Meet ICHRA: The Rising Star on The Health-Care Benefits Stage

from Business Magazine May 2023

2023 SHOWCASE

An Individual Coverage Health Reimbursement Arrangement (ICHRA) is an affordable way for employers to provide employee health-care benefits.

With an ICHRA, you can reimburse your employees tax-free for their individual health insurance and medical expenses, rather than buying health insurance for them.

Five Primary Benefits of ICHRA

1) Better cost control. An ICHRA allows you to set your benefit budget and stick with it. No surprises from year to year.

2) Plan customization. Rather than accepting a one-size-fits-all plan from one insurance company, you can design your own plan by defining which employees are eligible and establishing reimbursement limits by employee groupings, such as full-time, part-time, seasonal, etc.

3) Flexibility. You define a set monthly reimbursement allowance by dollar amount and type (i.e., insurance premium only or premiums plus IRS eligible health-related expenses, such as copays and prescription costs).

4) Convenience. You don’t need to worry about renewals, participation rates, annual premium networks, or time-consuming administrative hassles.

5) A better employee experience. Instead of trying to choose one cookie cutter plan for everyone, you’ll empower your employees to choose their own health care plan, providers and coverage.

How It Works

Your employees purchase the individual health insurance plans that are best suited to their needs. They pay for premiums and other expenses and then submit claims for reimbursement. Once a claim is verified as valid, employees are reimbursed up to their accrued allowance.

Many small to medium-sized employers feel that offering traditional group health insurance to their employees is too costly. An ICHRA makes those benefits affordable for both you and your employees and helps you attract and retain the best quality workers in your field.

MORE EMPLOYERS FOCUSING ON SKILLS-BASED HIRING

A growing number of employers are showing interest in skills-based hiring — moving beyond education and experience requirements to focus on the skills match between candidates and roles, according to a recent report by the Society for Human Resource Management (SHRM).

More employers are becoming aware that assessing candidates on their abilities and potential, rather than degrees and job histories, can provide instant economic opportunities for millions of job seekers, help relieve talent shortages, increase diversity and strengthen internal mobility in the workplace.

“Most of the employers we talk to are highly receptive to this message, and they recognize that with the current talent shortage, skillsbased hiring is the best approach for a wide range of roles with significant high-volume need and higher-than-average turnover,” said Angela Briggs-Paige, SHRM-SCP, head of people and culture at the nonprofit Opportunity@Work. The Washington, D.C.-based organization works to expand professional career access for people without college degrees.

Emily Field, a partner at global management consulting firm McKinsey & Co., said skillsbased hiring is “one of the main topics that I hear CEOs and CHROs asking about. They continue to face a skills gap and a talent shortage, and at the same time, recruiting technology is screening out more than half of the applicants due to [them not meeting] education and experience requirements.”

One-fifth of current U.S. job listings on LinkedIn don't require a four-year degree, an increase of over 30 percent over the past six months. Since 2019, the share of recruiter searches on LinkedIn filtering for skills has grown by 25 percent; recruiters are now 50 percent more likely to search by skills than they are to search by years of experience.

Mike Schifferle

is the director of Sales & Marketing at Value Point Associates (VPA), a national employer member association offering benefits to small and medium sized businesses. For more information, visit valuepointassociates.com.

WHEN IS THE EEOC EEO-1 REPORTING DUE THIS YEAR?

The U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC) recently announced that the 2022 EEO-1 Component 1 data collection is tentatively scheduled to open in mid-July 2023. This year’s timeline for submitting the EEO-1 Report differs from past years. Last year, the reporting period began on April 12, 2022.

The EEO-1 Report is a federally mandated survey that collects workforce data categorized by race, ethnicity, sex and job category.

According to the EEOC, this data is used for a variety of purposes, including enforcement, selfassessment by employers and research. Under Title VII of the Civil Rights Act, employers with 100 or more employees — with some exclusions — and certain federal contractors must report this data to the EEOC each year. Employers are typically required to file their report by March 31, but, in recent years, the date for the EEOC’s portal opening and the deadline for submitting the data have been delayed, creating confusion and uncertainty for employers.

Although the EEOC sends notification letters to employers it knows to be subject to the EEO-1 requirements, all employers are responsible for obtaining and submitting the necessary information prior to the deadline. If an employer fails or refuses to file an EEO-1 Report, they may be compelled to do so by a federal district court.

What’s Next?

If preparing or filing the EEO-1 Report creates an undue hardship, an employer may send a written request for an exemption or special reporting procedures to the EEOC. Employers may obtain a one-time, 30-day extension of the EEO-1 filing deadline by emailing a request to the EEOC. However, the EEOC does not grant any exemptions or extensions requested after the filing deadline. Updates regarding the 2022 EEO-1 data collection, including the opening date, will be posted on the EEOC’s EEO-1 website, eeocdata.org/eeo1, as they become available. As such, employers should continue to monitor the EEOC’s website.

What You Should Know About Artificial Intelligence and The Americans With Disabilities Act

The U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC) and Department of Justice (DOJ) recently issued new guidance about how employers’ use of artificial intelligence (AI) and other software tools to make employment decisions may result in unlawful disability discrimination under the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA). The agencies warned that algorithmic decision-making tools — mainly when used to hire, monitor performance, determine pay or performance or establish other terms and conditions of employment — may discriminate against people.

EEOC Guidance

The EEOC’s guidance highlighted how employment software tools might violate the ADA, such as:

• The employer does not provide a reasonable accommodation necessary for an individual to be rated fairly and accurately by software.

• The software screens out an individual with a disability, even though the individual can do the job with a reasonable accommodation.

• The software makes disability-related inquiries or includes medical examinations. The EEOC also provided best practices to help employers avoid these violations.

DOJ Guidance

The DOJ’s guidance provides examples of the types of software tools employers use, clarifies that employers must consider various disabilities when designing or choosing their software and explains when an employer must provide a reasonable accommodation when using software tools.

Employer Takeaway

Several factors have led these agencies to address this topic. One is the ongoing unemployment challenge for workers with disabilities. The Bureau of Labor Statistics’ April data revealed a labor force participation rate of 23.1 percent for people with a disability, compared with 67.5 percent for those without.

Employers should review this guidance and assess their employment technology and processes to ensure they are not at risk for ADA violations. Contact us for additional resources at 814/833-3200, 800/815-2660 or hrservices@mbausa.org!

LET’S OPTIMIZE YOUR ENERGY STRATEGY.

LET’S OPTIMIZE YOUR ENERGY

STRATEGY.

Judy Rosatti

The energy market is constantly evolving. For you, that spells opportunity. By combining our expertise with your needs, we can lead you to an energy plan that yields long-term savings.

Judy Rosatti

MBA EnergyAdvisor

The energy market is constantly evolving. For you, that spells opportunity. By combining our expertise with your needs, we can lead you to an energy plan that yields long-term savings.

From upfront analysis to a tailored procurement strategy — diligence through implementation — our team can make energy a key component in driving your business forward.

From upfront analysis to a tailored procurement strategy — diligence through implementation — our team can make energy a key component in driving

From upfront analysis to a tailored procurement strategy — diligence through implementation — our team can make energy a key component in driving your business forward.

Direct Phone: 814-314-1933

Judy Rosatti

Direct Phone: 814-314-1933

Judy Rosatti

MBA EnergyAdvisor

Direct Phone: 814-314-1933

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