Many employers and employees have questions regarding their right to privacy while at work. One popular question is, are employers allowed to read employee e-mails?

Employers are legally allowed to monitor communications by employees on company owned communications devices including telephone, voicemail, e-mail, company owned cell phones with voicemail and text messaging capabilities as long as they inform employees that they should have no expectation of privacy.

A Plus Benefits encourages clients to create a policy stating that the employee should have no expectation of privacy. A sample policy can be found below:

Employees should have no expectation of privacy. Telephones, computers, e-mail systems, voice mail systems, lockers, desks, etc., are and remain the property of the Company. From time to time it may be deemed appropriate to monitor or search these systems and property.

Employees should not have any expectation of privacy when company computers are used for such purposes as e-mail, internet use, instant messaging, etc. Further, employees who have personal mail delivered to a Company address should have not expectations of privacy concerning mailed communications, while the Company has no desire to examine personal mail; there is no assurance that personal correspondence will not be inadvertently opened.

Such a policy will protect employers if they choose to monitor employee communications. For example, if a company decides to monitor an employee’s e-mails and the employer finds proof of some act leading to the termination of the employee, the employee would not be able to claim that he was unaware that his e-mail messages were being monitored and the company would avoid a potentially costly lawsuit.

Samantha Bushard is an HR employee at the Idaho office of A Plus Benefits, Inc.

One of the many services A Plus Benefits provides to clients is sending out W-2’s to all employees at the end of the year.

Year 2007 W-2’s will be sent out the third week in January to the home address listed on each employee’s pay stub. Employees can expect to receive their W-2 by the end of the month.

If your address is incorrect in the system please notify your supervisor and call 1-800-748-5102 to request that your W-2 be sent to your new address. You will be transfered to a voicemail system where you can leave your information to be processed for the next mailing.

Employees who have set up their online access through www.aplusbenefits.com can go online and print their W-2.

If you have any other questions regarding your W-2 please feel free to contact us at 1-800-748-5102.

Samantha Bushard is an HR Employee for the Idaho office of A Plus Benefits, Inc.

COBRA (Consolidated Omnibus Budget Reconciliation Act) is a regulation that many employers and employees have questions about.

COBRA allows employees and their families who have lost health care benefits due to a qualifying event the opportunity to continue the benefits offered by their group health plan. In this situation a qualifying event could be voluntary or involuntary job loss, reduction in the hours worked, transition between jobs, death, or divorce. Employees who qualify for COBRA may be required to pay the entire premium for their health benefits.

COBRA only affects those employers with 20 or more employees. Employers with less than 20 employees are not required to offer any continuation of health care coverage.

Employers are responsible for notifying COBRA eligible employees within 30 days of a qualifying event. Individuals then have 60 days to elect benefits and 45 days after electing benefits to pay their first premium.

For more information about COBRA please visit the Department of Labor website or contact the benefits department at A Plus Benefits.

Samantha Bushard is an HR employee for the Idaho office of A Plus Benefits Inc.

Flexible spending accounts (also called cafeteria plans) can be a great way for both employees and employers to decrease their taxable income. Flexible spending accounts allow employees to elect a certain amount of money for medical or day care expenses for the year to be pulled out of their check before taxes. This money can then be reimbursed to the employee as medical or day care expenses are incurred.

Flexible spending accounts are “use it or lose it” plans, meaning that if you elect $2,000 over the course of the year and only turn in receipts for reimbursement for $1,900, the $100 will no longer be available after the end of the year.

Both qualified medical expenses and day care expenses can be reimbursed through the flexible spending account. Here is a list of medical expenses that qualify for reimbursement under a flexible spending account. Sample Flexible Spending Expenses.pdf

These rules are similar to those for HSAs discussed in a previous blog.

All full-time employees (those working at least 30 hours a week) of A Plus Benefits are eligible to participate in our flexible spending account. Signing up for the flexible spending account must occur at the time of benefits enrollment or during open enrollment in December. Flexible spending elections do not roll over year to year so new elections must be turned in by December 31^st of each year.

If you would like more information about the A Plus Benefits flexible spending account, please contact the benefits department.

Samantha Bushard is an HR employee for the Idaho office of A Plus Benefits, Inc.

Employees who are a part of the A Plus Benefits health plan often have questions about finding doctors that are in network. It is important to go to in network doctors in order to receive the best coverage from your medical or dental plan.

There are two different networks for the medical plan. You can find the name of your health network on the medical plan cards sent to you in the mail or by asking the benefits department at A Plus Benefits.

First Health (used in Idaho)
To find doctors on the First Health network go to www.firsthealth.com.
Click on Consumer of the left side of the screen.
Then click on Electronic Directory on the left side of the screen.
On the next screen under Provider Types, click on Physicians/Clinics.
Choose a specialty (such as family practice, dermatology, etc.) or select Any Specialty from the drop down list on the left side of the screen.
On right side of the screen enter your zip code and the amount of miles away from that zip code you would like to search.
Click on the Search button.
Information on doctors in the area should show up on the next screen. For more information about each doctor, click on their name.

Beech Street (used in Utah)
To find doctors on the Beech Street network go to www.beechstreet.com.
Click on Patients in the blue bar in the center of the screen.
On the right side of the screen in a small green box click Search for a doctor or hospital near you.
Enter in your city and state or zip code.
Scroll down and choose a specialty from the drop down list (such as family practice, dermatology, etc.) or select All.
Click on the Search button.
Information on doctors in the area should show up on the next screen. For more information about each doctor, click on their name.

The dental network is the same for all employees.

Dental Select
To find dentists on the Dental Select network go to www.dentalselect.com.
Click on Members in the right side of the screen.
On the right side of the screen in the Providers box click on the orange Go button.
Choose your state and your plan (Silver, Gold or Platinum) from the drop down lists.
Choose your city from the drop down list or enter your zip code.
Choose a specialty or select all from the specialty drop down list.
Enter other information if you wish and then click on the Search button.
Information on dentists in the area should show up on the next screen.

These electronic directories are updated as often as possible, but some changes may not be in the system immediately. Please remember to ask your doctor if they accept your network before making an appointment.

If you have questions about doctor networks please contact the benefits department at A Plus Benefits.

Samantha Bushard is an HR Employee for the Idaho office of A Plus Benefits, Inc.