Download ADP Small Business Services

ADP LUNCH & LEARN CPE PROGRAM
“Human Resource Management Strategies
for Small to Mid-Size CPA Firms”
Authored by Kay Francis, Steps Beyond Enterprises, (www.stepsbeyond.com)
and adapted for CPE accreditation by SmartPros, Ltd. (www.smartpros.com)
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Course Introduction
Why is HR Management such an important issue?

Small businesses face the same HR challenges
as large businesses as well

Time, cash and resources sometimes prevent a
formalized program from being implemented

This leaves smaller companies at greater
risk

CPA firms are a business with employees and
compliance issues

CPAs are trusted advisors to their small
business clients

Your clients may come to you for HR
advice.
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Objectives
Upon successful completion of this segment, you should be able to:

Have a general understanding of basic compliance and reporting
issues

Understand ways to implement a formalized program through basic
tools like an employee handbook and keeping adequate personnel
files

Increase awareness and reduce risk through training programs

Consider cost/resource approaches and solutions to HR
Management
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Course Overview
Topics for discussion:
Four Major HR Categories:
I.
Compliance & Federal Reporting
II.
Employee Handbooks
III.
Training and Development
IV.
Personnel Files
HR Management Solutions
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I. Compliance & Reporting

Compliance & Reporting is
complicated


This information can be
overwhelming for a labor attorney,
not to mention the CPA or the small
business owner.
Today’s goal is to increase your
awareness
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Laws by Employee Size - Quick Glance
Lets take a quick look at this list of key
regulations based on employee size:
1 or more Employees:

Consumer Credit Protection Act of 1968

Employee Polygraph Protection Act (1988)

Employee Retirement Income Security Act
(ERISA) 1974 (if company offers benefits)

Equal Pay Act of 1963.

Fair Credit Reporting Act (1970)

Fair Labor Standards Act (FLSA) (1938)

Federal Insurance Contributions Act of 1935
(FICA) (Social Security)

Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act
(HIPAA of 1996 (if company offers benefits)

Immigration Reform & Control Act (IRCA) (1986

Labor-Management Relations Act (Taft-Hartley) 1947

National Labor Relations Act (NLRA) 1935
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Laws by Employee Size- Quick Glance, continued
11 or more employees, add:
Occupational Safety & Health Act
(OSHA) (1970)
15 or more employees, add:
Civil Rights Act of 1964 Title VII, Civil Rights Act of 1991
 Did you know if you have 15 or more employees, it’s federally
mandated that you have sexual harassment training in place for
all managers? You also need a sexual harassment policy
statement>
Title I, Americans with Disabilities Act of 1990, (ADA)
20 or more employees, add:
Age Discrimination in Employment Act (1967) (ADEA)
Consolidated Omnibus Budget Reconciliation Act of 1985 (COBRA)
50 or more employees, add:
Family and Medical Leave Act of 1993 (FMLA)
EEO-1 Report filed annually w/EEOC if organization is a federal
contractor
100 or more employees, add:
Worker Adjustment & Retraining Notification Act of 1988 (WARN)
EEO-1 Report filed annually w/EEOC if organization is not a federal
contractor
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In Addition: - All Size Companies:
Income taxes, Federal Unemployment
Taxes and Social Security Taxes must
be reported. Forms 940, 941, 942,
943, 1099, W-2, W-4
II. Employee Handbook
Overview:
 All companies, regardless of size, need
a handbook
 Policies should be reviewed annually
While handbook contents differ by
company, let’s discuss the primary
areas you’ll want to consider.
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Employee Handbook, continued
Handbook Contents:
Introduction:

About the Company
- A brief company history

Company Vision and or Mission

Explanation of your “Open Door Policy”
- how communication should flow if issues arise

Explanation “Employment-At-Will” (if applicable)
- a law associated with employee dismissal
Employment Practices:

Equal Employment Opportunity

New Employee Orientation

Your Employment File
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Employee Handbook, continued
Compensation Practices:
Time-Off Benefits:

Compensation Program(s)

Vacation

Base Pay

Paid Holidays

Working Hours and Flextime

Sick Days/Personal Days

Recording Working Hours

Military Leave

Regular Pay Procedures


Bereavement Leave
Overtime Pay Procedures

Jury Duty

Family Medical Leave of Absence

Personal Leave

Job Descriptions

Performance Reviews

Salary Increases
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Employee Handbook, continued
Group Health & Related Benefits:
Employee Conduct:
(as applicable)
(as applicable)

Dress Code and Personal
Appearance

Medical Coverage

Dental Coverage

Absenteeism & Tardiness

Vision Care

Safety & Health

Savings and Incentive Plan

Smoking Policy

Retirement Program

Substance Abuse

Short/long-Term Disability

Harassment Policy

Other Insurances

Use of Company owned
Assets & Company OwnedPaid Services

Copyright & Software
Guidelines

Separation of Employment
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Employee Handbook, continued
Workplace Security:
(as applicable)
Other Considerations:
 Statement of Right to Amend
 Protecting the Company
 Signed Receipt Page Should be
Placed in Personnel File
 Identification Badges
 Purchase and Adapt a Generic
Template
 Access Cards
 Visitor Security
 Computer Security
 Endangerment to Others
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III. Training & Development
Examples of Mandated Training:


OSHA training for 11+ employees
Sexual Harassment Training for 15+
Employees
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III. Training & Development
New Employee Orientation Training
Diversity Training and Discrimination
Ongoing Developmental Training
–
Benefits Include Increased Productivity and
Morale
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Training Process, continued
The Training Process:



Even in Small Companies,
Consistency is Key
All employees should be trained on
the same message
Video and Internet Tools for
Specialized Training

Consultants and Outsource
Partners

Outside Training Can Help Lower
Risk
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IV. Personnel Files

Need to have a policy in place to manage personnel files

What should you keep in those files?
Employment-related decisions including:

Hiring

Firing

Promotion

Demotion

Layoff

Training
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Personnel Files, continued
Documentation NOT Appropriate for a Personnel File:
Note: Any personnel decisions based on equal opportunity is
considered illegal.

Sex

Sexual Orientation

Race

Veteran’s Status

National origin

Disability

Color

Garnishment Issues

Religion

I9 Forms
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Personnel Files, continued
Keeping Records:
 Hiring Documents: 1 Year
 Job applications
 Resumes
 Records relating to refusal to hire
 Advertisements pertaining to openings or promotions or training opportunities
Note: Federal Contractor Hiring Documents: 2 Years
 Employee Personnel Records: 1 Year Post Termination, or 3 Years Minimum
 Payroll Records: 4 years
 Tax Records: 5 years
 Medical Safety Records: Up to 30 Years!
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Solutions
Approaches to implement a HR Management Solution:

Do-it-yourself

Outsourcing Solutions

Shared Resource Employee

Dedicated Employee
You or your clients decide the best option.
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Do-It-Yourself
Doing-It-Yourself:

Can be most cost effective but also most time
intensive

Added risk

Sources for information

Books and CD programs provide “How to”
information and generic HR handbooks

Internet is a source for information on Compliance
Laws and Required Reporting Forms
ex. www.SHRM.org - Society for Human Resource
Management
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Outsource Partner / Consultant
Outsourcing:

More cost effective than you might
think

Reduce risk exposure

Use of less internal resource

Monthly retainer for services or pay
by hour or project

Employee Leasing as an outsource
option
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Shared Resource Employee
Shared Resource Employee:

Slightly reduced cost compared to
100% outsourcing

Reduced risk

A little more use of internal resource

Office manager types should be
qualified/trained

Retaining an outsource partner or
consultant is still advised to establish a
qualified support mechanism for your
office manager
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Dedicated Employee
Dedicated Employee:

Someone dedicated to eliminating risk

Requires a professional level salary
determined by experience, skill set and
geographical location of the organization

Simply a requirement for larger companies

Companies with 100+ employees usually
employ an HR Generalist

Larger companies typically have access to
legal and training resources as well
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Course Summary
Course Summary:

Even small CPA firms need a
formal HR management strategy

The CPA firm has its own
employee and compliance issues

CPAs are trusted advisors to their
small business clients
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Summary, continued
Compliance Issues & Federal Reporting.

Being out of compliance, means being at risk
Employee Handbooks.

A handbook is a must for ALL size companies

Purchase a template a modify it to fit your needs

Or, work with an outsource partner/consultant who can
provide this for you
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Summary, continued
Training and Development.

Training should be consistent

Companies with as little as 11 employees should consider outsource solutions
for OSHA training

Sexual harassment training required with as few as 15 employees…even less in
some states

Several cost-effective training tools available to smaller businesses

Developmental training increases productivity and morale
Personnel Files.

Correctly maintaining personnel files is a REQUIREMENT

Be aware of what SHOULD and SHOULD NOT be kept in a personnel file

Be aware of the timeframes required by law
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Summary, continued
SOLUTIONS:

Doing it yourself can save money, but eats billable hours and increases risk

Outsource partners and retained consultants are a cost-effective way to
reduce risk

Outsource partners and consultants give you a solid place to turn when your
clients turn to you

Companies with 100+ employees will most likely need a full time HR
Generalist on staff.
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Discussion Questions
1. The author says that small businesses face the same HR challenges as large ones. What are
some of these challenges, and which seem to hit closest to home with your own situation?
The author says time, cash, resources, and urgency are deterrents to formalized program, leaving
smaller companies at risk
2. Why should CPA firms be aware of these issues?
CPA firms should be aware of these issues for two reasons. One, the CPA firm itself is a business with
its own employees and compliance issues. Second, as the most trusted and influential advisor to your
small-to-medium sized clients, you are very likely to be asked for your opinions and advice in
recommending solutions on critical business issues.
3. What does the author say about the need for an employee handbook? Do you have a handbook?
If so, how has it helped? If not, why not?
The author says that ALL companies need a handbook regardless of size, to establish consistency and
to reduce risk.
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Discussion Questions
4. The author discusses several different kinds of training. Mandated training, new hire training,
diversity and discrimination training, and ongoing developmental training. What are the key
benefits to developmental training? Do you support developmental training in your
organization…why or why not?
The author states the importance of developmental training for ALL employees regardless of the function
they serve. There is always an opportunity to better develop appropriate job skills, and employee
productivity and morale are often directly motivated by company sponsored skills and development
training programs.
5. The author outlines four different solution approaches to establishing a formal HR management
environment. The solutions ranged from do-it-yourself to a full-time employee. The terms
outsource partner or consultant were used repeatedly. What does the author list as the
advantages/benefits of outsourced solutions? Which one of these solutions do you currently
employ?
Major benefits of working with an outsource provider or consultant include, ensuring guidance and
compliance in a highly technical environment, reducing risk, and saving your time for billable projects.
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What Now?

Reference Handout Material for Additional Content Information

Review CPE Card

Complete Course by Taking Online Components
Thank you
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