Maintaining I-9's

The I-9 Form (also known as the Employment Eligibility Verification Form) is created by the U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services. Federal law requires that employers make certain that ALL newly hired employees fill out this form and failure to do so can be costly. Poor documentation alone can cost you $1,000 per worker, and knowingly hiring an illegal immigrant can result in a $10,000-per-worker fine.

To help sidestep potential legal trouble and discrimination complaints, follow these 10 I-9 do’s and don’ts:

1. Do require all new hires to complete and sign Section 1 on their first day of work.

2. Don’t ask an applicant to complete an I-9 prior to making a job offer. Un-hired applicants can use I-9 information to allege that you discriminated against them.

3. Do review employee documents to make sure they’re on the new version of the I-9’s list of acceptable documents and that they appear genuine. (See the new I-9 at www.uscis.gov/I-9.)

4. Don’t ask new hires for any particular documents or for more documents than the I-9 requires. The employee chooses the documents, not you.

5. Do establish a consistent procedure for completing I-9’s, and educate your hiring managers on that procedure.

6. Don’t consider the expiration date of I-9 documentation when making hiring or firing decisions.

7. Do make and retain copies of all I-9 documentation provided. (Only a few states make this mandatory, but it’s a good idea.)

8. Don’t forget to keep a tickler file to follow up on expiring documents that limit the employee’s authorization to work. You don’t have to reverify identity documents, such as a driver’s license.

9. Do keep I-9’s and copies of documents for three years after the employee’s hire date or one year after his or her termination, whichever comes later.

10. Don’t put the I-9 in an employee’s personnel file. To protect against discrimination claims, keep it and supporting documentation in a separate file for all of your I-9's.

Hiring New Employees

For new employees, a smooth and efficient transition to the company can reap rewards for years to come. Follow these five tips and you are sure to have a smoother hiring process. 
 
1. Develop an employee handbook and use job descriptions to communicate the essential job functions and expectations to your new hires.

2. Require candidates to complete and sign an employment application instead of using only the person's resume.

3. Avoid asking illegal interview questions, and focus on those based on successful behaviors.

4. Follow-up with an offer letter noting an RSVP date, a hire date, compensation, and any preconditions to employment.

5. Conduct reference and relevant background checks to assess the candidate's integrity.

If you need help staying organized and compliant during the new hire process you should work with a professional and utilize a new hire checklist from the SwiftChecks HR Support Center. You can access a complete library of laws, regulations, best practices, and forms inside of our support center to help you stay organized and in compliance. You can also download customizable job descriptions and an employee handbook or have one of our HR professionals customize them for you!

Going Green With Paperless Payroll

--
Paperless payroll has arrived and it's here to stay. Small business owners that have adopted the paperless payroll model eliminate costly delivery charges, the chance of lost checks, and the mounds of paper reports that accompany a paper based payroll model. So why aren't more small businesses taking advantage of modern payroll technology and going paperless?

Some business owners feel that a paperless system might be more expensive or more complicated to administer. This is really not the case. Not only is paperless payroll simple to administer, it's actually less expensive than a paper based system when you take advantage of SwiftChecks' free direct deposit service.

Many prospective clients who prefer that we print and mail checks and reports rather than provide them with a paperless, web based payroll system, tell us, "I want direct deposit for myself, but I have a few employees who really want that check handed to them on payday."

This is understandable. Your employees are your most important asset and making sure they are happy makes good business sense. But maybe they would take advantage of direct deposit if they knew the benefits of going paperless!

Paperless is Simple:

• You don't have to go to the bank to deposit checks.
• Your money is automatically deposited into your account on time, every time - and you don't have to be at work - or even in town!

Paperless is Safe:

• Direct Deposit payments never get lost.
• Money is transferred electronically and passes through fewer hands than a check.
• Almost 85 percent of identity theft starts with someone seeing your personal financial information on a paper check, billing statement, or bank account statement. Once electronic payments are set up, the money travels electronically, greatly reducing the number of people who see your personal information.

Paperless is Smart:

• Direct Deposit gives you access to your money earlier than check deposits. There is no waiting for checks to clear.
• Direct Deposit puts you in charge of your money. Financial planners recommend Direct Deposit as one step towards gaining control of your finances.
• With Direct Deposit, you decide how to divide your pay among your accounts and it will be done automatically.
• Direct Deposit is a smart way to help the environment. Each year, checks use more than 674 million gallons of fuel and add 3.6 million tons of CO2 to the environment as they travel through the payment cycle.

What if an employee doesn't have a bank account?

SwiftChecks can still provide paperless payroll for your company if you have an employee that does not have a bank account by supplying them with a payroll debit card. With the SwiftChecks payroll debit card service your employees will receive direct deposits on their payroll card and have access to great benefits such as:

• Mobile banking for 24/7 access and convenience.
• Text messaging for instant balance alerts.
• 24/7 bilingual customer service department.
• Convenience checks for financial control.
• Funds are FDIC insured.
• Cards can be used at millions of retailers and ATM's.

With SwiftChecks you can easily eliminate the administrative burden of managing and distributing checks, pay stubs, and payroll reports.