Employment Out-Law

Connie Laughlin

Who handles your human resources?
If you own a business and you’re overseeing your employee administration this is for you.
Recently a local business owner told me he was planning to hire an assistant to help with all his “employee stuff,” including payroll. I’m pretty sure he planned to pay somewhere around $10.00 per hour.
For about the same amount of money, or less, he could sign an agreement with a highly accredited Professional Employer Organization (PEO). He could hire an experienced employee that’s a certified professional in Human Resources, but it would be cost prohibitive!
Would you think it’s more prudent to hire a PEO that has 100's of years of combined experience and highly trained and certified professionals to handle every aspect of duties pertaining to worksite employees? Or, should he hire someone with general clerical duties, a.k.a. office experience?
We live in a world where simple job offers and termination letters could be turned into claims of discrimination or violations of an employment law. While it’s true, in Texas, employees are at-will, merely having “at-will” status does not protect the employer from a claim by a disgruntled employee. Every action an employer takes, from written documents to disciplinary actions or termination, needs careful attention.
Wage and hour lawsuits are one of the fastest growing employment claims in the federal court system today. Employers might need assistance in properly classifying their employees as “exempt” or “non-exempt” for overtime purposes. It doesn’t cut it to say an employee is exempt if the company pays the employee on a salary basis; it’s based on their duties and responsibilities.
You might need professional help to set policy on the time spent working before and after the workday. It doesn’t matter if the employee was told not to work, it’s whether the company allowed the employee to work overtime hours. Review your break time and lunch breaks, too. If your employee is catching up on work during their lunch break, they must be paid. If that time results in a workweek over 40 hours, the employee must be compensated with overtime.
The list goes on – child labor laws, vacations, and paid time off policies, etc. It’s imperative to have a qualified person assisting you with payday laws, employee policies, proper disciplinary plans of action, and setting these standards via a legally compliant and frequently updated employee handbook. You are well served to seek guidance on how to properly and effectively manage employee administration.
Outsourcing HR
A quality PEO (Professional Employer Organization) offers a bundled HR solution that every business owner should investigate periodically to see if they’re a fit.
It sounds like a no-brainer doesn’t it. The fact of the matter is many business leaders don’t know how the PEO services can provide effective and efficient human resources support and how their level of cost containment (the predictable cost for worksite employees) could be very beneficial to their bottom line.
With a PEO, you’re not going it alone, once you’re on-board you are part of a large pool of client companies. Claims could be dissipated amongst all clients therefore protecting you from the rising costs of workers’ compensation insurance. In addition, being under this umbrella of client companies could help overcome the problem of substantial increases in health insurance.
We live in one of the most litigious communities in our country and a lot of employers in Corpus Christi are still operating like their grandpappy did 60 years ago. Protect your assets, ensure your employees are working in a safe environment, and make sure you’re operating efficiently so your focus is on revenue production.
If the cost for worksite employees could be made a predictable cost, wouldn’t it be a wise decision to mitigate some of that risk by partnering with a PEO?

Every employer needs what certified PEO pros bring to a business, and that is…

Contained employee cost
Reduced employee liability
Streamlined operations, driving financial gain
Specialized and compliant procedures and policies
Certified HR guidance
Safety and risk management strategies
Efficient payroll administration
Cost effective benefits

If you’ve chosen to not select the services of a PEO, it’s wise to hire a certified Professional in HR. Even though you won’t have the benefits of contained cost and mitigated risk you will have a pro on-board. Salary for certified Human Resources Generalist runs approximately $40,000 annually (www.payscale.com).

If you’re looking into the benefits of using a PEO, visit the National Association of PEO’s website at www.napeo.org for a list of qualified Professional Employer Organizations in your area, along with their credentials and certifications.

Connie Laughlin is a Business Consultant for UniqueHR. For more information, you may contact Connie at (361) 852-6392, (800) 824-8367, or conniel@uniquehr.com.


Employment Out-Law Connie Laughlin Who handles your human resources? If you own a business and you’re overseeing your employee administration this is for you. Recently a local business owner told me he was planning to hire an assistant to help with all his “employee stuff,” including payroll. I’m pretty sure he planned to pay somewhere around $10.00 per hour. For about the same amount of money, or less, he could sign an agreement with a highly accredited Professional Employer Organization (PEO). He could hire an experienced employee that’s a certified professional in Human Resources, but it would be cost prohibitive! Would you think it’s more prudent to hire a PEO that has 100's of years of combined experience and highly trained and certified professionals to handle every aspect of duties pertaining to worksite employees? Or, should he hire someone with general clerical duties, a.k.a. office experience? We live in a world where simple job offers and termination letters could be turned into claims of discrimination or violations of an employment law. While it’s true, in Texas, employees are at-will, merely having “at-will” status does not protect the employer from a claim by a disgruntled employee. Every action an employer takes, from written documents to disciplinary actions or termination, needs careful attention. Wage and hour lawsuits are one of the fastest growing employment claims in the federal court system today. Employers might need assistance in properly classifying their employees as “exempt” or “non-exempt” for overtime purposes. It doesn’t cut it to say an employee is exempt if the company pays the employee on a salary basis; it’s based on their duties and responsibilities. You might need professional help to set policy on the time spent working before and after the workday. It doesn’t matter if the employee was told not to work, it’s whether the company allowed the employee to work overtime hours. Review your break time and lunch breaks, too. If your employee is catching up on work during their lunch break, they must be paid. If that time results in a workweek over 40 hours, the employee must be compensated with overtime. The list goes on – child labor laws, vacations, and paid time off policies, etc. It’s imperative to have a qualified person assisting you with payday laws, employee policies, proper disciplinary plans of action, and setting these standards via a legally compliant and frequently updated employee handbook. You are well served to seek guidance on how to properly and effectively manage employee administration. Outsourcing HR A quality PEO (Professional Employer Organization) offers a bundled HR solution that every business owner should investigate periodically to see if they’re a fit. It sounds like a no-brainer doesn’t it. The fact of the matter is many business leaders don’t know how the PEO services can provide effective and efficient human resources support and how their level of cost containment (the predictable cost for worksite employees) could be very beneficial to their bottom line. With a PEO, you’re not going it alone, once you’re on-board you are part of a large pool of client companies. Claims could be dissipated amongst all clients therefore protecting you from the rising costs of workers’ compensation insurance. In addition, being under this umbrella of client companies could help overcome the problem of substantial increases in health insurance. We live in one of the most litigious communities in our country and a lot of employers in Corpus Christi are still operating like their grandpappy did 60 years ago. Protect your assets, ensure your employees are working in a safe environment, and make sure you’re operating efficiently so your focus is on revenue production. If the cost for worksite employees could be made a predictable cost, wouldn’t it be a wise decision to mitigate some of that risk by partnering with a PEO? Every employer needs what certified PEO pros bring to a business, and that is… Contained employee cost Reduced employee liability Streamlined operations, driving financial gain Specialized and compliant procedures and policies Certified HR guidance Safety and risk management strategies Efficient payroll administration Cost effective benefits If you’ve chosen to not select the services of a PEO, it’s wise to hire a certified Professional in HR. Even though you won’t have the benefits of contained cost and mitigated risk you will have a pro on-board. Salary for certified Human Resources Generalist runs approximately $40,000 annually (www.payscale.com). If you’re looking into the benefits of using a PEO, visit the National Association of PEO’s website at www.napeo.org for a list of qualified Professional Employer Organizations in your area, along with their credentials and certifications. Connie Laughlin is a Business Consultant for UniqueHR. For more information, you may contact Connie at (361) 852-6392, (800) 824-8367, or conniel@uniquehr.com.
2018 Alice Business Today - December 2018