Tales from the HR Crypt – Managing your Ghost Employees

Presented jointly with Stuart Rudner, Rudner Law and the Toronto Chapter of the International Society of Certified Employee Benefit Specialists (ISCEBS)

You may have employment obligations and group benefit claim liabilities for employees you didn’t even know you had – these are your ‘ghost’ employees. Consider these questions:

• Have you ever had a call from someone saying they are an employee, but you can’t find information about them?
• Have you ever wondered what your benefits liability is for an employee who says they are too sick to work, but the insurance company says they are not disabled?
• Is your organization thinking of, or have you already changed, group benefit providers? How important is that “not actively at work” list?
• Is your organization thinking of upgrading the HRIS system, or building a data file feed to your insurer?
• Do you have, or will you be considering, mergers or acquisitions?

These questions often flush out employees you didn’t know you have on the books. In this in-person session we will explore important elements of the employment contract and their impact to group benefits entitlements. We will also review key elements of your group insurance contract and how these are critical to managing your workforce. A few scenarios will be presented to walk you through the relationship between the employment contract and the group benefits program, and you will leave the session with some best practice considerations to take back to your organization.