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"Harry Krause" wrote in message
. ..
From USA TODAY, 8/29/06:
http://www.usatoday.com/money/indust...e_x.htm?csp=34

Americans without health insurance rise as job-based coverage
continues to fall

By Julie Appleby, USA TODAY

Job-based health insurance -- the main way Americans get coverage --
fell for the fifth consecutive year in 2005, helping push the overall
percentage of Americans without health insurance up to 15.9% of the
population.

Since 60% of of this country's workers are employed by small business, it
doesn't surprise me that job-based health insurance fell. As a small
business owner, I don't have the ability to buy health insurance through my
national association (ADA), so I'm at the mercy of the few health insurance
providers who still provide insurance in Florida.

Ergo, it's ridiculously expensive because of lack of competition.
Comparatively, corporations and labor unions can purchase health insurance
across state lines for their employees/members, resulting in greater choice,
greater competion, and greater bargaining power with the insurance
companies. Their rates are much less, and their coverage is much better.

If you want to stop seeing headlines about "job-based health insurance"
falling, then urge your representatives in the Senate to stop obstructing a
vote on S. 1955... The Health Insurance Marketplace Modernization and
Affordability Act of 2005.

http://www.nfib.com/page/SBHPs.html

http://www.govtrack.us/congress/bill.xpd?bill=s109-1955

We sure are making progress in the world
 

"Harry Krause" wrote in message news:baadnSedEYn-


"Small" business is notorious for shortchanging its employees.


Not true at all in my experience. If anything, small businesses consider
their employees to be very valuable contributors and tend to treat them
accordingly.

Stick to your big business and Wal-Mart stories.

Eisboch

We sure are making progress in the world
 

"Harry Krause" wrote in message
. ..
Eisboch wrote:
"Harry Krause" wrote in message
news:baadnSedEYn-


"Small" business is notorious for shortchanging its employees.


Not true at all in my experience. If anything, small businesses consider
their employees to be very valuable contributors and tend to treat them
accordingly.

Stick to your big business and Wal-Mart stories.

Eisboch


Your personal experience obviously is different.

The only small businesses I know of that for sure have good benefits are
unionized construction contractors, because the bennies are negotiated as
part of the overall "pay" package.

Thus, an electrician whose union negotiates a $50 an hour rate, might get
$35 an hour gross for pay, and the remainder is split among health care,
retirement, whatever. The union and its members decide how much of that
gross dollar amount does to "pay" and how much goes to bennies.

Typically, the contracts also cover the contractor and his/her office
employees.

That happens to be the kind of health insurance I have right now.


In order to attract, train and retain valuable employees, non-union small
businesses more often than not offer:

Competitive wages in line with businesses in the same industry.
Fully paid or majority of cost paid health and dental plans.
Workman's comp insurance.
Profit sharing in many cases.
Retirement plans with company contributions (varies on financial capability
of company)
Advancement, raises and promotions based on merit. (Important)
Holidays, vacations, personal time and owner's "screw it, it's a beautiful
day, let's pay everyone for a full day and knock off early".
Lack of "them" vs. "us" culture.

I've worked for three small businesses, founded and owned another, one
"big" business and 9 years of military in my working career. We often
interfaced with large, unionized companies. My old filing cabinet is full
of résumé's and job applications from many union employees that wanted a
breath of fresh air.

There aren't many small, unionized businesses, other than small construction
companies that draw from the union pool for employees. And they tend to be
here today, gone tomorrow operations.

Eisboch

We sure are making progress in the world
 

"Harry Krause" wrote in message
. ..
Eisboch wrote:
"Harry Krause" wrote in message
news:baadnSedEYn-


"Small" business is notorious for shortchanging its employees.


Not true at all in my experience. If anything, small businesses consider
their employees to be very valuable contributors and tend to treat them
accordingly.

Stick to your big business and Wal-Mart stories.

Eisboch


Your personal experience obviously is different.

The only small businesses I know of that for sure have good benefits are
unionized construction contractors, because the bennies are negotiated as
part of the overall "pay" package.

Thus, an electrician whose union negotiates a $50 an hour rate, might get
$35 an hour gross for pay, and the remainder is split among health care,
retirement, whatever. The union and its members decide how much of that
gross dollar amount does to "pay" and how much goes to bennies.

Typically, the contracts also cover the contractor and his/her office
employees.

That happens to be the kind of health insurance I have right now.

My employee's have:

3 weeks paid vacation.

Paid holidays.

2 sick days.

Health insurance ($250 deductible; BC/BS PPO)--I pay 85% of premium (used to
be 100% that I paid...but premiums are up 100% in past 7 years)


Simple IRA Savings Plan (3% matching)

So now you know of another small business with good benefits...and we're not
even unionized.

We sure are making progress in the world
 

"Harry Krause" wrote in message
. ..

The beauty of the unionized construction contractor-employee relationship
is that it doesn't matter if the employer is here today and gone tomorrow.
The funds are controlled by a joint trusteeship and are fully portable,
even throughout the country. Thus, if concrete contractor X goes out of
business in Detroit, a worker might relocate to Houston, have his business
agent get him on with another contractor, and the local there will forward
his health and welfare payments to the Detroit local, if that's what he
wants.

Same with pensions. Portability. And entirely undependent upon any
particular employer.


Well, it's obvious we are talking about two different kinds of small
business. Other than dealing with them, I have no experience working in the
construction industry, although I've heard horror stories from both sides.

Which is why I took exception to your ""Small" business is notorious for
shortchanging its employees"
statement.

Eisboch

We sure are making progress in the world
 

"Harry Krause" wrote in message
...

I just checked with my son. Currently, his company (my old company) 's
health care costs are 16-18 percent of monthly payroll, not counting dental
plan insurance payments.

Eisboch

We sure are making progress in the world
 

"Eisboch" wrote in message
...

"Harry Krause" wrote in message
...

I just checked with my son. Currently, his company (my old company) 's
health care costs are 16-18 percent of monthly payroll, not counting
dental plan insurance payments.

Eisboch


I worded that wrong. The monthly health care cost (not including dental)
makes up 16-18 percent of the monthly payroll.

Eisboch

We sure are making progress in the world
 

"Harry Krause" wrote in message
. ..
Eisboch wrote:
"Eisboch" wrote in message
...
"Harry Krause" wrote in message
...

I just checked with my son. Currently, his company (my old company) 's
health care costs are 16-18 percent of monthly payroll, not counting
dental plan insurance payments.

Eisboch


I worded that wrong. The monthly health care cost (not including dental)
makes up 16-18 percent of the monthly payroll.

Eisboch


At the large insurance company where I was a consultant, fringe benefits
and employer's share of SS were figured to add 40-50% to employee cost.
That included a very generous retirement plan.

Sounds like a familiar number.

Eisboch

We sure are making progress in the world
 

Eisboch wrote:
"Harry Krause" wrote in message
. ..

The beauty of the unionized construction contractor-employee relationship
is that it doesn't matter if the employer is here today and gone tomorrow.
The funds are controlled by a joint trusteeship and are fully portable,
even throughout the country. Thus, if concrete contractor X goes out of
business in Detroit, a worker might relocate to Houston, have his business
agent get him on with another contractor, and the local there will forward
his health and welfare payments to the Detroit local, if that's what he
wants.

Same with pensions. Portability. And entirely undependent upon any
particular employer.



Well, it's obvious we are talking about two different kinds of small
business. Other than dealing with them, I have no experience working in the
construction industry, although I've heard horror stories from both sides.

Which is why I took exception to your ""Small" business is notorious for
shortchanging its employees"
statement.

Eisboch



My brother-in-law has a small construction business (20-30 employees
depending on how many projects are on the go).
I've heard my nephews complain that they are told to not put in all
their hours to keep below 48 per week , at which point they'd receive
1.5 x rate.
Most of the senior men are unionized but keep their mouth shut... or
they be looking for another job. My nephew was concerned about the
under-reporting because it affects pensions/benefits and hours tabulated
towards a journeyman designation.
note... none of them is ever paid in excess of the base hourly rate.

We sure are making progress in the world
 

Eisboch wrote:
"Harry Krause" wrote in message
. ..

Eisboch wrote:

"Eisboch" wrote in message
news:ycKdnQuxsuohZ2jZnZ2dnUVZ_vqdnZ2d@giganews. com...

"Harry Krause" wrote in message
...

I just checked with my son. Currently, his company (my old company) 's
health care costs are 16-18 percent of monthly payroll, not counting
dental plan insurance payments.

Eisboch


I worded that wrong. The monthly health care cost (not including dental)
makes up 16-18 percent of the monthly payroll.

Eisboch


At the large insurance company where I was a consultant, fringe benefits
and employer's share of SS were figured to add 40-50% to employee cost.
That included a very generous retirement plan.


Sounds like a familiar number.

Eisboch


Man...I should have gone to work stateside. We split almost 50/50 with
the Corp for our pension...until the plan showed a surplus. Then the
company took at least two long 3 to 4 year premium holidays.... leaving
a fully employee funded plan. The rank & file (plus managers) were the
only ones chipping in. (plus any interest earned on the investments)