Question 1

_____ 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.

Accepted Answer

Second-injury funds are designed to relieve employers of their liability when an employee experiences a work-related injury that combines with a pre-existing condition or injury to produce a greater disability than the work-related injury alone. This fund provides benefits to the employee that supplement those provided by workers' compensation insurance.

Question 2

Which of the following benefits is a federally administered program?

Accepted Answer

Social Security is a federally administered program. Workers' compensation is administered at the state level. Job security and the Occupational Safety and Health Act are not administered as programs, but are laws and concepts related to employment.

Question 3

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?

Accepted Answer

B

Question 4

Which of the following types of workers are generally NOT covered by workers' compensation?

Accepted Answer

Farm workers are generally not covered by workers' compensation. This varies by state, but in many states, agricultural workers are exempt from workers' comp coverage.

Question 5

For an employee to gain lifetime coverage under Social Security, they must have worked for _____ quarters during which they were covered by the Act.

Accepted Answer

In order to gain lifetime coverage under Social Security, an employee must have worked for 40 quarters, also known as 10 years, during which they were covered by the Act.

Question 6

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?

Accepted Answer

In most cases, if an employee is injured while on the job, they are eligible for workers' compensation benefits, regardless of who was at fault. The employer's claim that Jennifer was injured due to her own carelessness may not be enough to deny her workers' compensation benefits. The final determination of eligibility will be made by the workers' compensation board or a court.

Question 7

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?

Accepted Answer

The answer of Steve has a small company with 12...

Question 8

Data from WellPoint Inc shows that _____ percent of its 29 million customers account for over 60 percent of its medical costs.

Accepted Answer

7 percent of WellPoint Inc's 29 million customers account for over 60 percent of its medical costs, indicating a small portion of customers incur the majority of expenses.

Question 9

Which of the following is a hybrid of defined benefit and defined contribution plans?

Accepted Answer

Cash balance plans are a hybrid of defined benefit and defined contribution plans. In a cash balance plan, the employer contributes a set amount of money to an individual account for each employee, and the employee receives a guaranteed benefit upon retirement, similar to a defined benefit plan. However, the employee account balance can be tracked and managed like a defined contribution plan, giving employees more control over their retirement funds.

Question 10

Experts attribute the decline in dollar cost of workers' compensation after 2005 relates to:

Accepted Answer

Experts believe that the decline in the dollar cost of workers' compensation after 2005 is due to the efforts of employer safety programs. These programs promote a safer work environment, thereby reducing the number and severity of workplace injuries, which leads to a lower cost of workers' compensation claims.

Question 11

In the majority of the states, unemployment insurance is financed exclusively by:

Accepted Answer

In the majority of states, unemployment insurance is financed exclusively by employers who are mandated to pay federal and state unemployment insurance taxes. The taxes paid by employers go into a fund held by the state government, which is then used to provide unemployment benefits to workers who have lost their jobs due to no fault of their own.

Question 12

The majority of defined benefit plans calculate average earnings over the last _____ years of service for a prospective retiree.

Accepted Answer

Most defined benefit plans use the average earnings over the last 3 to 5 years of service to calculate retirement benefits, as this period typically reflects the highest earning years.

Question 13

The rising costs of Social Security have been covered by:

Accepted Answer

The rising costs of Social Security have been covered by increases in the maximum earnings base and the rate at which that base is taxed. This strategy helps to ensure that the program remains stable and that beneficiaries receive the benefits they expect. Reducing benefits or coverage would likely be counterproductive and could cause hardship for those who rely on Social Security as a primary source of income. Additionally, relying on welfare grants and supplements from Congress would make the program more vulnerable to political pressure and uncertain funding.

Question 14

Which of the following is a benefit under Social Security?

Accepted Answer

Lump-sum death payments are a benefit provided under Social Security. This payment is made to the surviving spouse or children of a deceased worker who was covered under Social Security.

Question 15

Today, _____ percent of the workers participate in the pension plan coverage provided by their employers.

Accepted Answer

53 percent of workers participate in the pension plan coverage provided by their employers, reflecting a moderate level of participation in employer-sponsored pension plans.

Question 16

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?

Accepted Answer

Unemployment benefits typically have a maximum duration, often around 26 weeks, after which individuals are no longer eligible unless there are extensions due to special circumstances.

Question 17

Which of the following is a feature of defined contribution plans?

Accepted Answer

Defined contribution plans typically vest faster than defined benefit plans, allowing employees to gain ownership of their contributions and any employer matching contributions more quickly.

Question 18

_____ is designed to lessen an employer's ability to deny coverage to an employee for a preexisting condition.

Accepted Answer

HIPAA (Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act) includes rules that prohibit group health plans and health insurers from denying coverage to individuals because of preexisting conditions. It also limits the wait time for coverage of preexisting conditions for individuals who switch from one group health plan to another.

Question 19

Which of the following is NOT a benefit that is required by statutory law?

Accepted Answer

While pension and retirement benefits are often provided by employers, they are not necessarily required by statutory law. However, workers' compensation, Social Security, and unemployment compensation are all benefits that employers are legally required to provide to eligible employees.

Question 20

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.

Accepted Answer

A defined benefit plan is an employer-sponsored retirement plan where the 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. The employer bears the investment risk and is responsible for funding the plan. In contrast, a 401(k) plan is a defined contribution plan where the employee contributes a portion of their salary towards the plan and the employer may or may not match the contribution, but the investment risk falls on the employee. A noncontributory benefit plan is a retirement plan where the entire cost is borne by the employer, and the employee does not contribute. A shared benefit plan is a retirement plan where the benefits are shared between the employer and the employee.

Quiz 13: Benefit Options