Employees want financial benefits: Fewer than 2 in 5 employees believe someone cares about them as a person at work or respects them, according to the Morgan Stanley at Work’s 5th annual report “State of the Workplace Financial Benefits.” Meanwhile, financial anxiety continues climbing, with 66% of employees reporting that financial stress negatively affects their work and personal life, up 4 percentage points since last year. Because 3 in 5 HR leaders identify hiring and retention as their company’s top strategic financial priority for 2025, the data reveals a clear connection: employees who feel financially supported stay longer. The study reveals a stark reality: 4 in 5 HR executives worry employees will seek other job opportunities if their company can’t offer benefits to help manage financial stress. And they’re right to worry, as 9 in 10 employees say they would feel more invested in staying if they were offered financial benefits that met their specific needs.  Today’s workforce is practically begging for help, and 84% believe employers should actively assist them with financial issues, with Gen Z (95%) leading the charge compared to boomers (66%).  Source: Worklife 5/27/25

What’s driving healthcare costs? According to CBIZ's annual State of Healthcare report, one of the most significant cost drivers this year is the increasing popularity of GLP-1 weight loss drugs, such as semaglutide injections like Ozempic and Wegovy. While these medications were originally developed to treat type 2 diabetes, they've since gained rapid adoption for their effectiveness in promoting weight loss and reducing other chronic conditions, including cardiovascular risks. However, their high monthly costs — ranging from $1,000 to $1,500 — are placing considerable financial pressure on employer-sponsored healthcare plans. According to a 2024 survey by the Business Group on Health, 56% of large employers reported that GLP-1 drugs were having a major impact on healthcare costs, and 67% were covering them for obesity treatment. These expenses are aligned with overall healthcare cost increases — CBIZ's report predicts a 5.8% increase in 2025, marking the third consecutive year of above-5% growth. Analysis from Mercer points to this uptick being driven by broader inflation in medical services, higher utilization rates, and the rising cost of new therapies like GLP-1s.  Source: EBN 5/28/25

Boomer jobs in IT are growing: At a rate that defies common conceptions about Silicon Valley, tech firms are starting to snap up older workers. Hirings of employees with over 10 years of experience rose by 27% from 2023 to 2024, according to a new analysis by venture firm SignalFire. It jumped 40% for those with five to 10 years under their belt. Meanwhile, hiring for new grads is down 25%, again turning conventional wisdom on its head. “An experienced applicant is very likely to beat out a new grad,” says Paul Fogel, sector leader for professional search in the Software practice at Korn Ferry. Whatever the causes, the timing for new openings for older workers, especially boomers, couldn’t be better. Many have either put off or plan to put off their retirement because of tightening economic conditions. According to one survey last year, two-thirds of workers say they are planning for a “phased retirement” by gradually reducing how much they work over several years. These days the industry is particularly friendly to retirement-aged executive experts such as chief revenue officers, who often have retired from operational roles but serve as interim executives or coaches and are popular in private-equity backed companies.  Source: Korn Ferry 5/27/25

Although workplace injuries are declining, costs are rising: Due in part to changing workforce demographics, costs associated with workplace injuries are climbing, even while the number of injuries continues to decline, according to a June 3 report from workers’ compensation insurer Travelers. The report compared workers’ compensation data from the five years leading up to the Covid pandemic, 2015 to 2019, with data from the five years since 2020 to 2024. Three cost-related trends emerged: increasing retirement ages, ongoing employee turnover, and longer injury recovery times, Rich Ives, Travelers senior VP of business insurance claims.  One of the factors affecting workplace injuries has been a continuous job churn over the past five years, Travelers noted. This has created a steady stream of new employees — a group considered among the most vulnerable to injury, the company said.  In particular, its research found workplace injuries during a worker’s first year on the job comprised 36% of all workplace injuries over the past five years, up from the 34% recorded during the period between 2015 and 2019.  There’s also been a slight increase in claims by employees aged 50 and older, the study found. “This trend is significant because older employees — while typically injured less frequently than their younger counterparts — tend to require longer recovery times and have more costly claims,” Travelers said.  Source: HR Dive 6/12/25

OSHA clarifies that alternative digital recordkeeping is permissible: A recent standard interpretation letter dated April 29, 2025, addressed whether employers may use software-generated documents in place of the OSHA-required injury and illness recordkeeping forms, specifically Forms 300 (injury log) and 300A (annual summary).  OSHA reaffirmed its long-standing principle that employers may use “equivalent forms” to meet the record keeping requirements under the applicable regulations. However, these forms must contain the same information, must be equally readable and understandable, and also provide similar instructions as the official OHSA forms. Thus, software-generated documents that meet these requirements may serve as valid substitutes. OSHA also opined that employers have some flexibility in maintaining electronic injury and illness logs, provided they can be printed and made available to government representatives, employees, and their representatives upon request. The interpretation also clarifies that if the requesting party agrees to receive the forms electronically, employers can deliver them digitally. OSHA also reminded employers that the annal summary must be certified by a company executive and physically posted in the workplace from February 1 through April 30 of the following year covered by the summary and that any substituted form used must also include the employee access to records and employer penalty statement found on the 300A annual summary. Finally, OSHA restated another long-standing principle that it does not “approve, endorse, recommend, or certify any product or process.”   Source: OSHA Chronicle 6/17/2025