Is a business required to provide medical, life and similar insurance coverages for its employees?
A. While it is common to provide these types of “employee benefit” coverage for workers, the law generally does not require a business to do so. Most businesses provide these and similar benefits to attract and retain good employees and as an additional form of compensation. However, businesses that employ unionized workers must provide whatever benefits are required by the terms of their union contracts, and it also may be necessary to provide certain types of employee benefits as a condition of doing business with or for certain governmental entities or agencies. Many states have decided to adopt laws requiring employers that are of a certain size to provide health insurance. Check with your state’s insurance or labor department to see if your state has adopted such a law.
