HR CONNECTION | WORKPLACE TRENDS RESEARCHERS: ASSERTIVE LANGUAGE MAY HELP REDUCE WORKPLACE GENDER GAP What underpins the workplace gender gap? It may be just words. This is the finding of a new study in Management Science out of Washington State University, in which researchers successfully made a workplace gender gap disappear via language choices. The statements and advice of women are commonly less believed than those of men. Researchers aimed to pinpoint why in a study that asked 1,000 people to play a challenging online game while listening to the game advice of men and women — some of whom used more assertive language and some of whom used less assertive language.
MBA Can Assist Employers Facing New Challenges With Medicare-Eligible Employees
The study found that when women employed assertive language, their advice was just as likely to be followed as the men’s advice, and the gender gap disappeared.
Businesses with less than 20 employees who have employees that are 65 or older (Medicare eligible) and who offer a group health plan will be facing new challenges in our region. The Medicare Secondary Payer (MSP) rules state that an employee who is Medicare eligible and works for a company with less than 20 employees must enroll in Medicare because Medicare is the primary payer of medical claims and the group health plan (GHP) is secondary. Up until now, the major payers, Highmark and UPMC, have paid as primary for Medicare-eligible individuals in small groups, negating the need for the Medicare eligibles to enroll in Medicare. Recently, UPMC announced that it was going to follow the MSP rules and begin paying as secondary for any employee who is Medicare eligible. With this change, small businesses will need to have their Medicare-eligible employees enroll in Medicare and then evaluate if it makes sense to enroll in a Medicare plan and leave the GHP. There is good news, however. Through the Manufacturer & Business Association’s partnership with MediPlanConnect, our expert professionals can help you and your Medicare eligible employees through the process. The MBA’s program is turn-key and will assist your Medicare eligible employee in enrolling in Medicare, evaluating their personal health insurance needs and, if appropriate, enrolling them in a Medicare plan. It’s worth noting that these services are no cost to you or your employees as members of the MBA. We will remove the burden from you and your team! If you would like me to put you in touch with our MediPlanConnect experts, please contact me at 814/833-3200, 800/815-2660 or mdamico@mbausa.org.
STUDY: ONE IN FOUR WOMEN CONSIDERED LEAVING WORKFORCE OR DOWNSHIFTING DUE TO PANDEMIC
McKinsey & Company and LeanIn.Org recently released the annual Women in the Workplace report, the largest study of its kind. After six years of slow but measurable progress in the representation of women in corporate America, one in four women have reported considering leaving the workforce or downshifting their careers due to COVID-19. The report is based on data and insights from 317 companies employing more than 12 million people, along with survey responses from more than 40,000 individual employees. COVID-19 has been hugely disruptive for all employees. The new report also highlights the effects of the pandemic on women, including the distinct challenges for mothers, women in senior leadership and Black women. Working mothers are deeply concerned about how COVID-19 will impact their careers. They are more than three times as likely as fathers to be managing most of their family’s housework and caregiving during the pandemic — and twice as likely to worry that their performance will be judged negatively due to their caregiving responsibilities. They are also far more likely to feel uncomfortable sharing work-life challenges with colleagues — or that they’ve got children at home.
Melissa Damico is the manager of Client Services at the Manufacturer & Business Association. Contact her at 814/833-3200, 800/815-2660 or mdamico@mbausa.org.
mbabizmag.com • APRIL 2021
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