New York employers found to have discriminated against employees can be assessed fines up to $50,000 under new terms of the New York Human Rights Law. If a court finds employment discrimination to have been willful, the fines—payable to the state—may be as high as $100,000.
If your organization uses independent contractors, watch out: Starting in February, the IRS will begin intensive audits of 6,000 randomly selected employers. One of the key targets: Determining whether employers are improperly misclassifying workers as independent contractors to save on taxes and legal risks.
A new Tax Court decision could produce a better tax result for many owners of LLCs and partners in LLPs. Strategy: Use a loss from an LLC or LLP to offset other highly taxed income. Previously, it was presumed that such losses usually could be used only to offset income from other “passive” activities. But the new case has opened the door to bigger tax savings.
Business Management Daily announces a new free resource for employers, attorneys, HR professionals and managers on federal and state overtime labor laws. Download a copy of Overtime Labor Law: 6 compliance tips to avoid FLSA overtime lawsuits, wage-and-hour labor audits and FLSA exemption mistakes at www.businessmanagementdaily.com/Overtime-labor-law.
There’s a hefty price to pay when a company doesn’t trust its employees, and employees don’t trust their company. Stephen M.R. Covey, son of the 7 Habits author, argues that if you don’t have a high-trust organization, you’re actually paying taxes on everybody’s suspicions.
The federal E-Verify program allows employers to voluntarily enroll in the federal government’s Internet-based system for verifying the employment authorization documents submitted by new hires. Consult your attorney before enrolling in E-Verify to determine whether it makes sense to do so.
The IRS has posted the new 2008 “Data Book” covering the returns filed from Oct. 1, 2007, through Sept. 30, 2008, the government’s most recent fiscal year. The Data Book provides valuable insights into tax returns filed, tax collections, investigations and related matters. You may find the information helpful in analyzing your personal tax situation.
Instead of waiting until next spring to launch random audits of employment tax returns, the IRS recently announced it would begin the first 1,500 examinations this November. In particular, IRS agents are being instructed to examine worker classifications, employee benefits and executive compensation.
U.S. Secretary of Labor Hilda Solis’ budget request to Congress includes funds to hire nearly 1,000 new employees, 670 of whom will be investigators. The plan calls for 200 more wage-and-hour Labor investigators and 160 additional OSHA gumshoes.
In today’s pared-to-the-bone business environment, you can't waste time or money offering benefits no one cares about. If you haven’t already, now’s the time to take a magnifying glass to your benefits. Look for efficiencies in these eight places.
According to a recent report by Accounting Today magazine, small businesses are being targeted for tougher scrutiny from the IRS. Federal tax audits of small businesses with between $10 million and $50 million in assets increased 29% from 2005 to 2007.
The American Recovery and Reinvestment Act of 2009 gives small business owners a second chance at a “one-time” tax-saving opportunity. It revives the enhanced Section 179 deduction and “bonus depreciation” tax breaks that officially expired after 2008. These two tax goodies can be combined so that your small business can write off most, if not all, of the cost of new assets placed in service this year.
Today is the Federal Trade Commission (FTC) deadline to comply with the 2003 Fair and Accurate Credit Transactions Act’s (FACTA) Identity Theft requirements. Dubbed the “Red Flag Rules,” Sections 114 and 315 of FACTA require that
all financial institutions and creditors create and implement a written
program for “detection, prevention and mitigation” of identity theft.
Columbus-based Mount Carmel Health will cut 300 jobs and several outpatient services to cope with reduced revenue. Among the service casualties are the system’s smoking cessation program including its help-line, its senior outpatient lung rehabilitation and outpatient nutrition counseling services.
The IRS has announced that it is extending its "fast-track" resolution program for small businesses for two more years. It enables employers with assets of less than $10 million to quickly resolve disputes with the IRS.
Don’t waste your time and money offering benefits no one cares about. Review all your coverages. Conduct eligibility audits. Those are just some of the tips comp and benefits expert Gary Kushner has for HR pros eager to maximize the value and reduce the costs of the benefits they provide.
Q.What kinds of information and documents should we keep in our personnel files?
A. You should include pretty much all documentation concerning an employee’s history with the company—attendance, pay history, job history, discipline and evaluations—except medical documentation and, perhaps, protected activity information concerning matters such as discrimination and harassment complaints.
The Michigan Supreme Court upheld a jury verdict in favor of Kenneth Sciotti, a Detroit municipal employee who claimed he was denied promotions because he is white.
U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement is actively encouraging employers to use computerized versions of the federal I-9 employment eligibility verification form. Is it time for you to ditch your paper I-9s? These pros and cons will help you decide.
Since 2004,
employers have been authorized to use computerized versions of the
federal Form I-9, Employment Eligibility Verification. Now U.S.
Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) is actively encouraging the
practice. Should you ditch paper I-9s and switch to
electronic completion, filing and storage of workers’ employment
eligibility information? For most employers, the answer is yes. Here’s a rundown of the pros and cons.
Good news: Employees who allege they were fired for blowing the whistle on their employers for activities that violated the federal Sarbanes-Oxley Act can’t also sue under Colorado’s common-law public-policy exception to at-will employment.
Do you sometimes worry that every decision you make about an employee’s rule-breaking must be absolutely fair and that there is only black and white, but no gray? If so, rethink that idea.
The IRS is sticking to its promise to target more high income individuals for audits. According to figures posted on the IRS web site, one out of every 11 millionaires faced an audit in 2007.
If your organization benefits from federal contractors, familiarize yourself with the new “tipping point test” of the Office of Federal Contract Compliance Programs (OFCCP) ...
The small biz tax law enacted last year imposed tougher standards on professional tax return preparers. It also increased the penalties that paid preparers face for tax understatements. So what does this have to do with you? Plenty.
Before delving into the development of an ownership plan, every
business owner must first know where he/she currently stands in the
business lifecycle—and the processes and protections presently in
place. First things first: Conduct a directed legal audit to nail down
the state of the business’ foundation. From there, you can establish
the base points from which to launch forward planning.
In the past few years, the U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) has focused its enforcement efforts mainly at large-scale immigration raids at big companies. Now that ICE has more trained officers and better coordination with other federal and state agencies, it’s targeting more small businesses, too ...
The definition of a disability is now satisfied if a claimant shows that he has been subjected to an action prohibited by the Americans with Disabilities Act because of an actual or perceived impairment without regard to whether the impairment limits or is perceived to limit a major life activity.
Say you’re just about to terminate an employee but he throws down
an EEO trump card, like a request for FMLA leave. Ugg! If only you
could have beat him by a few seconds. Then the firing wouldn’t look
like retaliation for his FMLA leave. But a new court ruling says not
to worry. If you have a very legitimate reason for firing an employee,
even after he requests FMLA leave, you can safely crumble up his trump
card and toss it in the shredder …
For California employers, even minor wage-and-hour violations can wind up costing employers millions of dollars. Blame it on California’s infamous “multiplier effect,” which can come into play in any wage-and-hour case, but which really adds up in class-action suits ...
Employees who fear their jobs are in danger often try to find some way to protect themselves from being fired. For example, the employee will suddenly report sexual harassment, take FMLA leave or claim he or she has a disability that needs accommodation. Don’t dismiss those claims without an investigation ...
How safe is the confidential customer information your company keeps? The Privacy Rights Clearinghouse says that, since February 2005, the personal information of 88 million people has been compromised by data security breaches at companies or government agencies ...
Watch for a change in IRS enforcement strategy with the agency ordering its
agents to concentrate its field audits on small corporations, which take a lot less
time to audit.
Employers that use third parties (referred to in the law as credit reporting agencies, or CRAs) to perform background checks and investigations need to be aware of the requirements of the federal Fair Credit Reporting Act (FCRA) ...
The IRS recently posted edits 2007 Data Book (Pub. 55B) at www.irs.gov. This annual publication presents statistics on the activities for the 2007 fiscal year (Oct. 1, 2006, through Sept. 30, 2007).
A federal jury has awarded $1.2 million to 12 teachers who sued the Elizabeth Forward School District in Allegheny County for age discrimination. The teachers alleged they were hired at the lowest pay scale because they were older women ...
Sherri Sullivan, a volunteer treasurer at the Madison County Humane Society, was charged with stealing $65,000 of shelter funds to buy jewelry and makeup ...
Minnesota is one of 29 states that have signed memoranda of understanding with the IRS to share enforcement information on employment tax collection matters. The move is part of the IRS’ Questionable Employment Tax Practices (QETP) initiative ...
A California District Court has given preliminary approval to a proposed $16 million settlement by Manhattan financial firm Morgan Stanley with a group of black and Latino financial advisors in its global wealth-management group ...
A group of women are suing Tampa, Fla.-based Outback Steakhouse, claiming they were steered into “female” jobs such as hostess and cocktail waitress and away from kitchen work. Because kitchen experience is a key requirement for promotion at the company, the women say they were shut out of management positions ...
Colorado is one of 29 states that have signed memoranda of understanding with the IRS to share enforcement information on employment tax collection. The move is part of the IRS’ Questionable Employment Tax Practices (QETP) initiative ...
New York is one of 29 states that have signed memoranda of understanding with the IRS to share enforcement information on employment tax collection matters. The move is part of the IRS’ Questionable Employment Tax Practices initiative ...
New Jersey is one of 29 states that have signed memoranda of understanding with the IRS to share enforcement information on employment tax collection matters. The move is part of the IRS’ Questionable Employment Tax Practices (QETP) initiative ...
Michigan is one of 29 states that have signed memoranda of understanding with the IRS to share enforcement information on employment tax collection matters. The move is part of the IRS’ Questionable Employment Tax Practices initiative ...
Christina Johnson, a police officer for Olmsted Township who was fired for crawling into a stranger’s car while highly intoxicated and then passing out, will have the chance to convince a jury that she suffered discrimination. Johnson was off duty during the episode, but was wearing her uniform sweater ...
Ohio is one of 29 states that have signed memoranda of understanding with the IRS to share enforcement information on employment tax collection matters. The move is part of the IRS’ Questionable Employment Tax Practices (QETP) initiative ...
How can you cut operating expenses down to size? Using more independent contractors might be the answer. But you can’t simply label workers as “independent contractors” when it suits your needs. Stick to your guns for legit arrangements. In a pinch, you might rely on “Section 530 relief” to bail you out.
There’s an easy way to avoid losing a discrimination lawsuit stemming from disciplining an employee who breaks company rules: Make absolutely certain you discipline fairly and evenhandedly, meting out punishment regardless of race, sex, nationality or other protected characteristics.Conduct regular audits of all disciplinary actions to make certain no one gets a free pass ...
The IRS has announced it’s stepping up audit efforts with a renewed emphasis on examining returns of small business entities. Watch out for these five danger signs that could lead to IRS inquiries.
The California Division of Labor Standards Enforcement (DLSE) recently conducted two days of sweeps at approximately 100 car washes in six Southern California counties, uncovering an array of employment law violations ...
When it comes to discrimination, your best defense is treating everyone absolutely equally. And that’s tough to do without a central HR tracking system. It doesn’t have to be complicated. Make sure you note any problems (and praise) in each employee’s official file. Then, do regular audits—pulling out data on age, sex, national origin and race—to tabulate the types of problems and any discipline levied ...
When it comes to discrimination, your best defense is treating everyone absolutely equally. That’s tough to do without a central HR tracking system. It doesn’t have to be complicated. Make sure you note any problems (and praise) in each employee’s official file. Then, do regular audits—pulling out data on age, sex, national origin and race—to tabulate types of problems and any discipline levied ...
In the third known case of employees abusing University of Michigan credit cards, a former maintenance supervisor at the university has admitted stealing $160,000. He faces a hearing to determine restitution ...
Rent a room near the office for the night. Under a new IRS ruling, you can deduct the cost of the room as an employee business expense. If your company foots the bill, the payment is tax-free to you as a “working-condition” fringe benefit. (IRS Notice 2007-47)
After losing $50,000 in Las Vegas, Nestlé sales executive Henry Machinski, fearful of telling his wife, launched a scheme with gambling buddy Vincent Marchese, an Allentown grocer. They created a fictitious company, AP Foods. Machinski wrote checks to AP Foods for Nestlé promotional payments, which the pair then cashed and split ...
Whether you work with a comp and benefits team of one or 100, chances are you don’t have time to check every calculation you make. Yet mistakes that slip through can cost an organization millions of dollars in benefits overpayments ...
Insurers incorrectly calculate workers' compensation premiums for 30 to 40 percent of employers. You can help slash premium costs, and become a hero to your CEO, by knowing what mistakes to look for ...
Health insurers make a surprising number of errors on claims, which can drive up your organization's premiums and claims costs. Act now to identify money-wasting holes in your health plan with a full audit or a simpler checkup ...
It looks like Gov. Jon Corzine is serious about making sure employers don’t misclassify their employees as independent contractors to avoid paying taxes ...
HR Law 101: The Equal Pay Act of 1963 prohibits employers from paying different wages on the basis of gender for “equal work on jobs the performance of which requires equal skill, effort, and responsibility and which are performed under similar working conditions...” Female employees must also receive the same level of benefits as their male colleagues ...
HR Law 101: Under the Consolidated Omnibus Budget Reconciliation Act (COBRA) of 1985, employers are required to continue offering health insurance benefits to employees and their covered dependents for a specified period after they leave the organization ...
HR Law 101: There are two important reasons you need to protect your company’s trade secrets: (1) You make it less likely that confidential information will be misappropriated. (2) It will be easier for you to seek relief in court if your secrets are stolen ...
If your organization uses credit checks in the hiring process, you’d better have a sound business reason for doing so or you could face a new type of litigation ...
HR Law 101: The IRS has the burden of proof when it interrogates an employer about its worker classifications. Before the Small Business Job Protection Act of 1996, the onus was on the employer to prove that an individual didn't qualify as an employee ...
The IRS recently outlined efforts to close an estimated $290 billion tax gap on unreported income. Businesses of all sizes can also expect closer scrutiny.
The IRS recently outlined efforts to close an estimated $290 billion tax gap on unreported income. Businesses of all sizes can also expect closer scrutiny.
Beware: The IRS has targeted small business owners and self-employeds for audits over the next few years. In fact, the effort is already under way, and you may be one of those singled out for the sting of an investigation.
If it’s your dream to give up your whitecollar job to run a farm or raise horses in the country, you’re not alone. Many professionals living in the city or suburbs are drawn by the lure of the “simple life.” But things aren’t so simple from a tax perspective.
Question: I'm looking for suggestions on "measurable goals" or SMART
(specific, measurable, achievable, relevant and time-based) goals for
administrative professionals.
If you’re like most U.S. employers, you probably overpay some health care claims and provide coverage to employees or dependents who shouldn’t receive it. That’s because health insurers make more processing and payment errors than you’d expect.
If the IRS audits your return, it can slap you with a back tax bill, interest and penalties. But you may be able to avoid the penalty portion if you can prove that you relied on the advice of a competent tax professional.
“I’m from the government, and I’m here to help.” It may be the punch line to an old joke, but it can also be a valuable message that small business owners overlook.
We don't want to sugarcoat things: Getting hit with an IRS "field audit" is a worst-case scenario and a cause for genuine concern. The process is expensive, time-consuming and requires a more comprehensive defense strategy than the other two types of audits we've discussed in our audit series ("correspondence audits" handled through the mail and "office audits" performed at an IRS office).
The first piece of our audit series explained how you can breeze through an IRS "correspondence audit" conducted through the mail. But the stakes are considerably higher—as is the stress level—if you're tapped for an IRS "office audit."
Issue: Sarbanes-Oxley's focus on HR requires you to do more to help your organization comply. Benefit: Helping your organization meet SarbOx mandates enhances your role as a strategic partner. ...
Issue: HR audits can help you identify weak points in your employment-law compliance. Risk: If you don't act on the audit's recommendations (and employees find out) that mistake can kill ...
As you thumb through the mail one day, an unassuming letter catches your eye. Return address: The IRS. You nervously tear open the envelope and your worst fears are confirmed: The IRS has chosen your return for a correspondence audit.
The proliferation of S corporations has not gone unnoticed by the IRS. S corporations are now the most common corporate entity, accounting for nearly 60 percent of all corporate returns filed.
The push to audit S corporations (described above) is part of a larger IRS initiative to examine more returns, particularly of small business owners. Don't think you're immune just because you've been able to fly under the radar so far.
Conservation easements, in which landowners can earn tax deductions for preserving their open land, are rife with abuse, the IRS says. That's why the IRS is cracking down on these tax goodies for wealthy landowners. The IRS has already fingered 240 taxpayers for audits relating to this tactic, with another potential 100 donors on the hit list.
Issue: New government rules will let older employees work part time while receiving some of their pension benefits. Benefit/risk: That could help you retain older employees but may heap large ...
Issue: Performing an HR department audit to gauge your organization's compliance and lawsuit risks. Benefit: Head off legal action, streamline your HR processes and earn kudos from the boss for ...
Issue: Should HR question a supervisor's plans to fire an employee? Risk: If you take a termination report at face value, you may overlook bias by a manager. Action: ...
In April, the Labor Department unveiled new rules that redefine the Fair Labor Standards Act (FLSA) definitions of "exempt employees" (not eligible for overtime) and "nonexempt employees" (eligible for overtime) for ...
Issue: The CEO is looking over HR's shoulder, expecting you to find the magic bullet to reduce health-insurance costs. Benefit: Saving the organization money ...
If you're involved in termination decisions, don't always take supervisors' comments at face value. Consider doing your own investigation before taking action. Your goal is to independently verify the information you're ...
Is your health plan covering employees' adult children, ex-spouses or other relatives? If you don't know the answer, it may be time for a health plan "participant audit" to help weed ...
If you or your staff attend trade shows and conferences this year, apply some extra vigilance over what's revealed to clients and prospects. Reason: Your competitors are watching, and your company's closely held secrets and business plans are the most vulnerable at these events.
Previously, the U.S. Labor Department's Wage and Hour Division focused most of its audit efforts on selected low-wage industries with immigrant work forces and high rates of labor-law violation, such as health care, agriculture and garment manufacturing. New targets include manufacturing and service industries.
For many U.S. taxpayers, "March Mad-ness" has nothing to do with college basketball. It's all about dashing around gathering receipts, filling out forms, meeting with your tax guru and hoping you'll emerge victorious in the 1040 game.
Issue: Some utilities and government groups offer businesses free energy audits. Benefit: By suggesting such audits, you position yourself as a strategic thinker looking out for the organization's bottom line. ...
The Labor Department's beefed-up compliance audits and prosecutions of Fair Labor Standards Act (FLSA) complaints packed a wallop last year. Total back wages collected for workers in fiscal 2003 jumped ...
THE LAW. The Equal Pay Act (EPA) of 1963 prohibits employers from dishing out different wages or bene-fits on the basis of gender for "equal work on jobs (requiring) equal skill, ...
The Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) recently said its inspectors no longer will "routinely" ask employers for the results from a company's own ...
Count on the IRS to resume a controversial audit program aimed at businesses that flagrantly violate tip-reporting rules. It is set to restart on Oct. 1. In addition ...
While Congress isn't likely to give President Clinton the extra $27 million he wants to strengthen equal-pay enforcement, that doesn't mean you should forget ...
Nothing about COBRA is simple. Even the name of the law is not straightforward. It comes from the Consolidated Omnibus Budget Reconciliation Act under ...
Protecting your company's trade secrets is important for two reasons: You'll make it less likely that confidential information will be misappropriated. It will be easier for you to ...
When you claw your way ahead, you’ve got to act like you’re above it
all. You can’t let on that you care what your co-workers say about you
or do to you. Radiate a low-key intensity so that people underestimate
you rather than root for you to fall on your face.
