The HR Team June 2008 Newsletter

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It's June! Summer is around the corner and the temperature (and humidity) is starting to increase.

June also means Father's Day, and I thought this story was a good one for you all:

A grade school teacher was asking students what their parents did for a living. "Tim, you be first," she said. "What does your mother do all day?"

Tim stood up and proudly said, "She's a doctor."

"That's wonderful. How about you, Amie?"

Amie shyly stood up, scuffed her feet and said, "My father is a mailman."

"Thank you, Amie," said the teacher. "What about your father, Billy?"

Billy proudly stood up and announced, "My daddy murders people, steals from them, and drinks."

The teacher was aghast and promptly changed the subject to geography. Later that day she went to Billy's house and rang the bell. Billy's father answered the door. The teacher explained what his son had said and asked if there might be some logical explanation.

Billy's father said, "I'm actually an attorney. But how can I explain a thing like that to a seven-year-old?

Happy Father's Day!

Independent Contractors in Maryland

Did you know that the State of Maryland's definition of an Independent Contractor is very different than the federal (IRS) definition? Did you also know that the state is conducting random audits of businesses records to verify independent contractor records?

What does the state want? Your unemployment taxes. How do I know? I just paid a $7.42 fine for the2006 tax year to the State of Maryland. Hey nobody is perfect. What did I learn? Maryland defines Independent Contractors as persons whose business is different from the business of the person for whom the work is performed. Ok. That in itself is pretty vague. When making the determination of an independent contractor, the state also seeks validation of the business through proof. That proof is generally a website, brochure, business phone line, yellow page listing, business cards, professional invoices, membership in trade associations, and more. That is where the state got me. The person I hired (for one week) didn't: advertise, have cards, a website, a business email address, a nice invoice, or anything that made her look like a business. I do know that she had other clients, but to satisfy the state, I would need to show proof of those other clients, meaning a copy of her tax return for that year. Yuk!

Generally, those who follow an independent trade, business, or profession, in which they offer their services to the public, and who may be in a position to suffer financial loss rather than a guaranteed wage, are independent contractors and not employees. However, when the state seeks to validate that business through a secondary source, that is where the fun begins.

In addition, the State of Maryland specifically states that a signed agreement by both parties stating an independent contractor relationship exists is not proof that the individual is indeed an independent contractor.

Still confused? Concerned? Talk to your HR Team representative about conducting an independent contractor audit.

Business Expo at the Baltimore Convention Center.

The HR Team will be an exhibitor and Eileen Levitt will be a speaker at the MACPA Business Expo on June 17-18, 2008.

The Expo offers two days of workshops on issues and topics of interest to all business people. These workshops offer breakthrough ideas, best practices, and opportunities that will change the way business is being done and can help you advance your career. For CPAs, up to 16 CPE credits are available in one-day and two-day packages. As an exhibitor, the MACPA is offering the workshops to HR Team friends and colleagues MACPA member prices (that is $100 off the regular prices). To sign up just visit http://www.macpa.org/expo and register in the "Non-CPA Member of an Associate Supporting Sponsor" category.

New "Managing Poor Performance" Course Gets High Ratings

The HR Team now offers a four-hour course on Managing Poor Performance.

We introduced our new class to one of our clients last month, and we are proud to say that it was greeted with rave reviews.

Highlights of the class include; identifying poor performance, delivering constructive feedback, minimizing business risks, handling non-performance related problems, properly documenting problem behavior, and properly preparing and completing an employee termination.

The class can be delivered exclusively to your management team, or if there is enough interest, we will be more than happy to offer this class to the general public.

Contact your HR consultant or the office for more details.

Mental Illness and Absence

A study by the American Hospital Association shows that depression and mental illness cause more lost work days per year than any other chronic condition.

Mental illness, at 26 lost work days per year for the affected employee, was followed by cancer at 17, respiratory disorders at 15, asthma at 12 and migraine headaches, which caused 11 lost work days.

Professor's The Last Lecture Tells a Story About How to Live

It's not unusual for retiring professors to give a last lecture. When Carnegie Mellon University's Randy Pausch gave his, he wasn't retiring. He was dying of pancreatic cancer.

His now famous lecture was viewed by millions on YouTube. It inspired many to follow Pausch's advice about what is important in life. Now he has a book, The Last Lecture (Hyperion), with co-author Jeffrey Zaslow.

The father of three small children, Pausch said in a USA Today interview, "I was trying to put myself in a bottle that would one day wash up on the beach for my children." From his lecture, Achieving Your Childhood Dreams, here are a few of his points about life:

• Never underestimate the importance of having fun. I'm dying and I'm having fun every day because there's no other way to play it.
• Experience is what you get when you didn't get what you wanted.
• No one is pure evil. Find the best in everybody. Wait long enough and people will surprise you.
• It's not about achieving your dreams but about living your life. If you live the right way, the dreams will come.
• We can't change the cards we're dealt, just how we play the hand.
• In an interview with amazon.com, Pausch says the thing he learned as he grew older was that you can't get anywhere without help. Ask yourself: What kind of person do people want to help? Then you'll know the answer to: What kind of person should I try to be?
• Hearing what other people say about you is important to your success and happiness.

His book is humorous while allowing him to tell of his life experiences and the lessons he learned. For one: The secret of winning the stuffed animal on the midway, like most anything else, is sheer persistence. But it helps to have long arms and discretionary income.

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