Employee Benefits Checklist

Run the prior-year monthly FTE calculation across all stores and corporate. At 50+ FTEs averaged across the year, you are an ALE and owe a 1095-C to each full-time associate plus a 1094-C transmittal. Multi-store retailers commonly cross the threshold mid-year as seasonal hiring climbs — recheck before locking the plan design.

Define the standard measurement period (typically 12 months), administrative period (up to 90 days), and stability period for hourly associates whose hours fluctuate week to week. Sales associates, stock associates, and key holders almost always fall in the variable-hour bucket and need a look-back method to determine full-time eligibility.

Walk the renewal package with your broker: premium change, claims experience, large-claimant report, and network disruption. Decide whether to stay with the incumbent carrier, market the plan, or move to a level-funded arrangement. For retailers with 50-200 EE, level-funded plans often beat fully-insured renewals when claims experience is favorable.

Request at least three quotes alongside a provider-disruption report — how many current in-network providers fall out under each alternative. For multi-state retailers, confirm network adequacy in every state where you have stores, not just headquarters.

Lock dental and vision carriers plus voluntary lines associates actually use in retail: accident, critical illness, and hospital indemnity hit hard with hourly workforces. Confirm guaranteed-issue amounts and any pre-existing condition waiting periods on voluntary life.

Review the match formula (safe harbor 3% non-elective vs. 100% of first 4%), auto-enrollment default rate, and auto-escalation cap with the recordkeeper. SECURE 2.0 now requires auto-enrollment for plans established after Dec 29, 2022 — confirm whether your plan is grandfathered.

Pull ADP/ACP test results from the recordkeeper. Retail demographics — heavily hourly, low HCE participation — frequently fail ADP without safe harbor. If you failed last year, decide whether to refund HCEs, make a QNEC, or move to safe harbor for the coming year.

Corrective refunds must be issued within 2½ months of plan-year-end to avoid the 10% excise tax on the employer. Coordinate with the recordkeeper to cut checks and update W-2 reporting; payroll needs the list of affected HCEs and amounts.

Walk every state and city where you operate stores against current paid-sick-leave accrual rules: CA (1 hour per 30 worked, 40-hour cap rising to 80), NY state, NYC, Seattle, Chicago, and Colorado all have distinct rules. One unified policy is rarely compliant for multi-state retailers — accrual rates and carryover differ.

Document accrual per pay period for each tier — hourly associates, key holders, ASMs, store managers, corporate. Address blackout periods (Black Friday week, the week before Christmas) and how PTO interacts with predictive-scheduling premium pay in jurisdictions like NYC, Seattle, San Francisco, Oregon, Philadelphia, and Chicago.

Document the discount percentage, qualifying SKUs (full-price only vs. markdowns included), family-member eligibility, and POS enforcement at the register. A 40% discount on already-marked-down clearance is a common margin leak; the POS should hard-stop stacking unless management overrides. Discounts above qualified-employee-discount limits (IRC §132) become taxable wages.

Up to $5,250 per associate per year is excludable under IRC §127 for an educational assistance program with a written plan document. Document the qualifying programs (degree, retail certifications, visual merchandising coursework), grade requirements, and clawback if the associate leaves within 12 months.

Map the path from sales associate to keyholder to ASM to store manager with named milestones — opening/closing certification, cash-handling sign-off, loss-prevention training, planogram reset lead. Retailers who publish the path see lower turnover among high-potential associates.

Send the SBC, SPD, Medicare Part D creditable coverage notice, CHIP notice, WHCRA notice, and (if applicable) Marketplace notice. Retail workforces include many associates without reliable home email — physical postings in the breakroom plus paystub stuffers reach hourly associates that an HRIS email blast misses.

Store managers field the questions in person. Run a 45-minute district call walking through plan changes, premium impact at common hour bands, and the enrollment portal. Hand out a one-pager managers can pin in the breakroom. Record the session for managers who could not attend live.

Activate the enrollment window in the HRIS (BambooHR, Paylocity, ADP Workforce Now, UKG Ready) and confirm the carrier EDI feed will pick up new elections. Run a test election through to the carrier file before going live — a broken feed discovered on day 1 of enrollment costs three days of fixing.

Pull a daily completion report by store starting one week before close. Districts with stores under 70% completion at T-3 days get a manager nudge call. Default rules apply at deadline (typically waive coverage or roll prior elections) — confirm which applies before locking the window.