Worker’s firing days before retirement didn’t violate ERISA, judge holds

An Ohio district court found that Western & Southern cited a legitimate basis for its decision to terminate the plaintiff, who spent 18 years with the company.

By Ryan Golden • April 15, 2026

Payscale CFO calls for ‘always on’ comp talks

Generation Z is one of the drivers behind the shift toward more transparent and frequent pay discussions, Payscale’s CFO said.

By Maura Webber Sadovi • April 15, 2026

Explore the Trendline➔

Inside the rapidly changing world of employee benefits

Healthcare costs are climbing and employee needs are changing. How can HR professionals adapt?

By HR Dive staff

Employee benefits regulator to focus on ‘bad actors’

The U.S. Department of Labor’s Employee Benefits Security Administration said it will target enforcement on “the most egregious conduct and significant harm.”

By Ginger Christ • April 15, 2026

With health costs ballooning, workers turn to wellness and the internet, ADP finds

When workers delay care because of cost, it could hurt employers more in the long run, other research suggests.

By Emilie Shumway • Updated April 16, 2026

Week in review: ‘Payroll leakage’ is prompting millions in losses

We’re rounding up last week’s stories, from massive U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission prelitigation payments to improving performance development.

By Kathryn Moody • April 13, 2026

FedEx, pilots union reach tentative contract agreement

The deal, which would raise pilots’ hourly wages by nearly 40%, is the second tentative pact between the two parties during a multiyear negotiations process.

By Max Garland • April 13, 2026

A smarter way for employers to offer GLP-1 access — with built-in cost control

Manage rising GLP-1 costs with WEX’s defined-contribution HRA — the smart way to offer employee access.

By Danielle Casey • April 13, 2026

BNY bank gives its employees homeownership help

The bank is offering $6,500 in down payment assistance to employees who make $100,000 or less a year. BNY in recent years has raised its minimum wage and offered company stock to its lowest-paid workers.

By Dan Ennis • April 9, 2026

HR teams cautiously experiment with using AI to help set workers’ pay

The technology can augment the work of human compensation professionals, but a range of legal and privacy concerns are slowing adoption, sources told HR Dive.

By Ryan Golden • April 9, 2026

Employers may lose up to 4% of labor spend to poor payroll management

While compensation often represents a significant portion of operating expenses, payroll is sometimes an afterthought, per a UKG and KPMG report.

By Lara Ewen • April 6, 2026

Starbucks adds performance bonuses for front-line workers

Baristas and shift supervisors at stores that hit key performance metrics could see $300 quarterly bonuses starting in July.

By Aneurin Canham-Clyne • April 3, 2026

More than half of adults say men have a better chance at securing competitive wages

Nearly a third of employed women say they’ve faced discrimination when trying to earn equal wages, per an Associated Press-NORC Center for Public Affairs Research poll.

By Ginger Christ • April 2, 2026

New graduates say they would sacrifice pay for job stability

Pay still matters, but people entering the workforce are increasingly looking for long-term security amid concerns about artificial intelligence and the economy, Monster found.

By Lara Ewen • April 2, 2026

More companies say equity benefits are being used to attract talent

Equity and employee stock purchase plans are especially part of the conversation for technical talent, reports showed.

By Caroline Colvin • April 1, 2026

DOL proposes rule easing 401(k) investments in cryptocurrency, other alternative assets

The rule, which follows the direction of an executive order, would protect fiduciaries who select such investments “objectively, thoroughly, and analytically,” the department said.

By Emilie Shumway • March 31, 2026

The employer benefits model wasn’t built to sustain the current drug landscape. A new flexible option is emerging.

Employees want GLP-1 coverage. Learn how employers are offering it — without a complete benefits overhaul.

March 30, 2026

10M could lose Medicaid due to work requirements, more frequent eligibility checks, study finds

Between 5 million and 10 million people could be disenrolled due to cuts to the safety-net insurance program, depending on states’ mitigation strategies, according to the analysis.

By Emily Olsen • March 27, 2026

DOL seeks to hike H-1B visa holder wage rates to curb ‘abuse’ of program

Employers should expect the changes, which revive a regulatory effort from the first Trump era, to further disrupt their skilled worker hiring plans, one attorney said.

By Ryan Golden • March 27, 2026

This week in 5 numbers: Worker engagement hits lowest level in a decade

Here’s a roundup of numbers from the last week of HR news — including how many workers receive artificial intelligence-generated “workslop” from their superiors.

By Ginger Christ • March 26, 2026

Workers send nearly 3M messages a day to ChatGPT about wages, OpenAI reports

Most often, workers look for help with pay calculations and to figure out “what a concrete job, career path, or employer might plausibly pay before they apply, negotiate, or switch,” the artificial intelligence company said.

By Ginger Christ • March 26, 2026

Gender pay gap grows in 2026, report finds

Payscale noted that the gender pay gap exists at every education level and “widens significantly” as women age and progress in their careers.

By Ginger Christ • March 25, 2026

Why paid sick leave is a DEI issue

A National Partnership for Women & Families report shows how the geography of “pre-emption” states can disproportionately affect certain groups.

By Caroline Colvin • March 25, 2026

Insulin, fatigue and focus: the untold story of metabolic health at work

Employees might not see it coming. With data, they can act before fatigue and focus issues show up.

March 23, 2026

How compensation teams can become strategic finance partners

Finance leaders are looking to comp teams for deeper insight into how workforce investments affect the bottom line. Check out these strategies for strengthening that partnership.

March 23, 2026

More than GLP-s: Here’s what an obesity care benefits strategy needs

A successful strategy needs to integrate weight management into an employee benefits program and support the behavior changes essential to long-term weight management.

March 23, 2026