Second Quarter 2009 Volume 2, Issue 2
Click here for full length publication. Click on the links below to jump to the article.
Welcome Nathan!
Some clients may know the news already—we have a new addition to our payroll staff at Radcliffe. Welcome Nathan Cooper! He is a recent graduate from Bates College with a degree in philosophy. Nathan was a swim team and water polo team captain. We hope that he can transfer his team oriented approach to our payroll group and shift his philosophy from academia to customer service.
He will be spending most of June here in Chestertown, learning the "payroll ropes," which he is picking up very quickly. By the end of June he will be off to Lewes, Delaware, to work at our new payroll site.
That’s right—we are opening an office in Lewes. We have had much success with our payroll firm in Kent & Queen Anne’s counties that we think it is time to branch out. We will have a small office in Lewes and we hope to attract clients from the surrounding communities. For some of our current clients the basis of operation will shift to Lewes, as it is more convenient for those clients to go to an office that is closer to them.
If you have any recommendations for potential clients, we would love to hear from you! Please let your payroll representative know.
Website Additions
We are always trying to provide the best customer service for our clients. To that end, we actively update our website, so that you have access to the latest forms and publications. Check our Forms section for the current I-9 and the new Publication 15-T for Employers, for example. On the separate Tools page we are also posting past issues of our newsletters.
New to our website is Encore Online Frequently Asked Questions (EOL FAQs) and Encore Online User Guides. One of the benefits of Encore Online (EOL) is that you can work anywhere you have access to the internet, at any time— which for some employers, that means after Radcliffe’s office hours. If you have a question (Now what??) while working in EOL, look at the EOL FAQ section to see if your answer is there—you can work continuously, without having to wait for our office to open. We are always happy to help you work within EOL so if you cannot find your answer in the FAQ section, please do not hesitate to contact your payroll representative. Please let us know if you have any questions so we can keep our list current. The EOL User Guides are available to help navigate you through EOL. You can also download the Pay View or Employee Self Services (ESS) guides to distribute to your employees, so they can check their pay stubs and/or make changes to their employee information.
Product of the Quarter: EasyChoice Worker's Compensation
EasyChoice is an easy and convenient way in which you can pay your worker’s compensation insurance. We have partnered with The Hartford, a well-recognized insurance partner and one of the leading worker’s compensation insurers, to provide this service.
There are several direct benefits with using EasyChoice, including no premium down-payment and a minimal audit adjustment, if any at all. Furthermore, there are no monthly billings, finance fees, or late payments. Your premium is based on actual payroll figures—no inflated calculations which increase your premium.
After each payroll, Radcliffe will send payroll data to The Hartford, where your premium will be calculated. The payment will be deducted from your bank account the following week. You have the option of choosing the Withdrawal Notification Service which sends an e-mail notice in addition to your receiving monthly reports of the previous month’s payments.
For more information contact your payroll representative, who will fill out a lead referral form to find out if your company is eligible and to receive a quote. You can also visit the Worker's Compensation section for more information.
EasyChoice HR Answerlink Changes
The EasyChoice HR Answerlink service has made a few changes, effective June 1st. Remember, HR Answerlink is the online help center that is available 24/7 to answer any HR question— and it is complete with forms, customizable employee handbooks, articles, and tips.
- HR OnDemand HelpLine—you can now submit your question via a toll-free number.
- E-Alerts—users sign up for alerts regarding federal and state law changes via email.
- 3-Minute Audit—this tool provides users with a report on their HR procedures. Simply answer a few questions and a report will be sent to you with the status of your procedures. Usually a $300-500 consultant charge, it’s free with HR Answerlink. It’s good idea to be in compliance with federal and state laws, so we urge our clients to try out this audit.
Also available is HR OnDemand Support. For a little more each month you can have direct access to an HR Professional—run your business as if you have an HR Department! Contact your payroll representative if you wish to upgrade to this service. If you have opted out of this service, or are not yet enrolled and would like to receive this service, please contact your payroll representative. More information is also available on our Benefits page.
Fast Alerts:
- Minimum Wage Increase
Minimum wage increases to $7.25/hour on July 24, 2009. Be sure to give your employees’ their raises if they are at the current minimum wage ($6.55).
- Payroll Submission Due Dates
We know that in the summer schedules may be hectic. We just want to remind you that payrolls with direct deposit should be submitted no later than three business days before pay day. The bank—and therefore Radcliffe—can only guarantee deposits will be in your employees’ accounts if the transfer is made three business days before pay day. If you are unable to meet that schedule, talk to your payroll representative about altering your pay period.
- I-9 Reminder
Summer is here and for many employers that means the busy season is in full swing. Remember to fill out the new I-9 as you hire your new employees. Homeland Security mandates that every employer has to fill out the I-9 for every employee and keep them on file. Also, check to be sure you are using the most up-to-date version (rev. 2/02/09).
- ARRA Reminder
On April 1st, the federal withholding tax tables changed under the ARRA. Remind your employees to take a look at their withholding allowance—if they are married and/or work more than one job, they may want to change their allowances. The IRS’s website has a withholding calculator that may help with that decision.
Notes From Randy's Desk...
Although summer is often a time to relax and enjoy the weather, our payroll group continues to work hard to improve our operations and ability to service our clients. We are in the process of expanding our group to better serve our Delaware customers. With the technology platform that we have in place, our two offices will be linked together on our telephone and computer systems. It also gives us the ability to print and seal in an alternate location in the event of emergencies, power outages, etc. We want you to know that our expansion gives us more capacity, redundancy and safety for all of our clients. It’s just another step in improving things behind the scenes so that we can continue to provide you with quality service without interruption.
