Winter 2012 Newsletter

No snow and then snow and then back to glorious blue skies. ‘Tis a privilege to live where we do.

From time to time, we hear from our clients wondering if we offer such and such service. After investing over $150,000 in new software over the past three years, I like to think there is little anyone else can do that we cannot do as well or better when it comes to payroll. As a reminder, here are some of the services we offer:

• We have dealt with almost any earnings code or deduction code that’s out there – feel free to test us on that at any time.
• We offer a totally paperless payroll process - we can email password protected reports to you and vouchers to employees.
• Our Time Off Accrual in our payroll system has the ability to work with a simple or a very complex plan when it comes to Vacation/Sick/PTO Balance information.
• We can prepare upload-able spreadsheets in excel and other formats for 401K or Simple plans or other retirement plans.
• We provide General Ledger entries for your payroll
• If you have QuickBooks, we can go a step further so that you can import your General Ledger and Checks directly into QuickBooks.
• There are many reports we can provide that slice your payroll information in an array of different ways.
• We offer Background Screening services through our web site.
• We offer an excellent Time and Attendance service.
• Lastly we can provide you with information regarding almost any question in the payroll sphere so you can make an informed decision – and we’ll do it in a personal, caring and knowledgeable manner.

2011 was the year of the audit for us:

ACH Audit

We recently underwent an ACH audit as now required by NAACHA through our ACH processor (Alpine Bank) which oversees direct deposit transactions. This audit is now required for us every year.

One of our delightful tasks we have in front of us for 2012 is having our new ACH agreement signed by every one of our clients. This new agreement has to replace our old agreement because our old agreement didn’t fulfill all the requirements of the new NAACHA rules. I am sorry that we have to do this – on the bright side, it will provide us (and you) a chance to tell us how we can be more helpful to your organization.

SSAE 16 Audit

If you would like a copy of our SSAE 16 Audit, we would be happy to send you one. It took us about nine months to complete and we’re pretty proud after it was all said and done. It’s a verification of our internal practices and procedures ensuring that your data is secure with us and that we are operating using best industry standards.

Reporting Employer Paid Health Insurance on the W2

Starting with the year 2012, employers who pay employee health insurance must report that amount on the 2012 W2. The good news – it is optional for employers who issued fewer than 250 W2s in 2011. Unless you have 250 or more W2s in 2011 or you specifically request us to show this amount, we will not show this information on your 2012 W2s.

Unemployment Tax Increase for Colorado Employers

Effective 1-1-2012, the unemployment insurance taxable wage base for Colorado will increase to $11,000 from $10,000 – this is a 10% across the board increase.

More changes coming!

When our federal government finally enacts its deficit reduction program, there have been many changes floated that will impact the payroll process. We’re reasonably sure at least some will be enacted. We stand ready to implement.

Posters Available
New Poster Requirement to display to your employees

From the National Labor Relations Board - As of January 13, 2012 most private sector employers are required to post a notice advising employees of their rights under the National Labor Relations Act. The 11-by-17-inch notice should be posted in a conspicuous place, where other notifications of workplace rights and employer rules and policies are posted.

For further information about the posting, including a detailed discussion of which employers are covered by the NLRA, and what to do if a substantial share of the workplace speaks a language other than English, please see our Frequently Asked Questions. We would be happy to send you the reports via an email attachment at no charge. Just let us know.

Go Paperless

If you wish to reduce your paper trail, increase convenience to your employees, consider offering payroll vouchers via password protected email.

Got QuickBooks?

If you have ten or more employees and use QuickBooks, you may want to find out more about our QuickBooks export.

If you have hourly employees, check out our time and attendance (for FREE)

We have more clients using our time and attendance than ever before. If you have hourly employees, ask us about this. It is such a time saver and money saver for processing payroll. Our clients have employee counts ranging from one employee to more than two hundred employees. If you would like a demonstration of how this could work for your business, please contact us or see a demo at our website: http://www.payrolldept.biz/attendance.html At the bottom of the page, click on the link for a demonstration.

Manage your HR with a little sharper knowledge

Log in to HR Support directly from our website. There is so much here from check lists on hiring and termination of employees to templates for evaluations, job descriptions and employee manuals. If you can’t recall your login and password, please contact us.

Did you know?

You can verify that all your federal payroll tax payments have been made. These are the payments we have debited from your account and then made on your behalf. It’s a great way to monitor your account on a periodic basis. Just drop us a note – voice or email – and we’ll take care of the rest.

It's worth repeating...

Independent Contractors vs. Employees (1099 vs. W2)

The states, and now the IRS as well, are hungry. If they think there is the remotest chance that your independent contractor is misclassified and should be classified as an employee, there’s a good chance they’ll come knocking at your door. Make sure you’re classifying that worker correctly – there are checklists available through our HR Support link.

Background Screening

One positive side effect of this economy is there are many high quality job applicants available. And yet, if your employees work in other peoples’ homes, work with money, drive your company vehicle, work with children, or engage in other activities in which trust is a major component, it is prudent for your organization to run a background check on your new hires. We offer an easy to use verification process at a reasonable price. You can find out more at: http://www.payrolldept.biz/background.html

We appreciate your business and your willingness to continue to place your trust in us...and thank you for your referrals.

Sincerely,
Bryan Dear
with Eric Malone, Tanya Campbell, Mary Wagner, Kyla Zufelt, Jesse Burdick-Davis, Jenny Ewing