This project was a complete Kitchen Makeover that included new cabinets, surfaces, lighting, appliances, fixtures, trim, and paint. It is now a highly-functional, contemporary kitchen.
Contact Kitchen Connections to learn how we can improve the functionality and ambiance of your kitchen and bathrooms while increasing the value of your home.
Jill D. Weber is a Licensed Contractor and the owner of Kitchen Connections LLC., an award-winning design company specializing in home remodeling, design, kitchen, and bath cabinetry. She has more than 20 years of experience and stays engaged by managing each project, from start to finish. Your total satisfaction is her primary goal.
Jim Weber – President New Century Dynamics Executive Search
Recently, I have become aware of two situations where managers have become hostages to toxic employees. They are not being held at gunpoint by a criminal trying to negotiate an escape. However, the angst of the situation is similar. One is a female assistant manager for a big-box retailer. She does not work well with others and is actively working to undermine another manager. Not a team player, she creates unnecessary drama. My colleague, Stan, would call her a termite. Someone who destroys the foundation of the company. The other is a subcontractor with poor work habits who delivers an inconsistent product. Both have remained in position because management, facing a difficult labor market, has decided to live with these troublesome people, hoping to avoid the cost of losing them. However, one manager chose to act and found that his fears were unwarranted.
During my corporate career, workers were abundant, so the fear of being understaffed was not a consideration. At that time, the concern for turnover and overstaffing was our focus. Even so, I observed managers fail to discipline employees properly because they delivered outstanding revenue and profit performance. Those producers survived until their financial performance fell below standard. In the meantime, their peers complained about favoritism and unfair treatment by management. It was very frustrating to be a part of those teams. Overall morale suffered because management was held hostage by a flawed subordinate who happened to produce above-average financial results.
Today, we face a different, more difficult labor market. Baby Boomers are retiring, and fewer younger workers are available to replace them. Employers are finding it more challenging to achieve optimal staffing levels. Some managers overlook employee performance issues to minimize the risk of being short-staffed. That was the concern of my client. He was willing to put up with the poor performance of one sub-contractor to ensure that he completed his projects on time.
Nevertheless, I advised him to deal with the performance issue. I informed my client that the situation was sure to worsen. Eventually, he reached his limit when the cost of repairing the subcontractor’s shoddy work became unbearable. With a little bit of effort, he was able to find a suitable replacement. He refused to be a hostage.
It is not uncommon for managers to overestimate the cost of maintaining employee discipline and underestimate the benefit. Sometimes, it is easier to look the other way. They rationalize their decision to minimize the performance issues or ignore them entirely. Avoidance is a big mistake. The rest of the team is closely watching. They view the manager’s lack of action as favoritism and poor leadership. The team’s overall performance eventually suffers, and good employees leave for other jobs. The manager’s failure to deal with performance issues creates more significant problems with greater consequences.
So, what is one to do? First, don’t become a hostage to your employees! Enforce policy uniformly across the workforce. Don’t give a pass to employees who generate stellar results in some areas but fall short in others. Consistently enforced standards and appropriate disciplinary measures will go a long way toward creating a healthy, high-performance culture. This approach to discipline will help reduce turnover and attract better-quality employees.
Another viable strategy is to maintain an ongoing recruiting program. You may not need to step up the actual hiring, but you will know where to go to find good employees when you need them.
The two examples I presented at the beginning of this article make an interesting case study. One client decided to face the performance issue head-on, resulting in the termination of the sub-contractor in question. My client replaced the subcontractor with a more appropriate hire. The client refused to be held hostage. The other situation has deteriorated further as the management refuses to take corrective action.
Maintaining organizational discipline is not optional. Success requires vigilant maintenance of systems, processes, and procedures. Maintaining discipline may be more difficult in trying times, but it is of greater importance. The stakes are higher, as is the risk of failure. Good employees will gravitate to the best employers, so become the preferred employer in your market. Build a healthy culture of success by enforcing policy in a consistent, firm, fair, and friendly manner. It is the best way I know to ensure long-term success.
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A remote working environment is here to stick around for a while. This effect of the Pandemic has truly changed how the workforce is adapting as we have seen companies increasing technology connectivity. It has also brought about the trend for employees to relocate to a state where their employer has not yet established a presence.
Initially, it seems that a remote employee relocation is straightforward, as they can work on a laptop with a cell phone from any location. However, for employers, there are payroll tax implications for their employees in these other states. Employers everywhere are feeling the consequences of payroll taxes.
Employers turn to both their payroll managers and their accountants for help; however, payroll tax work falls outside of the scope of both professionals. Thus, companies are turning to outsourcing payroll tax professionals, like Flex HR that have a payroll tax department set up to manage payroll tax work for companies everywhere.
Payroll vs. Payroll Tax
When Flex HR engages in outsourced payroll management, we assign a Payroll Manager to your company. They are responsible for engaging with employees on all aspects of their paychecks, answering questions about a deduction that was taken, or making a pay change. The Payroll Manager runs the payroll for the frequency that your business requires and submits a pre-process payroll review to the appropriate person to sign off each time. The Payroll Manager also maintains the reports needed for workers’ compensation audits and 401K 5500 reviews.
In addition, Flex HR provides a Payroll Tax Manager to set up the state unemployment insurance (SUI) and state income tax numbers (SIT). This has become much more relevant for companies as employees work remotely and might have moved to a state different than where the company is based. The Payroll Tax Manager will work to make sure that your company is compliant in all areas regarding payroll tax.
Our Payroll Tax Manager at Flex HR, Jessica Stafford admits “having a dedicated payroll tax manager is important because businesses cannot possibly keep up with the rapid changes in payroll tax legislation in all 50 states.”
Payroll Tax Outsourcing Relief
Establishing and managing payroll tax efforts are complicated without the proper HR administration. In addition to the Payroll Tax Manager setting up the SUI and SIT tax numbers, they may also need to create a local income tax (LIT).
Once these proper numbers have been set up for the new state(s), the employer must review human resources compliance tracking items for the affected states. It’s also crucial to update the employee handbook accordingly and monitor any customary operating procedures, including:
Posting jobs with the salary disclosed
Paying unused PTO upon the termination date
Following rules for salary requirements for hourly or exempt employees
Ensuring proper documentation required at termination for an exiting employee
Dedicated Payroll Tax Department
Once Flex HR is engaged for payroll tax work with your company, a comprehensive approach is taken by an information gathering session to fully understand your payroll tax needs. We get a current employee count and determine where specific employees are located.
Then, we put together a plan for setting up current state tax-related payroll numbers and identifying the priority for each state. This involves communicating with different state and local agencies.
Working with your organization’s HR manager, we confirm all state human resources compliance items are properly documented as well as all state payroll tax numbers are entered correctly in the system for any affected employees.
Jessica explains a common situation we see all too often. “We’ve had new clients come in with hundreds of thousands of dollars tied up in liabilities to states where they weren’t aware of mandated programs that don’t exist is their home states. Managing your payroll taxes may mean the difference in bankruptcy or going public, so it’s important to work with someone you can trust to register for the proper statewide programs, notify you of any legislative updates, and guide you through this new world of remote employment.”
Employment and State-Related Taxes
Flex HR is experienced in investigating previous payroll tax issues and any retroactive fees or penalties. We support ongoing payroll tax issues at your company.
There are general employment taxes that must be paid for by the employer, regardless of the state such as:
Federal income tax withholding
FICA (Federal Insurance Contributions Act)
FUTA (Federal Unemployment Tax Act)
State-related tax implications
State-related tax implications are varied and sometimes involve local municipalities. For example, some states require employers to withhold state income tax, while other states don’t have a state income tax. Some cities have their own set of income taxes, which is an additional wage withholding. Other withholdings that may be required are paid family leave, short-term disability, and/or unemployment benefits.
Our Payroll Tax Managers also notify you if having an employee in a state may trigger additional taxes, such as sales or corporate income tax, so that your accountant can be ready to file the proper returns.
Across the country, employers trust Flex HR with their Human Resources and payroll issues. The payroll tax department and tax professionals within Flex HR can help employers immeasurably with recouping items owed, eliminating legal exposure, and minimizing risk. Contact us now to get started!
I hope you enjoyed our point of view and would like to receive regular posts directly to your email inbox. Toward this end, put your contact information on my mailing list.
Your feedback helps me continue to publish articles that you want to read. Your input is very important to me, so please leave a comment.
Jill D. Weber is a Licensed Contractor and the owner of Kitchen Connections LLC., an award-winning design company specializing in home remodeling, design, kitchen, and bath cabinetry. She has more than 20 years of experience and stays engaged by managing each project, from start to finish. Your total satisfaction is her primary goal.
A remote working environment is here to stick around for a while. This effect of the Pandemic has truly changed how the workforce is adapting as we have seen companies increasing technology connectivity. It has also brought about the trend for employees to relocate to a state where their employer has not yet established a presence.