Did the Definition of Full-time Change Under ObamaCare?
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My employer’s formula for determining who is full time is 30 plus hours per week average over 365 days of employment. is this correct, or has it changed since obamacare?
ALG
If it determined that a part time employee qualifies as “full-time” based on the 30h/week or 130/month, when is the employer required to offer the healthcare coverage – that same year? Or can they offer it the following year via the Open Enrollment Period and still be in compliance? Additionally, how long does the employee need to remain covered for, especially if their hours change to lower than the above threshold?
Kevin Smith
I have been continuously been working more than 40 hours (usually between 50-70) per week for several months now. Under this law is my Employer required to provide me with Health Insurance and if so where in the law does it say this. I would like to have all my ducks in a row before confronting my Job about this
ObamaCareFacts.com
After the initial enrollment period you should be offered coverage. There are lots of measuring sticks employers can use, but generally the rules if full-time = 30 hours a week or more or 130 in a month. Then the max waiting period is 90 days.
So, although the actual rules are slightly more complex, this is the metric you would use. You shouldn’t need to know any more than this.
That said, employers have to offer coverage to substantially all employees (which allows a little wiggle room) and ultimately an employer can deny you coverage and deal with the consequences of this. If this is the case, they may be required to fill out “a coverage tool” for the marketplace to show they refuse to offer you coverage (this will allow you to use the marketplace.)
Mary B
I work 32 hours a week and my employer requires me to pay twice the health insurance contribution that 40 hour per week staff pay. Is this allowed? I am “exempt” and classified as “salaried less than full time”.
ObamaCareFacts.com
From what we understand: An employer can provide different benefit plans, but generally have to offer the same thing to all employees of a certain status. So all full-time employees, which includes you at 32 hours per week, should be being offered the same subsidization and coverage.
This is general advice, and not specific legal advice. You should consult a professional for the final word.
http://www.shrm.org/templatestools/hrqa/pages/offeringdifferentbenefitsfordifferentemployees.aspx
John cross
I am 71 yrs of age work for a small city in Texas they are trying to cut my hours since I have medicaid and supplemental through humana since they administer ins program for state of Texas can’t I just decline their ins since I have ins
jim bond
when i got hired part time. they worked me 50-60 hours a week for 3 months. after 3 months, my hours dropped to less than 30. should i have been given full time status? is that legal?
ObamaCareFacts.com
It sounds questionable if nothing else. The thing about the mandate is that the IRS levies a fee on employers who aren’t complying and if you aren’t being offered coverage you get to apply for Marketplace coverage (which is eligible for cost assistance).
The employer mandate is an employer responsibility more than the responsibility of the employee to backwards engineer an employers compliance with the law.
If you are unsure of how you are being treated I’d suggest first and foremost asking your employer and getting their answer. If you feel like you are being treated unfairly you could always consult a professional or the IRS themselves.
alik far
hours worked in 365 days divided by 52 weeks equals 30 hours or more as a full time qualifier. so, you have to work 365 days before being considered. is this legal?
does weekly avg. of 30 hrs a week or 130 hrs a month have to be achieved every week or month or just one week or month in the measurement period between 3 and 12 months?
how about days worked in a week or in a month or in a year? my employer requires us to work many shifts less than 5 hours, for example there has been many weeks we worked 5-6 shifts and accumulated less than 30 hours.
ObamaCareFacts.com
In general the measurement period is up to your employer. If hours, averaged over that time, equal 30 or more a week or 130 in a month that is full-time. It doesn’t matter if some weeks you worked less than 30. That being said this is all in regard to traditional employees, there are unique rules for things like pilots and adjunct faculty for how employers “credit hours”.
The IRS clarifies a lot of this on their site, but the rules are simply complicated. It’s hard to gauge as employee if your employer is getting it right. The best bet would be to talk to the employer and have them explain how they calculated your hours for the mandate. If you don’t get a satisfactory answer you can consult a professional (accountant who deals with businesses perhaps) or read up on the official information (especially the federal register in which most of the rules are printed.) https://www.federalregister.gov/articles/2014/02/12/2014-03082/shared-responsibility-for-employers-regarding-health-coverage