundreds of thousands of workers. The next potential sleeper cause of a government shutdown? Pensions. Congress barely averted a shutdown last year amid a fight over miners’ health care. Now the looming collapse of pension plans for the miners — [...]
The current outrage sparked by allegations of sexual misconduct against Harvey Weinstein and other public figures has sparked a national conversation about workplace harassment. Since October 5th, when multiple women came forward naming Weinstein and alleging decades of sexual abuse, numerous high-profile men have been accused of sexual misconduct. The increased awareness of the potential [...]
The Employee Retirement Income Security Act of 1974 (ERISA) is a federal law that establishes minimum standards for most retirement and health plans in private industry. That means that your 403(b), 401(k), pension, and employee stock ownership (ESOP) plans are subject to ERISA. ERISA requires that every plan have a plan administrator who exercises control [...]
Last week, Richard Smith stepped down as CEO of Equifax following the Company’s massive data breach affecting an estimated 143 million people in the US and abroad. In spite of retiring under this cloud, Smith will still collect almost $72 million this year, according to Fortune magazine. Sometimes, despite your best efforts, the company that you [...]
What is ERISA? “ERISA” — or the Employee Retirement Income Security Act—is a law that regulates most of the benefits that you receive through your employment. For example, if your employer provides you a disability plan, that disability plan is subject to ERISA. Likewise, if your employer provides you a health plan, that health plan [...]
Last month, more than 100 retired football players filed suit in Fort Lauderdale federal court against the National Football League regarding workers’ compensation and chronic traumatic encephalopathy (CTE). The brain disease is linked to repeated head injuries, and is commonly found in professional athletes who compete in contact sports, including football. According to the lawsuit [...]
Last week, former Bayer vice president Irene Laurora filed suit against the company for wrongful termination. Per the lawsuit, a pregnant colleague of Laurora’s was pulled from an important project “solely because she intended to take her legally protected maternity leave,” and Laurora stood up for her colleague’s rights. Laurora claims she was fired because [...]
A number of lawsuits have been filed across the country against some of the most prestigious universities over high fees for retirement plans. The most recent lawsuit was filed this month on behalf of 24,000 faculty and staff against Johns Hopkins University. According to the complaint, Hopkins employees lost at least $35 million in excessive [...]
When I was a child, my mother constantly reminded me of the so-called “5 P’s”: Prior Preparation Prevents Poor Performance. In other words, if you do your homework or practice ahead of time, you’re going to perform much better than if you just try to wing it. I certainly put that theory to the test [...]
