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Is it Time to Leave BWC Behind?

Ohio employers have started receiving notifications from Ohio BWC regarding their rates and EMR for the approaching 2023 policy year. If your business is one of the lucky ones to see a rate decrease, congratulations! If your business is one of the thousands of policies that are seeing an increase, or your EMR isn’t going to help you win any bids - it may be time to explore different options. We know that the phrase “PEO” can make some employers gasp at the thought of sacrificing control for lower workers’ comp premiums, or an aesthetically pleasing EMR – but not all PEOs are created equal.

Spooner Risk Control Services designed SuretyHR to be a very different PEO (Professional Employer Organization) than the ones employers have told us so many stories about. We don’t need to take over your day-to-day operations, or make you change brokers and retirement plan administrators. We have solutions for those services if you need them – but if it’s not broken, we won’t insist on fixing it.

SuretyHR was built to improve and support your business, and free up time for management and owners to focus on the important things. Instead of spending time behind the scenes, leadership stays in front of the business to focus on employee engagement, business development, client retention, and creating cultures that retain the best talent.

Employers happy with their BWC rates and EMR can still benefit from partnering with a PEO to manage compliance. The time and stress related to payroll will decrease substantially – including taxes, deductions, and FLSA standards like overtime and minimum wage requirements. Aside from payroll – think of all the time spent on regulatory compliance. FMLA, OSHA, DOL, new hire paperwork and onboarding, and even unemployment claims can be a major time suck for management. Nearly half of small businesses report spending as much as 10-20 hours per month on regulatory compliance. With SuretyHR, you’ll stay updated and compliant on the constantly changing federal and state regulations. Between our workers’ comp, payroll, safety and HR experts – you’ll be in very good hands, and those hours can now be more productive.

The Emerald City ran like a finely-tuned machine, with most onlookers unaware that there was someone behind the curtain keeping all of the tops spinning. If you want that kind of support for your organization, let us show you what it could look like.

Posted By Brandy King in PEO, professional employer organization, workers comp, EMR, losing RFPs, FMLA, payroll, human resources, ohio premium savings, alternative to ohio bwc

Most Recent

DOL Issues Final Rule on Independent Contractors

Posted By Brandy King
January 17, 2024 Category: DOL, Independent Contractors, Ohio Bwc, Workers' Comp

Who’s Really an Independent Contractor? DOL Finalizes New Rule Clarifying Classification Earlier this month, the U.S. Department of Labor (DOL) finalized its rules regarding classification of independent contractors. The organization hadn’t previously defined this by regulations, only by guidelines (which are as clear as OSHA “best practices”). The updated rule creates a six-factor “economic realities” test to determine whether or not a worker is truly an independent contractor under the Fair Labor Standards Act (FLSA). Among others, the test includes factors such as degree of permanence, amount of control the employer holds, and the worker’s skills. Since Ohio employers aren’t required to cover 1099 employees under their BWC policy, we have a lot of discussions with clients about whether or not a worker actually meets the qualifications of being an independent contractor. Understanding these qualifications is not only important for insurance purposes, but also for recordkeeping, and the application of minimum wage and overtime rules. Our friends at Roetzel & Andress have done a great job of explaining this new classification rule in a way that’s easy to digest and understand, so we’re deferring to their recent update for the details. For more info on how independent contractors can impact your Ohio BWC policy, check out this blog. This goes into effect March 11

A Guide to Submitting 2023 OSHA Logs

Posted By Brandy King
January 17, 2024 Category: OSHA, Electronic Recordkeeping, Form 301, Form 300, OSHA 300A, Safety, Incident Reporting, Compliance

It’s time to post and electronically submit your OSHA logs - and this year, submission requirements will impact far more U.S. employers. We discussed this in detail when the rule was finalized in July 2023. Effective January 1, 2024, OSHA will require employers with over 100 employees in certain high hazard industries to complete electronic records submissions of Forms 300 and 301, in addition to Form 300A. These are records that covered employers should already be keeping, but previously have not been required to submit. The impacted industries include (but aren’t limited to) retail, wholesale, performing arts, manufacturing, farming, and grocers. Our safety team agrees that the fastest, easiest way to find out your company’s submission requirements is to use this ITA Coverage Application. Enter your company’s NAICS code and employee count, and it will confirm which logs should be submitted. As a general guide: 20-249 employees and on this list must submit 300A 100 or more employees and on this list must submit the 300A, 301 and 300 log. Employee count is “per establishment,” not entire corporation size. So, what is OSHA’s definition of an “establishment?” An establishment is a single physical location where business is conducted, or where services or industrial operations are performed. For activities where employees do not work at a single physical location - such as construction, transportation, communication

Grading Payroll Providers on Enrollment and W-2 Performance

Posted By Brandy King
January 17, 2024 Category: Payroll, Overcharging, Additional Fees, Surety HR, SI PEO, Payroll Processing Fees, ADP Fees, Paychex Fees

With 2023 group health enrollments behind us, and W-2 season wrapping up – most employers have a strong opinion about the role their payroll provider played in both of those, good or bad. Let’s consider open enrollment first. If your payroll provider utilizes an electronic benefits module, and made an implementation plan with your broker – things should have gone smoothly. Benefits enrollment is always subject to hitting snags throughout the process. Here are some things to consider: • Was there communication between all parties if a timeline changed? • Was everyone pulling in the same direction, without making you (the employer) an unnecessary go-between? • Was every party involved invested in making sure things were done right the first time? • Have you considered an API connection or Data Bridge with your Carrier? (Fees may apply) It’s important not to over- or under-rely on technology. Let the electronic benefits modules do their job, but make sure you and your payroll provider have your eyes peeled for potential issues. W-2 season brings similar headaches. If the employer has done their best to ensure that all employee info is up-to-date and accurate, the prevention and resolution of those headaches’ rests heavily on your payroll provider. If employees have questions about W-2s, or there’s a potentia

Blog

Is it Time to Leave BWC Behind?

DOL Issues Final Rule on Independent Contractors

A Guide to Submitting 2023 OSHA Logs

Grading Payroll Providers on Enrollment and W-2 Performance

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