Compensation & Benefits (13)

Front 1

Data from WellPoint shows that ________ percent of its customers' accounts for over 60 percent of its medical costs.

Back 1

7

Front 2

A comparison of employee benefits for private and state and local government sector reveals that:

Back 2

both wages and benefits are higher in the state and local governments.

Front 3

Which of the following is not a benefit that is required by statutory law?

Back 3

Pension and retirement benefits

Front 4

_____ has been described as a major cost of doing business.

Back 4

Workers' compensation

Front 5

Jennifer is hurt at work while driving a forklift. Her employer claims that she was driving too fast and therefore she is responsible for her own injury and is not eligible for workers' compensation. What will be the outcome of the employer's challenge to her worker's compensation claim?

Back 5

She will likely receive workers' compensation benefits.

Front 6

Experts attribute the decline in dollar cost of workers' compensation cost after 2005 to:

Back 6

employer safety programs.

Front 7

_____ relieve an employer's liability when a pre-employment injury combines with a work-related injury to produce a disability greater than that caused by the latter alone.

Back 7

Second-injury funds

Front 8

The time of benefit provided by the largest percent of both large and small firms is

Back 8

paid time off.

Front 9

Which of the following types of workers are generally not covered by workers' compensation

Back 9

Farm workers

Front 10

Approximately _____ percent of social security benefits go to retirees and their dependents.

Back 10

70

Front 11

The rising costs of Social Security have been covered by:

Back 11

increases in the maximum earnings base and the tax rate at which it is taxed.

Front 12

All of the following are benefits under Social Security except:

Back 12

medical expenses for work-related injuries.

Front 13

Which of the following benefits is a federally administered program?

Back 13

Social Security

Front 14

For an employee to gain lifetime coverage under Social Security, they must have worked for ______ quarters during which they were covered by the Act.

Back 14

40

Front 15

Unemployment insurance is usually financed by:

Back 15

employer taxes paid to both federal and state funds.

Front 16

All of the following are ways to control unemployment taxes except:

Back 16

dismiss employees "for just cause" rather than by layoffs.

Front 17

Steve has a small company with 12 employees. One of his employees, Larry, has been laid off because his work has been outsourced. Larry had health coverage through Steve's company and he wants to continue that coverage after being laid off. According to C.O.B.R.A. how long can Larry continue his coverage through Steve's Company?

Back 17

0 months

Front 18

Which of the following acts has caused HR and information technology staff considerable difficulty regarding compliance and privacy?

Back 18

HIPPA

Front 19

_____ was designed to reduce an employer's ability to deny coverage to an employee based upon a preexisting condition.

Back 19

HIPPA

Front 20

Today, _____ percent of the workforce is covered under the pension plan coverage by their employers.

Back 20

forty-nine

Front 21

The majority of defined benefit plans calculate average earnings over the last _____ years of service for a prospective retiree.

Back 21

3 to 5

Front 22

In a _____ plan an employer agrees to provide a specific level of retirement pension, which is expressed as either a fixed dollar or a percentage-of-earnings amount that may vary (increase) with years of seniority in the company.

Back 22

defined benefit

Front 23

Employer advantages of defined contribution plans versus defined benefit plans include all of the following except:

Back 23

pre-retirement contributions are smaller.

Front 24

Which of the following is not a defined contribution plan?

Back 24

Cash-back

Front 25

_____ plans are more favorable to long-term than to short-term employees.

Back 25

Traditional defined benefit

Front 26

An employer experiencing high turnover and seeking to reduce pension cost is likely to prefer:

Back 26

full vesting after three years.

Front 27

An employer seeking to use pensions to reduce turnover is likely to prefer:

Back 27

vesting 20 percent after 2 years and 20 each year thereafter.

Front 28

The first question to ask in determining how much retirement income an employer should provide is:

Back 28

What level of retirement compensation should be provided?

Front 29

An employee who changes jobs four or more times during their career will likely experience a pension approximately _____ as that of an employee whose working career is spent with one employer.

Back 29

half the size

Front 30

Roughly _____ of all employees have access to paid life insurance.

Back 30

three-fourths

Front 31

A type of general health care plan in which health services are provided for a fixed fee at a specific site is:

Back 31

an HMO.

Front 32

The type of health insurance requiring covered employees to use designated doctors and facilities is _________.

Back 32

an HMO

Front 33

The general health care plan that uses a direct contractual relationship between employers, health-care providers and third-party payers is:

Back 33

a PPO.

Front 34

_____ represent a variation on health-care delivery in which there is a direct contractual relationship between and among employers, health-care providers, and third-party payers.

Back 34

PPOs

Front 35

_____ is a hybrid health plan combining features of HMO and ____.

Back 35

Point-of-service; preferred provider organization

Front 36

All of the following are examples of methods to motivate employees to change their demand for health care except:

Back 36

promotion of preventive health plans.

Front 37

An account set up to cover part of a high health care deductible is a:

Back 37

PCA.

Front 38

Which of the following is not an example of a method to control health care costs by changing the structure of health care delivery systems?

Back 38

In-house medical teams

Front 39

Dental insurance is provided by _____ percent of all employers with above 500 employees.

Back 39

90

Front 40

The most prevalent practice these days, in place of short-term sick leave is:

Back 40

paid time off.

Front 41

The major reasons motivating U.S. corporations to provide domestic partner benefits include all of the following except:

Back 41

Federal legislation mandating these provisions

Front 42

Approximately _____ percent of employers who offer child care also offer elder care.

Back 42

50

Front 43

Contingent workers receive _____ benefits than regular workers; contingent workers' benefits cost employers _____ than regular workers.

Back 43

fewer; less

Front 44

As benefit costs have skyrocketed, especially health care, the popularity of employee benefits have declined.

Back 44

False

Front 45

A recent survey found benefits ranked below work/life balance and communication between employees and management as contributors to job satisfaction.

Back 45

False

Front 46

A McKinsey survey of CEOs found nearly 90 percent believe benefits are very important for attracting and retaining employees, but almost 60 percent have not examined if they help meet the organization's strategic goals.

Back 46

True

Front 47

If a man's wife died while driving a truck for her employer, and if she was responsible for the accident, the husband is not eligible to receive compensation for the loss.

Back 47

False

Front 48

Workers' compensation covers the costs of both medical expenses and rehabilitation for work-related injuries.

Back 48

True

Front 49

Worker's compensation costs have been declining since 2005 due in part to employer safety programs.

Back 49

True

Front 50

Workers' compensation disability payments are tied directly to the nature of the loss and not factors such as the employee's earnings or number of dependents.

Back 50

False

Front 51

Work-related injuries are covered by workers' compensation but not industrial diseases such as black lung and asbestosis.

Back 51

False

Front 52

Workers' compensation is covered federal laws.

Back 52

False

Front 53

In 47 states, employers are not allowed to self-insure their workers' compensation program but must participate in the state's program.

Back 53

False

Front 54

The majority of those receiving social security benefits are disabled workers and their dependents and survivors of deceased beneficiaries.

Back 54

False

Front 55

The basic purpose of social security is to provide basic financial security for Americans and their families.

Back 55

True

Front 56

A major problem with social security is a rising number of retirees without a corresponding increase in contributors.

Back 56

True

Front 57

Medicare is not part of social security.

Back 57

False

Front 58

Substance abuse is not an allowed disability under social security.

Back 58

True

Front 59

Jim was a full-time student for four years, but could not find a job after graduating. Jim is likely eligible to collect unemployment insurance.

Back 59

False

Front 60

Employers who have frequent layoffs pay higher unemployment rates than those with few layoffs.

Back 60

True

Front 61

An eligible unemployed person may collect unemployment insurance benefits for 36 weeks in most states.

Back 61

False

Front 62

To be eligible for FMLA, an employee has to have worked for an employer at least 1,250 hours in the previous year.

Back 62

True

Front 63

The two generic types of pension plans are contributory plans and noncontributory plans.

Back 63

False

Front 64

Companies are turning away from 401K type pension plans because they require putting money in "up front" rather than when workers retire.

Back 64

False

Front 65

Most employers prefer defined contribution pension plans to defined benefit plans.

Back 65

True

Front 66

An advantage to employees of defined contribution (DC) plans over defined benefit is DC plans tend to vest faster.

Back 66

True

Front 67

A 401K is an example of a defined benefit plan.

Back 67

False

Front 68

A qualified deferred compensation plan offers tax advantages to employers.

Back 68

True

Front 69

Employees are required to make contributions to cash balance plans.

Back 69

False

Front 70

An IRA is retirement savings plan that is not managed by an employer.

Back 70

True

Front 71

The Employee Retirement Security Act states that employers must offer a retirement plan to their employees if they work at least 1250 hours per year.

Back 71

False

Front 72

Vesting is the amount of time an employee must work for an employer to be entitled to their employer's contributions to a pension.

Back 72

True

Front 73

Under the Economic Growth and Tax Reconciliation Act of 2001, employers have three vesting schedule options.

Back 73

False

Front 74

The Pension Benefit Guarantee Corporation protects vested benefits of people in terminated pension plans.

Back 74

True

Front 75

Employees have greater choice of doctors in an HMO than in a PPO.

Back 75

False

Front 76

Requiring a second opinion prior to surgery is an example of a method to reduce employee demand for health care.

Back 76

True

Front 77

Small private employers have recently begun reducing the number of paid holidays.

Back 77

True

Front 78

Which are the benefits required by statutory law?

Back 78

Benefits that are required by statutory law are workers' compensation, social security, and unemployment compensation.

Front 79

What are the areas covered as part of the no-fault insurance under workers' compensation? What are the areas covered as part of the no-fault insurance under workers' compensation?

Back 79

As a form of no-fault insurance, workers' compensation covers injuries and diseases that arise out of, and while in the course of, employment. Benefits are given for the following:

• Permanent total disability and temporary total disability

• Permanent partial disability—loss of use of a body member

• Survivor benefits for fatal injuries

• Medical expenses

• Rehabilitation

Front 80

What is the central challenge of social security payments? How are they tackled?

Back 80

The money to pay social security benefits comes from contributions made by employees, their employers, and self-employed people during working years. As contributions are paid in each year, they are immediately used to pay for the benefits to current beneficiaries. This is a major problem with social security. While the number of retired workers continues to rise, no corresponding increase in the number of contributors to social security has offset the costs. To maintain solvency, there has been a dramatic increase in both the maximum earnings base and the rate at which that base is taxed.

Front 81

Explain the eligibility for unemployment insurance.

Back 81

All workers except a few agricultural and domestic workers are currently covered by unemployment insurance (UI) laws. The eligibility requirements to receive benefits are:

• You must meet the State requirements for wages earned or time worked during an established (one year) period of time referred to as a "base period."

• You must be determined to be unemployed through no fault of your own [determined under state law], and meet other eligibility requirements of State law.

Front 82

Explain the coverage of the FMLA.

Back 82

The 1993 Family and Medical Leave Act applies to all employers having 50 or more employees and entitles all eligible employees to receive unpaid leave up to 12 weeks per year for specified family or medical reasons. To be eligible, an employee must have worked at least 1,250 hours for the employer in the previous year.

Front 83

What is the purpose of the HIPAA?

Back 83

The 1996 Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act (HIPAA) is designed to (1) lessen an employer's ability to deny coverage for a preexisting condition and (2) prohibit discrimination on the basis of health-related status.

Front 84

Compare defined benefit plans and defined contribution plans.

Back 84

In a defined benefit plan, an employer agrees to provide a specific level of retirement pension, which is expressed as either a fixed dollar or a percentage-of-earnings amount that may vary (increase) with years of seniority in the company. Defined contribution plans require specific contributions by an employer, but the final benefit that will be received by employees is unknown; it depends on the investment success of those charged with administering the pension fund.

Front 85

What are the three types of defined contribution plans?

Back 85

There are three popular forms of defined contribution plans. A 401(k) plan is a savings plan in which employees are allowed to defer income up to a $12,000 maximum. The second type of plan is an employee stock ownership plan (ESOP). In a basic ESOP a company makes a tax-deductible contribution of stock shares or cash to a trust. The trust then allocates company stock to participating employee accounts. Finally, profit sharing can be considered a defined contribution pension plan if the distribution of profits is delayed until retirement.

Front 86

What is a cash-balance plan?

Back 86

Cash balance plans are defined benefit plans that look like a defined contribution plan. Employees have a hypothetical account (like a 401[k]) into which is deposited what is typically a percentage of annual compensation. The dollar amount grows both from contributions by the employer and from some predetermined interest rate.

Front 87

Explain vesting and portability.

Back 87

Vesting refers to the length of time an employee must work for an employer before he or she is entitled to employer payments made into the pension plan. Portability refers to the issue of transferring pension benefits of employees moving to new organizations.