Blog
The Legal Requirements for Starting a Business
August 29, 2019 2:54 PMStarting a new business is an exciting endeavor, but it also requires a lot of preparation. Part of this process includes taking measures to make sure the business is set up properly so that you can legally conduct business. Here’s what you need to do to make sure that your new business is ready for success according to federal, state, and local regulations.
Dos and Don’ts for OSHA Inspections
August 12, 2019 8:00 AMAre you prepared for an OSHA inspector to arrive at your door? OSHA performed roughly 72,000 federal and state plan inspections in 2018 alone and all it takes to earn an unexpected visit from an inspector is a complaint from an employee or operating in a high-hazard industry.
Nobody plans to have an OSHA inspection occur at their place of business, but it’s important to act accordingly if it does. Here’s what you should and shouldn’t do before, during, and after an OSHA inspection to protect your business.
How Often Should You Pay Employees?
June 19, 2019 8:27 AMDetermining pay frequency can be challenging for business owners. While most employees prefer to be paid more often, a higher pay frequency can cost employers. Not to mention, there are federal and state laws that set standards for how employees are paid. That’s why exploring the different pay period options and federal and state payday laws is critical to help you choose the right pay frequency for your business and employees.
Workplace Safety Dos and Don’ts
June 14, 2019 8:31 AMA healthy and efficient workforce is paramount for business owners to keep operations running smoothly, yet injury in the workplace is all too common. According to the National Safety Council, a worker is injured on the job every seven seconds. It’s essential to create a culture of safety to minimize workplace injury as well as lower your workers’ compensation rates and limit violations for the Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA). Follow these workplace safety tips to build a more secure workplace for your company.
5 Ways to Prepare Your Company for the 50-Employee Threshold
May 29, 2019 8:00 AMIt’s easy to recognize certain milestones, but it’s not as simple to think ahead and avoid growing pains. Reaching the 50-employee threshold is a momentous occasion, but it also means that it’s time to consider some potential changes. Aside from taking the right steps to make sure your company is compliant with federal and state laws – don’t worry, we cover compliance considerations in another post – here are five ways to prepare your business for growth.
A Guide to Payroll Records Management
May 23, 2019 3:25 PMPayroll management is no simple task. Regardless of whether your workforce is 50 strong or you can count the number of employees on two hands, there are lots of employees and documents to keep track of and failure to do so could result in serious penalties and fines. To help, we’ve put together a guide for better managing payroll records.
Compliance Considerations for When Your Company Reaches 50 Employees
May 10, 2019 8:00 AMThe 50-employee mark is more than just a milestone; it’s also an important number for some major regulation requirements. Once your business has 50 full-time employees, various federal and state laws become mandatory, which can wreak havoc on your business if you don’t prepare for them. Here’s what your business needs to do to stay compliant once it reaches 50 full-time employees.
How to Calculate Payroll and Income Tax Deductions
April 15, 2019 8:00 AMAs an employer, you have a responsibility to handle every step of your business’ payroll. One of the more notable steps is handling the tax deductions that are withheld from every employee’s gross wages. To help, we’ve put together some pointers on how you can calculate the various deductions found on each paycheck.
Department of Labor Proposes Increase to Wage Threshold: What it Means for Small Business Owners
April 8, 2019 8:00 AMThe Department of Labor announced a proposal in early March to change the salary-level threshold for white-collar exemptions. This move comes more than two years after a federal judge blocked another attempt to update the threshold for overtime eligibility, although the details of the proposal differ from the 2016 proposal.
The current salary-level threshold for white-collar exemptions is $23,600 annually, which equates to $455 per week. The DoL’s new proposal seeks to increase the threshold to $35,308 annually ($679 per week) – nearly halfway to the DoL’s 2016 target threshold of $47,476 ($913 per week).
While the new proposal is notably lower than the blocked attempt, it still marks a nearly 50 percent increase from the current wage threshold. As a result, the DoL “estimates that 1.1 million currently exempt employees who earn at least $455 per week but less than the proposed standard salary level of $679 per week would, without some intervening action by their employers, become eligible for overtime.” That’s a notable change that can have a direct impact on your employee’s compensation.
9 Common Human Resource Management Challenges for Small Businesses
March 13, 2019 8:13 AMHuman resources are one of the most important components of any small business. However, the responsibilities often fall to the owner or an executive, as many small businesses don’t have the capacity for a designated HR department or full-time employee. Often, managing these HR functions in-house creates many challenges.
