The employer mandate under the Patient Protection and AffordableCare Act is finally set to begin next month after a number ofdelays and alarming predictions of its implications.

But after all the hype and concerns over the ominous results itwill have on employers, how much impact will it really have on theworkforce?

Well, apparently barely any, if you believe new analysis fromthe Commonwealth Fund.

According to the firm's research, a mere 0.3 percent of theworkforce might see reductions in employment or hours in the shortrun, as some firms seek to avoid the coverage mandate by keepingthe number of full-time or full-time-equivalent workers they employbelow the threshold level.

Over time, Commonwealth reported, employment patterns mightchange, leading to fewer firm sizes and work schedules near thethresholds, potentially affecting up to 0.5 percent of theworkforce.

Most employers subject to the mandate already comply with it.Among those employers that don't, most are likely to findcompliance to be less expensive than avoidance, explains studyauthor Sherry Glied from New York University.

Beginning this January—under the mandate's latest delay—firmswith 100 or more full-time employees will be required to offeraffordable health insurance coverage to employees who work morethan 30 hours a week or face possible penalties. Firms with 50 to99 employees have until January 2016 to comply.

Many have warned the employer mandate would cause a massivesurge in part-time workers as employers would cut employee hours tododge the mandate. But other studies, such as that by the UrbanInstitute and the University of Illinois last month, echo theCommonwealth's major findings: That PPACA, at least so far, hasn'tincreased the number of part-time workers.

The employer mandate has been under even more scrutiny thisyear. Originally scheduled to go into effect this year, the mandatehas been delayed twice by the administration, which says it needsmore time to implement the provision.

Attention to the mandate hit a new high at the Benefits SellingExpo back in April, when Robert Gibbs predicted during a keynoteaddress that the mandate would never be put into effect.

"I don't think the employer mandate will go into effect. It's asmall part of the law. I think it will be one of the first thingsto go," he said to a notably surprised audience.

Gibbs, a former longtime advisor to President Barack Obama,noted there aren't many employers who fall into the mandate window.He said the delays point to the fact that the mandate "will neverhappen."