As a small business owner, you’re in charge of making many critical decisions that impact your employees. Determining which benefits and employee perks you offer is one choice that plays a direct role in attracting top talent and retaining key members of your company.

These days, health insurance is a major sticking point for new and current workers. The Society for Human Resource Management (SHRM) found that nearly half of employees 'said health insurance was either the deciding factor or a positive influence in choosing their current job.' That willingness to choose jobs based on health insurance makes a competitive benefits package even more important for a growing business.

Of course, offering health insurance is also a notable expense for a small business trying to grow. Fortunately, the small business health care tax credit allows qualifying organizations to offset some of those costs and provide quality health insurance for their employees. Here’s what you need to know about this tax credit and whether it can help your business.

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Employee layoffs are never easy, but factoring in the unemployment claims process can add even more stress and confusion to the situation. Unemployment benefits are designed to protect employees from unexpectedly losing a source of income. As an employer, you have certain responsibilities regarding unemployment, from maintaining accurate employee records to paying unemployment taxes. 

Because these benefits can impact your business’ tax rates, it’s essential to understand these responsibilities and how small business unemployment claims impact your business. Let’s break down how unemployment insurance works and what you can do to manage future unemployment claims.

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As a small business owner, it’s essential to understand how different events affect your bottom line. Sometimes this process is as easy as checking an invoice, but other cases are not quite as clear. This is exactly the issue when it comes to employee separation costs.

Losing an employee costs you more than just a member of your business. The departure of an employee can cost your business in a variety of ways. Let’s break down the reasons for employee separation, the true costs of employee turnover, and what you can do to prevent talented people from leaving your business.

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Whether you need to follow legal regulations or simply have some company rules, workplace compliance requirements are crucial for any small business. Unfortunately, it’s not always easy to get employees on the same page. 

It’s important for small businesses to take some steps toward encouraging a compliant workplace. Encouraging this type of culture can help businesses save on workers’ compensation, create a safer workplace, and help everyone stay on the same page. Let’s break down what you can do to get your employees to buy in to your company’s rules. 

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Hiring a new employee is an exciting occasion for a small business. However, it does call for a lot of paperwork. 

The onboarding process requires new employees to review and sign several documents. These papers range from government forms to records specific to your business. Regardless of their purpose, it’s important to make sure new hires address these documents shortly after they join your company. Let’s break down the various documents required for onboarding a new employee.

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As a small business owner, you’re always trying to find new ways to make your business simpler, safer, and stronger. Co-employment is one way that employers can not only accomplish these goals, but also save time by leaving HR tasks to the experts.

A co-employment relationship with a Professional Employer Organization (PEO) allows small business owners to outsource key HR functions like payroll and employee benefits. While co-employment can help employers free up their responsibilities, it’s not always clear exactly how this relationship impacts a business. Let’s break down what co-employment means and why it may make sense for your organization.

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When you own a small business, you have several responsibilities that you need to oversee throughout the year. Payroll tax management is one of the more notable obligations that are on your plate. Unfortunately, it’s not necessarily obvious how to estimate payroll taxes for a small business.

While it’s not the most enjoyable job, it’s critical that you calculate payroll taxes correctly. Every employer must withhold payroll taxes from each paycheck, so proper handling of these deductions is important to both your employees and the government. This responsibility is a lot of pressure for a small business owner who isn’t familiar with how to withhold payroll taxes. That’s why we’ve put together a breakdown of how to calculate payroll taxes for your small business.

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The employee performance review has been a standard business practice for decades. However, not all organizations recognize that there’s a fine line between a valuable performance review and an unhelpful one. 

When done well, performance reviews are an incredibly powerful tool for driving employee success. When done poorly, they simply waste time and leave employees frustrated. The downsides of bad performance reviews have led some companies to shift away from performance reviews in recent years. However, it’s better to solve these issues than avoid them altogether.

There is immense value to developing an open, honest avenue for managers to discuss an employee’s performance and opportunities for growth. Let’s break down what your business can do to create positive appraisal experiences that drive your employees to succeed.

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If you own a small business, there’s a good chance you need to carry workers’ compensation insurance to cover any work-related injuries or illnesses. Requirements for workers’ compensation coverage vary by state, with some states requiring businesses with as few as one or two employees to carry workers’ compensation insurance. Applicable companies that don’t comply will face penalties ranging from fines to criminal charges.

Of course, carrying workers’ compensation insurance has some financial challenges as well. Between premiums and other factors, managing workers’ compensation has a direct impact on your business’ bottom line. Let’s break down how workers’ compensation affects your business and what you can do to lower your financial burden.

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Payroll forms can put a lot of pressure on business owners. When you’re in charge of a small business, it’s up to you to make sure that these forms are not only completed accurately, but on time as well. If you’re not careful, the penalties can range from $50 per faulty form all the way up to hundreds of thousands of dollars for notable violations.

One of the biggest struggles of managing payroll forms is simply knowing which forms apply to your business and what they do. We’ve compiled a list of payroll forms that you’ll likely need to know for your small business and how they work.

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