Publications

If your company has a health plan that is compatible with a Health Savings Account (HSA), it’s important to know that contribution amounts have increased. The HSA contribution limits for 2012 are now $3,100 for single plans and $6,250 for family plans, plus an additional $1,000 catch up for those ages 55 and older. Remember, HSAs provide individuals with tax savings in three ways: money deposited, money used for qualified medical expenses and earnings on the money. The account belongs to the employee, even after employment. So the money can be used for medical expenses upon retirement! Innovative Employer Solutions can...

Employee vs. Independent Contractor – Seven Tips for Business Owners IRS Summertime Tax Tip 2010-20 As a small business owner you may hire people as independent contractors or as employees. There are rules that will help you determine how to classify the people you hire. This will affect how much you pay in taxes, whether you need to withhold from your workers paychecks and what tax documents you need to file. Here are seven things every business owner should know about hiring people as independent contractors versus hiring them as employees. 1.The IRS uses three characteristics to determine the relationship between businesses and workers: ...

Florida Insurance Commissioner Kevin McCarty has advised the National Council on Compensation Insurance (NCCI) that he would approve their initial rate increase request of 8.9% to become effective January 1, 2012 for workers’ compensation insurance rates in Florida based on evidence submitted in NCCI's rate filing, and during the October 11th rate hearing. "The rate increase that has been justified would still give Florida the lowest workers’ compensation insurance rates among the large states, the lowest workers’ compensation insurance rates in the southeast, and most importantly -- a 58.6% cumulative decrease from the highs prior to the legislative forms in...

The National Labor Relations Board has agreed to postpone the effective date of its employee rights notice-posting rule at the request of the federal court in Washington, DC hearing a legal challenge regarding the rule. The Board’s ruling states that it has determined that postponing the effective date of the rule would facilitate the resolution of the legal challenges that have been filed with respect to the rule. The new implementation date is April 30, 2012. Most private sector employers will be required to post the 11-by-17-inch notice on the new implementation date of April 30. The notice is...

The Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act (PPACA) imposed a new $2,500 limit on the contribution or election amount for health care Flexible Spending Accounts (FSA). The new requirement applies to all FSA plans whose taxable years begin after Dec. 31, 2012 — even plans grandfathered under other provisions of health care reform. The “taxable year” refers to the employee's taxable year --and in most cases this stipulation means a calendar year. Thus, a calendar year limitation of $2,500 in salary reductions for the health care FSA will become effective Jan. 1, 2013. Changes to Plan Documents Plans that currently allow...

As our country continues to try and pull itself out of the worst economic recession in more than 40 years, business owners nationwide have experienced increased costs related to state and federal unemployment rates. The number of people out of work continues to be a critical issue for local, state and federal governments. In our home state of Florida, as well as many other states, we continue to experience high unemployment levels. While the United States as a whole experienced a small decrease in the national unemployment rate in 2011, the percentage of unemployed workers in Florida is...

Employee W-2 Forms for 2011 from Innovative Employer Solutions will be available to employees January 1st. Employees can log onto the Innovative Employer Solutions website .Employees can then log on to the Employee Portal and obtain their W-2 Form. Log on instructions are available on the website as well. Innovative Employer Solutions provides services as a Florida PEO, Florida Employee Leasing and Florida Payroll Provider. Innovative Employer Solutions as a Florida PEO specifically provides Florida Payroll Services, Florida Employee Health Benefits, Florida Workers Compensation, Florida Unemployment Service, and Compliance with Florida Local, State and Federal...

Innovative's Online Payroll has had a major facelift as well as the redesign of several reports. Additionally, the new Online Payroll features a new wizard, calculator, and mobile app! The New Online Payroll Features include a new look and feel in addition to a customization process that has been streamlined and simplified. There is also a New Hire Wizard that allows step by step data entry. The new Net Pay Calculator allows a worksite manager to accurately estimate an employee's net pay when an immediate pay check is required. Employees can now view their current or past pay stubs on...

The Florida Department of Economic Opportunity announced that the Florida minimum wage will increase to $7.67 per hour effective January 1, 2012. This is an increase from Florida's current minimum wage of $7.31 per hour, which became effective June 1, 2011, in response to a Florida Circuit Court decision issued earlier this year. Florida's minimum wage is generally recalculated yearly on September 30, based on the Consumer Price Index. The Florida minimum wage applies to all employees in the state who are covered by the federal minimum wage. When Florida's minimum wage and the federal minimum wage differ, employers operating within...

The U.S. Department of Labor (DOL) launched an application for the iPhone, iPod touch and iPad to help employees track their own work hours and independently determine the wages employers owe them. The app is available in Spanish and English and tracks regular work hours, break time and overtime for one or more employers. The app also provides a glossary of terms, contacts and links to the DOL's Wage and Hour Division. Users can add comments to reports and email their summary of work hours and gross pay as an attachment. According to Secretary of Labor Hilda L. Solis, "This app will...