Greetings GMA SHRM Members –

I hope everyone is ready for fall because it is here! 
 
Our November Professional Development Summit being held on November 13th is already filling up quickly. This is our annual legal update so you won’t want to miss it! Along with the comprehensive legal update, the second session focuses on harassment and bullying in the workplace and how to handle those issues. Register today!
 
We also have an evening event coming up on November 1st, 2018. This will be a combination of networking activities and opportunity to learn more about our chapter and how to get involved. I strongly encourage new members to attend and any members that want to strengthen their networks. More details will be posted on the website in the near future. 
 
If you are signing up for a new or renewing SHRM membership, you can use the discount code TOTE2018 and receive a free SHRM tote bag!
 
I hope to see you at an upcoming event! 

Take Care,

Tammy Wacek, SHRM-CP, PHR
President
GMA SHRM

Click here to view the full GMA SHRM Board of Directors

 

IRS Issues Private Letter Ruling Regarding One Approach to Helping Employees Pay Off Student Loan Debt

Submitted by: Abigail Darwin, GMA SHRM Government Affairs Committee Member and Employee Benefits Attorney at Quarles & Brady LLC

On May 22, 2018, the Internal Revenue Service ("IRS") issued Private Letter Ruling ("PLR") 201833012, which provided approval for an employer to make non-elective contributions to its employees' 401(k) accounts, conditioned on the employees making student loan repayments.  The non-elective contributions in the scenario discussed in the PLR would be similar to employer "matching" contributions to elective contributions that the employees might otherwise make to the 401(k) plan, except that in this case, the employer's 401(k) contribution would be "matched" to an employee's contribution toward repayment of his or her student loan debt.
 
According to the Society for Human Resource Management's 2018 Employee Benefits Survey, only about 4% of employers currently offer student loan repayment assistance to their employees.  The most significant reason for the dearth of such programs is likely the fact that such benefits are considered taxable income to employees and are not deductible by employers. 
 
Many companies are beginning to recognize how valuable student loan repayment programs can be as both a recruitment and retention tool and have begun attempting to find novel work-arounds.  The method described in the PLR provides an interesting approach that not only helps employees to pay off student loan debt, but also helps them save for retirement, and in a manner which utilizes the tax benefits to employees and employers offered under a 401(k) plan. 
 
Although PLRs may not be used as precedent, they suggest how the IRS may approach a given matter in future guidance.  As such, this PLR is significant insofar as it may embolden employers to implement programs to assist employees with student loan repayment, particularly when such programs are tied to "matching" non-elective employer contributions into a 401(k) plan.

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2019 WI SHRM Day on the Hill Planning Begins

Submitted by: Jeff Palkowski, Director of Government Affairs GMA SHRM and SHRM Advocacy Captain (Wisconsin 1st CD)

While it’s only September, your GMA SHRM Government Affairs committee is already getting started providing programming input for the 2019 WI SHRM Day on the Hill event to be held on February 13^th and 14^th next year.
 
If you have not attended a previous Day on the Hill event, it is held here in Madison on the Capitol Square at the Premier Park Hotel.  The morning is filled with HR legal updates, legislative speakers, or other topics of interest to the human resources community. In addition to an annual Legal Update from Bob Gregg of Boardman & Clark, LLP past speakers have included Wisconsin DWD Deputy Secretary Georgia Maxwell, Marquette Law School Pollster Charles Franklin, Capitol Times Government Reporter Jessie Opoien, and Lieutenant Governor Rebecca Kleefisch.
 
As we begin committee discussions to share ideas with the WI SHRM Day on the Hill Planning Committee, we would welcome any programming and/or speaker suggestions from both those that have either attended previously or those that are considering attending for the first time in 2019. While it seems like a few months away, we will need to reach out to potential speakers very soon to confirm their availability next February.
 
If you have any speaker or topic recommendations that you would like to share, please email them to me at jeff.palkowski@wisc.edu

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Professional Development

GMA SHRM welcomes the following members who joined our chapter in August 2018!

Tiffany	Andrews	The Employer Group
Yesenia	Arce	Student - University of Phoenix
Tanya	Drews	Frontier Communications
Kim	Garske	ATTIC Correctional Services
Brittany	Gill
Aly	Heimbruch	Madison Psychiatric Associates	SHRM-SCP, SPHR
Jacqueline	Jacobson	The Payroll Company
Skyler	King	The Employer Group
Christopher	Kunze	Kunze Analytics, LLC
Emily	Lund	LocknCharge
William	Peterik	Stoughton Trailers
Tamaris	Relerford	Stoughton Trailers LLC
Matthew	Smith	Feelings at Work
Jennifer	Stark	VIP Crowd
Mike	Tonsfeldt	The Edgewater
Amy	Tracy	City of Fitchburg
Bridget	Travnick	Shared Medical Services	SHRM-SCP, SPHR
Stephanie	Winters	CENTURY 21 Affiliated
Meghen	Yeadon	Stoughton Trailers

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Movin' Up

Have you started with a new company? Has your organization recently promoted you to a new position? Or do you want to recognize a new person or promotion within your department? If so, we want to hear about it. Send us an e-mail, and we’ll publish your good news in the next HR InTouch!  
 

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In Transition

If you are a member who is in between jobs, or who is currently employed but seeking new positions or career paths, write us a brief description of your skill set, areas of expertise, what you’re looking for, etc. Send us an e-mail. We’ll publish your information in the next HR InTouch.

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HR InTouch Guidelines

Article Writing:

Do you have an interest in writing for the HR InTouch? We have an interest in learning more about your area of expertise!

Why should you volunteer? Top three reasons: 1) to share your knowledge and experiences to educate others; 2) to become more connected in the HR and Dane County communities; and 3) to contribute towards the advancement of GMA SHRM and the HR profession.

The first step is for you to choose a submission option: you can pre-submit an article to GMA SHRM at any time for us to use in any of the upcoming newsletters, you can sign up to write for a particular month, or we can put you on a list of people to contact in future months whenever we need articles.

Article length:

Because the HR InTouch is now in an online format, the size is flexible. The article should be engaging and hold readers’ attention. Include the core information in your article, and we will advise if it is too lengthy.

Solicitation:

GMA SHRM is conscious not to allow solicitation through the articles, in an effort to protect the interests of our partners and members. The nature of the article should be educational (i.e., what are the business advantages of having a product like yours) or informational. Otherwise, if you truly are interested in advertising through the HR InTouch, you can work with our Marketing Committee. As a rule of thumb for article writing, if the submission relates to a for-profit event, or specifically markets your company (vs. your industry), it is an advertisement, and should be purchased. If it is a not-for-profit event that your company is hosting, or an announcement (i.e., a SHRM member recently joined your company), it is an acceptable addition to the HR InTouch content. If you have any questions related to the appropriateness of your submission, please contact us.

If you have questions, or to submit an article, contact GMA SHRM at chapteradmin@gmashrm.org .