Blog – Page 3 of 6

The Employee Hiring Process: Why You Should Consider Hiring on A Trial Basis

Hiring a new employee is a considerable risk for any business. Between training the new worker, purchasing equipment to accommodate their duties, and providing healthcare, the average cost to hire is well over $4,000. With such a significant financial investment, you may find yourself wondering, “Is there a way to “test out” a new staff member before bringing them on board with a salary, 401k, and benefits?” As it turns out, there is a way to do this. During the employee hiring process, employers may elect to hire individuals on a trial basis. Hiring on a trial basis involves taking on a worker for a set period before evaluating whether or not to hire them as a full-time employee. Predicting how well someone will fit within a role and company based on an interview is challenging, and even the best interviewers get it wrong sometimes. … [Read More]

How To Hire International Workers

Running a successful business involves increasing efficiencies, reducing costs, and focusing on core competencies. Many US firms opt to hire international workers on a floating basis for their expertise and availability to accomplish the latter. Workers in other countries also benefit from the flexibility that remote work provides and competitive wages and work/life balance. While there are many benefits to hiring foreign workers, the legal process can be challenging. With the growing use of technology facilitating remote work more than ever before, it’s imperative that organizations understand how to properly hire and pay international workers. Step 1 – Begin the interview process Hiring any type of employee takes a significant amount of time, so it’s best to start early. You’ll want to get ahead by scheduling multiple Skype or Zoom interviews. It’s essential to ensure that candidates have the right technology and communication abilities conducive… [Read More]

Foreign Workers: How to Hire On A Contingent Basis

Hiring foreign workers is becoming increasingly popular for US organizations. It allows them to widen their talent pool, gain diverse perspectives, and avoid many of the costs and hassles associated with full-time employees. But what happens when those contingent workers are from another country? If there is a shortage of skilled workers to fulfill a job opening, looking for staff outside of the US may seem tempting; after all, the world is becoming more globalized by the minute. Hiring foreign workers on a contingent basis offers many benefits to businesses. Still, they must understand the process and regulations required by the US Department of Labor before they say, “you’re hired.” Keep reading for our step-by-step guide to hiring contingent workers in other countries. Hiring Foreign Workers: A Step By Step Guide Hiring contingent foreign workers can be a challenge, but this simple step-by-step guide will… [Read More]

Why Offering Contingent Workers Benefits Is Good For Business

If you’re a large organization, you likely took advantage of contingent workers to fill gaps in your operations before COVID. With the explosion of gig workers and the many benefits they provide, it just makes sense to outsource. Why pay a full-time employee a salary with benefits, paid time-off, and retirement savings if you don’t need to? It seems as though the business world is turning to contract workers more than ever before, as 30% of the entire US workforce is comprised of gig workers, and 22% of self-employed professionals have multiple revenue streams. The influx of telecommunications capabilities and decentralization are significant factors in the increase, with COVID only adding heat to the fire. Contingent work arrangements offer a host of benefits to employers as well as employees. Remote gig workers enjoy flexibility in where they live and work at any given time, while… [Read More]

Contingent Workforce Trends In 2021

Though our country’s economic future remains uncertain due to COVID-19, businesses are rising to the occasion pivoting their operations toward a contingent workforce to adapt to every twist and turn that the pandemic has thrown them. For many companies, adapting means securing the right talent at the right time. To do this, firms may choose to engage in co-employment arrangements. Co-employment or contingent employment is where a contract employee works for both a business and a staffing agency concurrently. Co-employment arrangements allow busy companies to provide co-employees’ duties, day-to-day schedules, and expectations. Simultaneously, the staffing agency handles personnel matters such as onboarding, payroll, sick leave, and benefits. Though much remains uncertain as we head forge ahead in 2021, it’s clear that organizations are evolving and adapting to the new “normal.” Here’s what to expect regarding the contingent workforce. The Top Contingent Workforce Trends For… [Read More]

Migrating Workers: How Employer of Record Services Make Hiring Easier

The coronavirus pandemic has shifted the way workplaces across the globe operate. Due to the need for social distancing and constant sanitation, many employers have encouraged or required their employees to work from home. The shift has also made its way into the job interview and hiring process creating opportunities for migrating workers with zoom meetings becoming the normal operating procedure for narrowing down the candidate pool. In fact, 62% of employed Americans currently say they have worked from home during the COVID-19 outbreak. The allure and flexibility of working from home have contributed to many individuals migrating from their home state to a different state altogether. If location no longer matters, why pay California rent prices when you can pay Idaho prices? While an employee moving between towns isn’t a major cause for concern, moving between states can leave business leaders and human resources… [Read More]

Co-employment & Risk Mitigation From Joint Employment

In today’s ever-changing business environment, many companies are looking to reduce the time and money spent on recruiting, hiring, and payroll by utilizing outside agencies in a co-employment agreement. Based on data from SHRM, it takes companies 36 days on average to fill a new position at an average cost of $4,425. Co-employment arrangements allow busy businesses to focus on providing co-employees’ duties, day-to-day schedules, and expectations while the Recruiting Agency handles personnel matters such as onboarding, payroll, sick leave, and benefits. This hybrid form of employment means that the contract employee is technically working for both parties, the business, and the recruiting agency at the same time. Contractors and gig workers are becoming a vital and growing force to be reckoned with in the business world so it is important for businesses to be aware of the benefits, as well as the risks associated… [Read More]

AB5 Changed How You Classify Contractors and Employees

California’s Assembly Bill 5, better known as AB5, went into effect on January 1, 2020 and has drastically changed how employers can classify employees vs. contractors. Now, the state’s Supreme Court “ABC test” is the gold standard for determining if a person qualifies as an independent contractor while abiding by the California Labor Code, Industrial Welfare Commission Wage Orders, and California Unemployment Insurance Code. Has your classification system passed the ABC test? If you haven’t taken a close look at how you’re classifying contractors vs. employees, you’re putting yourself and your company at a big risk—especially now that AB5 is in effect. When an employee is misclassified, employers could be found in violation of requisite unpaid overtime, and might even be failing to follow minimum wage laws and regulations. Steep consequences can follow including high penalties, lawyer fees, and in some cases criminal liability. Misclassification… [Read More]

Here’s What HR Outsourcing Does for Your Business

Did you know that 99 percent of businesses in the US are considered small businesses? In fact, 88 percent of businesses have less than 20 employees. Unsurprisingly, most small businesses do not have an HR department or an HR outsourcing partner. Most don’t even have a single human resources representative, and with good reason. You don’t “need” an in-house, full-time HR expert or department in many businesses. But that doesn’t mean you wouldn’t greatly benefit from having an outsourced HR partner—and maybe even a contingent workforce management partner. First, let’s take a look at the HR facet of such a partnership. A contingent workforce management partner is like having an in-house HR professional team, except you enjoy all of the perks of HR without any of the downsides. What exactly do HR departments do, anyway? It can vary based on your business, but in general,… [Read More]

Why Companies Should Consider Remote Internships In 2021

Every summer, college, and graduate students participate in summer internships in various American companies. Internships allow students to gain invaluable hands-on work experience while providing companies with young and eager workers passionate about their industry. This is a mutually beneficial arrangement, and often, companies will hire their interns for permanent positions once they graduate from school, making internships an excellent pipeline for hiring new talent. Unfortunately, as the COVID-19 pandemic rages on, many companies’ offices are closed, with most of their workforce working from home. This leaves organizations in an unusual position to cut down on their internship, hire drastically, or cancel their internship programs altogether. If this “new normal” has shown us anything, though, it’s that businesses can run efficiently and effectively with virtual employees. Given the success of the work from home model for full-time employees, remote internships can be just as successful. … [Read More]