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Hub You - Does Your Company Use Cottage Labor? You May Be Breaking the Law
You have heard of Generation X, Generation Y and Baby Boomers. There is a new generation called the Millenials, and they are now of the marrying age. In order to best serve this new group of twenty-somethings, it’s important to understand where they are coming from.Millenials have a strong bond with the technological age. They were practically born with a mouse in their hands and understand text messaging and instant messaging (also known as IM’ing) better than many of us understand how to email. With their ease around a keyboard, they have a different mentality about interacting with people and within their relationships. Understa
Employers ignorant of these facts or who choose to ignore them are vulnerable for severe sanctions. A disgruntled employee who chooses to drop a dime on such an employer can single-handedly initiate a complete federal audit which can result in payment of back pay and benefits for every employee affected, on top of some pretty stiff fines.
The lesson? Know the law, obey the law,
I encourage customers to buy books directly from me by noting on my Web site that the books are personally signed by the author. Another author said that, although she didn't mean to offend, she didn't know why anyone would want my signature. After all, I'm not famous.Well, I didn't take offense at her observation. In fact, I was a little surprised by the phenomenon, too. The fact is that I get a lot of feedback from customers about how much they like getting an autographed book. They respond to the personal touch. Maybe they are hoping that I will become famous (or infamous!) one day, and they will be able to sell the book on eBay
If this is the case, and the federal labor board catches up with you, you could be in big trouble.
Somewhere around the mid-1990s a lot of U.S. companies got the idea that, if they reclassified their workers as independent contractors, they could avoid paying income and social security taxes, unemployment insurance, and a host of worker benefits, from health insurance to pension payments. Thousands of workers found themselves out of a stable job and in the position of being considered contract workers, suddenly responsible for paying their own income taxes and both their own and their former employers' share of social security and Medicare taxes. At this point the federal government cracked down, defined the difference between employee and contractor status very strictly, and set about enforcing the rules.
One of the biggest distinctions between an employee and a contract worker is whether a worker has any flexibility in performing his or her duties. If workers are expected to keep to a regular schedule at the discretion of the company, if they have to perform the work according to specific parameters, and if they cannot turn down work without negative consequences (for instance, being barred from additional work when available), then they are employees and need to be treated as such. Contract or freelance workers should have much more flexibility in their work arrangements, should be able to define what work they will and will not perform for the company involved, and should be able to accept or reject assignments, within reason, without being cut off from further work. The relationship between a contract worker and a company is more of a professional service provider / client relationship.
Another mistake commonly made by employers of at-home workers is not keeping track of the hours put in by cottage laborers, and taking that into account regarding compensation and benefits. The danger comes when an employer utilizes both in-house and at-home employees, and offers overtime and benefits to their in-house employees but not their cottage labor.
An example: A particular company employs about 30 in-house employees, paying them an hourly wage, paying their income, social security, and Medicare taxes, and offering health insurance, a 401K plan, vacation pay, and an Employee Assistance Program (EAP). The company also employs 30 at-home workers, offering them a combination of hourly wages and "piece work" wages, on a per-job basis. The at-home workers receive no overtime if they work over 40 hours in a week, no benefits, and may or may not have employee status. They don't know when or if they will receive work in the course of a particular day, but are expected to be on hand to do the work if called. The work may arrive at 9 a.m., at noon, at 2 p.m., or at the end of the day.
This employer is breaking the law.
While employers can choose whether or not to provide benefits such as health insurance, vacation pay, etc., for employees, they cannot offer these benefits to one group of employees and not another; if in-house employees who work 40 hours a week are entitled to benefits, so are the at-home employees who work an equal number of hours. Even if the at-home employees are paid entirely by piece work, the employer is required to keep track of the hours they work and use a formula to come up with an hourly equivalent, based on the rate of pay to determine if the hours worked make the worker eligible for benefits.
The employee is also eligible, by federal law, for overtime for work in excess of 40 hours a week; this is not an option. If an employee must wait for work during the course of a day, that employee is entitled to pay for the time spent waiting for work, from the beginning of the work day, up to the time they pick up the work. So if a workplace begins work at 8 a.m. and the at-home employee doesn't receive work until 2 p.m, and spends six hours thereafter performing the work, that employee must receive six hours' pay for waiting and another six hours' pay for the work actually performed, or a total of twelve hours. It's not hard to see that if an at-home employee is expected to be available for work five days a week it's very easy to qualify for overtime and benefits.
Employers ignorant of these facts or who choose to ignore them are vulnerable for severe sanctions. A disgruntled employee who chooses to drop a dime on such an employer can single-handedly initiate a complete federal audit which can result in payment of back pay and benefits for every employee affected, on top of some pretty stiff fines.
The lesson? Know the law, obey the law, a
In today?s business environment, contact centers play a vital role in improving customer care relationships. They are expected to offer challenging customer care services and also retain high-value customers.Services of a contact center can be broadly categorized into three - consulting services, implementation services, and business operations. The consulting services basically concentrate on workforce management, staffing policies and procedures, and various data management strategies. Some contact centers even provide quality assurance, process re-engineering, strategy development, and budget optimization services. They also con
One of the biggest distinctions between an employee and a contract worker is whether a worker has any flexibility in performing his or her duties. If workers are expected to keep to a regular schedule at the discretion of the company, if they have to perform the work according to specific parameters, and if they cannot turn down work without negative consequences (for instance, being barred from additional work when available), then they are employees and need to be treated as such. Contract or freelance workers should have much more flexibility in their work arrangements, should be able to define what work they will and will not perform for the company involved, and should be able to accept or reject assignments, within reason, without being cut off from further work. The relationship between a contract worker and a company is more of a professional service provider / client relationship.
Another mistake commonly made by employers of at-home workers is not keeping track of the hours put in by cottage laborers, and taking that into account regarding compensation and benefits. The danger comes when an employer utilizes both in-house and at-home employees, and offers overtime and benefits to their in-house employees but not their cottage labor.
An example: A particular company employs about 30 in-house employees, paying them an hourly wage, paying their income, social security, and Medicare taxes, and offering health insurance, a 401K plan, vacation pay, and an Employee Assistance Program (EAP). The company also employs 30 at-home workers, offering them a combination of hourly wages and "piece work" wages, on a per-job basis. The at-home workers receive no overtime if they work over 40 hours in a week, no benefits, and may or may not have employee status. They don't know when or if they will receive work in the course of a particular day, but are expected to be on hand to do the work if called. The work may arrive at 9 a.m., at noon, at 2 p.m., or at the end of the day.
This employer is breaking the law.
While employers can choose whether or not to provide benefits such as health insurance, vacation pay, etc., for employees, they cannot offer these benefits to one group of employees and not another; if in-house employees who work 40 hours a week are entitled to benefits, so are the at-home employees who work an equal number of hours. Even if the at-home employees are paid entirely by piece work, the employer is required to keep track of the hours they work and use a formula to come up with an hourly equivalent, based on the rate of pay to determine if the hours worked make the worker eligible for benefits.
The employee is also eligible, by federal law, for overtime for work in excess of 40 hours a week; this is not an option. If an employee must wait for work during the course of a day, that employee is entitled to pay for the time spent waiting for work, from the beginning of the work day, up to the time they pick up the work. So if a workplace begins work at 8 a.m. and the at-home employee doesn't receive work until 2 p.m, and spends six hours thereafter performing the work, that employee must receive six hours' pay for waiting and another six hours' pay for the work actually performed, or a total of twelve hours. It's not hard to see that if an at-home employee is expected to be available for work five days a week it's very easy to qualify for overtime and benefits.
Employers ignorant of these facts or who choose to ignore them are vulnerable for severe sanctions. A disgruntled employee who chooses to drop a dime on such an employer can single-handedly initiate a complete federal audit which can result in payment of back pay and benefits for every employee affected, on top of some pretty stiff fines.
The lesson? Know the law, obey the law,
Is your job search sagging? Are you still looking for that ideal next job? Or are you about to begin looking for new work and are not sure of the best way to go about it? What you need is a way to evaluate your job search strategies to see whether or not they are working effectively for you. Ready to get started? Here are 12 building blocks to a successful job search and the goals that will help you get to where you really want to be in the world of work: 1.) Making networking phone calls: Effective job searches begin and end with networking. Start by making a list of everyone you know: family mem
Another mistake commonly made by employers of at-home workers is not keeping track of the hours put in by cottage laborers, and taking that into account regarding compensation and benefits. The danger comes when an employer utilizes both in-house and at-home employees, and offers overtime and benefits to their in-house employees but not their cottage labor.
An example: A particular company employs about 30 in-house employees, paying them an hourly wage, paying their income, social security, and Medicare taxes, and offering health insurance, a 401K plan, vacation pay, and an Employee Assistance Program (EAP). The company also employs 30 at-home workers, offering them a combination of hourly wages and "piece work" wages, on a per-job basis. The at-home workers receive no overtime if they work over 40 hours in a week, no benefits, and may or may not have employee status. They don't know when or if they will receive work in the course of a particular day, but are expected to be on hand to do the work if called. The work may arrive at 9 a.m., at noon, at 2 p.m., or at the end of the day.
This employer is breaking the law.
While employers can choose whether or not to provide benefits such as health insurance, vacation pay, etc., for employees, they cannot offer these benefits to one group of employees and not another; if in-house employees who work 40 hours a week are entitled to benefits, so are the at-home employees who work an equal number of hours. Even if the at-home employees are paid entirely by piece work, the employer is required to keep track of the hours they work and use a formula to come up with an hourly equivalent, based on the rate of pay to determine if the hours worked make the worker eligible for benefits.
The employee is also eligible, by federal law, for overtime for work in excess of 40 hours a week; this is not an option. If an employee must wait for work during the course of a day, that employee is entitled to pay for the time spent waiting for work, from the beginning of the work day, up to the time they pick up the work. So if a workplace begins work at 8 a.m. and the at-home employee doesn't receive work until 2 p.m, and spends six hours thereafter performing the work, that employee must receive six hours' pay for waiting and another six hours' pay for the work actually performed, or a total of twelve hours. It's not hard to see that if an at-home employee is expected to be available for work five days a week it's very easy to qualify for overtime and benefits.
Employers ignorant of these facts or who choose to ignore them are vulnerable for severe sanctions. A disgruntled employee who chooses to drop a dime on such an employer can single-handedly initiate a complete federal audit which can result in payment of back pay and benefits for every employee affected, on top of some pretty stiff fines.
The lesson? Know the law, obey the law,
Operating construction jobs is a great deal of work, not just in terms of using a level or nail gun. Managing those construction duties is just as time consuming and sometimes aggravating. Small and medium sized contractors have a need for the most help, which will definitely benefit the use of construction estimating software. While there are many software packages used for estimating residential and commercial construction options, they can sometimes be a hassle to use, since the feature an over abundance in customization which is hard to catch onto, or they are so simple they do not cover all the needs of a busy construction office. course of a particular day, but are expected to be on hand to do the work if called. The work may arrive at 9 a.m., at noon, at 2 p.m., or at the end of the day.
This employer is breaking the law.
While employers can choose whether or not to provide benefits such as health insurance, vacation pay, etc., for employees, they cannot offer these benefits to one group of employees and not another; if in-house employees who work 40 hours a week are entitled to benefits, so are the at-home employees who work an equal number of hours. Even if the at-home employees are paid entirely by piece work, the employer is required to keep track of the hours they work and use a formula to come up with an hourly equivalent, based on the rate of pay to determine if the hours worked make the worker eligible for benefits.
The employee is also eligible, by federal law, for overtime for work in excess of 40 hours a week; this is not an option. If an employee must wait for work during the course of a day, that employee is entitled to pay for the time spent waiting for work, from the beginning of the work day, up to the time they pick up the work. So if a workplace begins work at 8 a.m. and the at-home employee doesn't receive work until 2 p.m, and spends six hours thereafter performing the work, that employee must receive six hours' pay for waiting and another six hours' pay for the work actually performed, or a total of twelve hours. It's not hard to see that if an at-home employee is expected to be available for work five days a week it's very easy to qualify for overtime and benefits.
Employers ignorant of these facts or who choose to ignore them are vulnerable for severe sanctions. A disgruntled employee who chooses to drop a dime on such an employer can single-handedly initiate a complete federal audit which can result in payment of back pay and benefits for every employee affected, on top of some pretty stiff fines.
The lesson? Know the law, obey the law,
Many economists rely on economic indicators to predict consumer spending and the health of the wealth of a nation. Using such data they can predict economic trends, business cycles and industry movement. It is amazing all the data available out there and all the different methods that are considered mainstream economic theory. Yet so often we fail to see the most obvious trends. For instance simple things like non-profit carwash fundraiser donations above ticket prices or the volume of cars pulling in with drivers freely willing to donate for a good cause. Additionally one of the best economic indicators I have seen is the average garage
Employers ignorant of these facts or who choose to ignore them are vulnerable for severe sanctions. A disgruntled employee who chooses to drop a dime on such an employer can single-handedly initiate a complete federal audit which can result in payment of back pay and benefits for every employee affected, on top of some pretty stiff fines.
The lesson? Know the law, obey the law, and treat your employees - all of your employees - fairly. The alternative can be pretty grim.
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