2026 State Overtime Salary Levels – Under federal and state laws, employers must compensate their employees with 1.5 times their regular rate of pay for any hours of overtime work. However, under these laws, employees who work in an executive, administrative, or professional (EAP) capacity are exempt from overtime pay if they satisfy, among other things, the salary level requirements for their exemption. Under the federal Fair Labor Standards Act (FLSA), the current salary level requirement for the EAP exemption is $684 per week ($35,568 per year) on a salary or fee basis (with an exception for highly compensated employees). While these salary levels apply in most U.S. jurisdictions, some states have adopted EAP salary levels higher than the ones required by the FLSA. These states are Alaska, California, Colorado, Maine, New York, and Washington.

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The federal Family and Medical Leave Act (FMLA) provides eligible employees up to 12 workweeks of unpaid, job-protected leave a year for certain family and medical reasons, including being unable to work due to the employee’s serious health condition. When an employee’s FMLA leave entitlement expires, the employee may be unable to return to work because of the continuation of their serious health condition.

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Understanding the latest employee benefits trends can help organizations plan ahead and offer a benefits package that meets the evolving needs of workers. Here are five trends shaping benefits in 2026:

1. Rising health care costs — Surveys project that health care costs are likely to increase by 8% to, in many cases, as much as over 15% in 2026. Employers will absorb much of the costs.

2. Continued popularity of glucagon-like peptide-1 (GLP-1) drugs — A RAND report revealed that 12% of Americans have used GLP-1 medications for weight loss, and 14% are interested in using the drugs. Moreover, the number of prescriptions for the drugs has more than tripled since 2020.

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Question: What happens if an employee misses open enrollment?

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Winter presents both attraction and retention challenges as well as unique opportunities for employers. For some industries, recruiting often slows during the winter months—especially after the winter holidays. However, winter is also when many job candidates are making plans for the coming year, which may include searching for new jobs and opportunities. Simultaneously, many employers struggle to keep employees engaged during winter.

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2026 Minimum Wage Rates by State – The minimum wage rate is expected to change in 2026 in about half of the states in the U.S. Our HR Compliance Overview provides a summary of the upcoming changes.

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The U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC) is responsible for enforcing federal equal employment opportunity (EEO) laws, including Title VII of the Civil Rights Act (Title VII). Title VII requires employers to provide reasonable accommodations for an employee’s and applicant’s sincerely held religious beliefs. Failure to provide reasonable accommodations can have significant consequences for employers, including costly litigation and claims, and decreased employee morale.

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When employees are injured or become ill on the job, they may be covered by various laws. For example, workers’ compensation is a form of insurance that provides financial assistance, medical care and other benefits for employees who are injured or disabled on the job. Also, the federal Family and Medical Leave Act (FMLA) provides eligible employees up to 12 workweeks of unpaid, job-protected leave a year for various reasons, including medical leave when an employee is unable to work because of a serious health condition. A workers’ compensation injury that requires hospitalization or incapacitates an employee for more than three days and requires continuing treatment by a health care provider generally qualifies as a serious health condition under the FMLA.

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We recently released our HR Compliance Calendar to help your business stay on track with key employment-related deadlines throughout the year. HR compliance can be complex and involves many moving parts. Keeping track of deadlines during 2026 can help your business stay organized and avoid the penalties or workplace disruption that may be triggered by noncompliance.

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Health care costs have been growing at an alarming rate in recent years, and they’re not slowing down. Surveys project that U.S. health care costs are likely to increase in many cases over 10% in 2026. Regardless of the exact figure, employers can expect their health care costs to continue to skyrocket throughout 2026.

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