Compensation and Benefits, Chapter 13: Benefit Options

Data from WellPoint Inc shows that _____ percent of its 29 million customers account for over 60 percent of its medical costs. A. 7 B. 17 C. 27 D. 37

A. 7

Which of the following is a benefit under Social Security? A. Lump-sum death payments B. Job security C. Work/life balance D. Overtime pay

A. Lump-sum death payments

Jennifer is hurt at work while driving a forklift. Her employer claims that she was injured as a result of her careless driving, and therefore she is not eligible for workers' compensation. What will be the outcome of the employer's challenge to her worker's compensation claim? A. She will likely receive workers' compensation benefits. B. She will get nothing. C. Jennifer and her employer will share the blame and split the costs. D. The employer has the final word in determining Jennifer's eligibility.

A. She will likely receive workers' compensation benefits.

Which of the following is a feature of defined contribution plans? A. They are faster to vest than defined benefit plans. B. They are characterized by high contribution rates. C. They are less portable than defined benefit plans. D. They are fully funded by employers.

A. They are faster to vest than defined benefit plans.

In a _____ plan, an employer agrees to provide a specific level of retirement pension, which is expressed as either a fixed dollar or a percentage-of-earnings amount that may vary (increase) with years of seniority in the company. A. defined benefit B. noncontributory benefit C. 401(k) D. shared benefit

A. defined benefit

An employer experiencing high turnover and seeking to reduce pension cost is likely to prefer: A. full vesting after three years. B. full vesting after six years. C. full vesting after seven years. D. partial vesting after two years.

A. full vesting after three years.

The rising costs of Social Security have been covered by: A. increases in the maximum earnings base and the rate at which that base is taxed. B. reduction in Social Security benefits by providing market-driven options. C. progressive reduction in the coverage. D. welfare grants and annual supplements from Congress.

A. increases in the maximum earnings base and the rate at which that base is taxed.

A health maintenance organization (HMO) pulls together a group of providers willing to provide services at an agreed upon rate in exchange for employers: A. limiting employees to these providers for health services. B. paying 30 percent of employee salary to the HMO. C. laying off all contingent workers who are not eligible for insurance. D. providing free child care assistance to employees.

A. limiting employees to these providers for health services.

A _____ plan is a hybrid health plan combining the benefits of HMO and _____. A. point-of-service; preferred provider organization B. POS; Blue Cross C. managed care; POS D. consolidated health; PPO

A. point-of-service; preferred provider organization

Roughly _____ of all employees have access to paid life insurance. A. three-fourths B. half C. one-third D. a quarter

A. three-fourths

The majority of defined benefit plans calculate average earnings over the last _____ years of service for a prospective retiree. A. 2 to 4 B. 3 to 5 C. 6 to 8 D. 7 to 9

B. 3 to 5

Some level of dental coverage is provided by about _____ percent of all employers with above 500 employees. A. 30 B. 60 C. 11 D. 85

B. 60

Jacob, an 18-year-old, has been working at HoldVille Corp. for over a year. If HoldVille offers full vesting after one year, which of the following statements is true? A. Jacob is eligible for full pension as he has worked for over a year at HoldVille. B. Jacob is not eligible for pension as he is not over 21. C. Jacob is eligible for 20 percent of his pension if he has dependents. D. Jacob is not eligible for a pension if he quits of his own volition.

B. Jacob is not eligible for pension as he is not over 21.

Maxford Corp. offers full vesting after two years. However, it does not offer portability of pension to its employees. Which of the following statements is true in this scenario? A. Employees of Maxford will receive 20 percent of their pension if they quit after one year. B. Maxford does not have to provide vested benefits to employees who quit before six months. C. Employees of Maxford who quit can have their pension benefits transferred to the new employer. D. Maxford does not have to provide vested benefits if employees quit of their own volition after two years.

B. Maxford does not have to provide vested benefits to employees who quit before six months.

_____ relieve an employer's liability when a pre-employment injury combines with a work-related injury to produce a disability greater than that caused by the latter alone. A. Collateral funds B. Second-injury funds C. Insolvency funds D. Pre-employment funds

B. Second-injury funds

Which of the following benefits is a federally administered program? A. Workers' compensation B. Social Security C. Job security D. Occupational Safety and Health Act

B. Social Security

For an employee to gain lifetime coverage under Social Security, they must have worked for _____ quarters during which they were covered by the Act. A. 20 B. 30 C. 40 D. 10

C. 40

Almost _____ percent of the companies offering child care assistance to employees also offer elder care assistance. A. 10 B. 30 C. 50 D. 90

C. 50

Which of the following is a hybrid of defined benefit and defined contribution plans? A. 401(k) plan B. Employee stock ownership plan C. Cash balance plan D. Profit-sharing plan

C. Cash balance plan

_____ is designed to lessen an employer's ability to deny coverage to an employee for a preexisting condition. A. COBRA B. OSHA C. HIPPA D. FMLA

C. HIPPA

Michael was laid off by his company owing to budget cuts. Before being laid off, he earned $1,000 per week. If he has been receiving unemployment insurance benefits for 26 weeks, which of the following statements is true in this scenario? A. Michael can continue to avail unemployment benefits for another 26 weeks. B. Michael is eligible for $1,000 per week if he can show that he has been earnestly searching for jobs. C. Michael is no longer eligible for unemployment benefits. D. Michael will now only be eligible for 20 percent of his previous income as unemployment benefits.

C. Michael is no longer eligible for unemployment benefits.

Which of the following is NOT a benefit that is required by statutory law? A. Workers' compensation B. Social Security C. Pension and retirement benefits D. Unemployment compensation

C. Pension and retirement benefits

What is the first question that should be asked when determining the amount of retirement income an employer should provide? A. Should Social Security payments be factored in when considering the level of income an employee should have during retirement? B. How should seniority be factored into the payout formula? C. What level of retirement compensation would the employer like to set as a target, expressed in relation to pre-retirement earnings? D. Should other postretirement income sources be integrated with the pension payment?

C. What level of retirement compensation would the employer like to set as a target, expressed in relation to pre-retirement earnings?

Experts attribute the decline in dollar cost of workers' compensation after 2005 relates to: A. increased variable component of base wage. B. devaluation of the dollar. C. employer safety programs. D. relaxed federal regulations.

C. employer safety programs

Steve has a small company with 12 employees. One of his employees, Larry, has been laid off because his work has been outsourced. Larry had health coverage through Steve's company and wants to continue that coverage. According to COBRA, how long can Larry continue his coverage through Steve's company after being laid off? A. 36 months B. 24 months C. 18 months D. 0 months

D. 0 months

Today, _____ percent of the workers participate in the pension plan coverage provided by their employers. A. 98 B. 12 C. 28 D. 53

D. 53

Which of the following types of workers are generally NOT covered by workers' compensation? A. State government employees B. Private sector employees C. Railroad workers D. Farm workers

D. Farm workers

In the majority of the states, unemployment insurance is financed exclusively by: A. joint contributions by employee unions. B. the philanthropy of co-workers. C. federal, state, and employee contributions. D. employers that pay federal and state unemployment insurance.

D. employers that pay federal and state unemployment insurance.

Contingent workers receive _____ benefits than regular workers; contingent workers' benefits cost _____ for employers than it does for regular workers. A. more; less B. fewer; more C. more; more D. fewer; less

D. fewer; less

An employee who changes jobs four or more times during his or her career will likely receive a pension approximately _____ as that of an employee whose working career is spent with one employer, assuming that both employees have the same starting salary and receive annual increases equal to inflation rate. A. twice as large B. the same size C. one-fourth the size D. half the size

D. half the size