Human Resources Tasks: Minimize the Load
When your new business takes off, it’s an exciting time, yet your responsibilities continue to increase, even as you hire new people to handle certain tasks. In any business, human resources (HR) tasks can demand a lot of time and attention. You have to ensure your payroll, taxes, and benefits administration are all done according to the various laws and regulations that apply to your business, and making a mistake can be very costly.
Many business owners find that the best way to handle these critical HR tasks is to partner with a Professional Employer Organization (PEO). A PEO contractually assumes many of the responsibilities and risks of running a business by handling HR tasks like payroll, taxes, benefits, and workers’ compensation. By partnering with a PEO, you can maintain focus on the day-to-day operations you went into business for in the first place. Here are several ways that working with a PEO can lighten the load of HR tasks you’re responsible for.
Offer Your Employees Better Benefits
To hire and retain the best employees, you have to provide benefits like health insurance and 401(K) savings plans, but doing so can be expensive and time-consuming. Moreover, if your business is small, you may not have the negotiating power necessary to get competitive rates on these benefits. But your PEO can often negotiate much better rates for insurance benefits, due to being able to pool clients into a larger group to leverage volume rates. Whether you want to offer employees a range of insurance products (health, disability, life), a 401(K) plan, flexible spending accounts, or health savings accounts, your PEO can make it happen with far less trouble and expense.
Handle Payroll and Accounting Flawlessly
Handling even the most straightforward payroll situation is complex. Wages and taxes have to be calculated with absolute accuracy, and mistakes can cause major problems with employees, and with the Internal Revenue Service. By working with a PEO, you no longer have to spend valuable time coping with all the paperwork related to payroll, and you can be confident that your payroll will always be on time and correct, with taxes deducted properly. In fact, the many costs associated with just one tax remission error can more than justify the cost of working with a PEO to take care of payroll and tax matters.
Workers’ Compensation Coverage and Claims Resolution
It’s not easy to understand everything you need to know about workers’ compensation while overseeing daily business operations. Workers’ comp is detailed and complex, and monitoring administration and coordination of claims can consume valuable time and resources. When you partner with a PEO, you can not only get better workers’ compensation rates negotiated on your behalf, you also have a dedicated specialist who will monitor claims administration and ensure that all procedures are followed correctly.
Another advantage to working with a PEO to assist with workers’ compensation is that these PEOs issue workers’ comp insurance certificates. In the construction industry, contractors must produce an insurance certificate naming the client for whom they’re working in order to start work. A top PEO will provide these certificates on time, and some have online certificate request channels for added efficiency. Without these certificates, contractors cannot start work, costing them both time and money.
Confidence in Complying With Government Regulations
Depending on what industry your business is in, you may be bound by regulations at the state or federal level. Neglecting to comply with regulations can expose your company to legal risk and expense. A PEO can handle your necessary government reporting, interface with the appropriate agencies, and manage unemployment claims, wage issues, and audits.
Healthcare reform alone has added significantly to the regulations that businesses must follow, and when you have a great PEO partner, you’ll have the expertise and experience necessary to monitor ongoing legislative changes and ensure that your business remains in compliance. This can protect your business from expensive penalties.
Get Peace of Mind from a PEO
Hiring a full-time HR professional for your small business can be an expensive investment. Working with a PEO costs a fraction of that amount, and allows you to take advantage of better negotiated rates for insurance, offer employees better benefits packages, and enjoy the peace of mind of knowing that payroll, taxes, and workers’ comp are all taken care of accurately and on time.
If you’ve never worked with a PEO, you may wonder how to choose one. SourceOne Partners has over 50 years of experience in the PEO business, and can evaluate your company and help you select the PEO that is the best fit for your needs. A PEO can save your company money, and allow you to continue to focus on growing your business. Call us at 561-674-0748 or fill out a form online to request to speak with a PEO expert.