APPLICABLE LARGE EMPLOYER, ALE
ALE (Applicable Large Employer)
An Applicable Large Employer (ALE) is a term the Affordable Care Act (ACA) introduced to categorize employers based on their workforce size. The employer must have at least 50 full-time employees or full-time employee equivalents (FTEs) on average over the preceding calendar year to be classified as an ALE.
An FTE is a unit of measurement that combines part-time employees hours to assess their equivalence to a full-time employee. Specifically, two or more part-time employees working collectively for 30 hours or more per week are considered one FTE. For instance, if an ALE has employees working 15 hours each, it would be equivalent to one FTE. It is important to note that an employer does not necessarily need to have a consistent number of FTEs throughout the year to qualify as an ALE.