Helping the New Growth Engine...
Healthy People Key to Productive America


MORE AND more employers are recognizing that an employee’s health status has a direct link to day-to-day productivity. According to Trend Watch, a report from theAmerican Hospital Association (AHA), the prevalence of chronic health problems among working Americans is rising even as the U.S. health system’s ability to prevent and treat disease improves.

Health conditions such as heart disease, hypertension, diabetes, cancer, and asthma are some of the costliest conditions to employers in terms of both healthcare expenses and lost work days, according to the report. Each year, 10 common chronic conditions1 account for an average of more than 10 days of work loss.

Thus, companies are putting significant emphasis on improving the health and productivity of their workforce, according to the Watson Wyatt/National Business Group on Health 2007/2008 Staying@Work survey. “Global competition and pressure for greater efficiency are causing employers to seek new ways to help manage benefit costs and increase worker output,” says Shelly Wolff, Watson Wyatt national practice leader for health and productivity. “Increasingly, companies are looking at the health of their workers as the new growth engine to stave off healthcare inflation and keep employees on the job and productive.”

The AHA study found workplace wellness programs yielded an average reduction in sick leave absenteeism of 28 percent; in health costs, 26 percent; and in workers’ compensation and disability management claims costs, 30 percent. In general, savings are due to lower medical costs, reduced absenteeism and presenteeism, fewer workers’ compensation and short-term disability claims, and increased productivity.

Employers are now well aware that workers’ health and vitality affect their productivity, which in turn impacts the company’s performance and competitiveness. Increasingly, employers recognize that they have an important role to play in promoting health and productivity.

1 The 10 common chronic conditions include depression/sadness/mental illness; any cancer; respiratory disorders; asthma; migraine/headache; allergy; heart disease; arthritis; diabetes; and hypertension.

Hiring Immigrants
USCIS Releases Revised I-9 Form, Handbook


ACCORDING TO THE U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS), the revised   I-9 form reduces the number of documents employers may accept for newly hired employees during the employment eligibility verification process in compliance with the reduction requirements of the Illegal Immigration Reform and Immigrant Responsibility Act of 1996.

The most significant change to the revised I-9 form is the elimination of five documents from List A. According to Fisher & Phillips LLP, employers can no longer accept the following documents: Certificate of U.S. Citizenship (Form N-560 or N-570); Certificate of Naturalization (Form N-550 or N-570); Alien Registration Receipt Card (Form I-151); unexpired Reentry Permit (Form I-327); and unexpired Refugee Travel Document (Form I-571). Added to List A is the most recent version of the Employment Authorization Document (Form I-766).

Employers must begin using the 2007 edition of the I-9 form for new hires now, as all previous versions of the form are no longer valid, or be subject to fines and penalties.  Employers do not need to complete new forms for existing employees unless they require re-verification. For more information, the new I-9 form and the revised handbook are available at www.uscis.gov.

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•Coalition Unveils Auto Enrollment Education Site

The www.RetirementMadeSimpler.org website features interactive tools and general information about 401(k) enrollment issues, especially useful to small and medium-sized employers. Its resources include tips on how to get started, the benefits of automatic enrollment, and real-world experiences from companies that have successfully switched to automatic enrollment programs.