Employers, both throughout the mid-Atlantic area and across the country, are bracing themselves for higher unemployment insurance taxes next year. And with our nation still recovering from recession and still facing long-term high unemployment rates, tax rates are likely to continue climbing for some time. However, unlike most other taxes, unemployment tax is one that employers can actually have some direct control over lowering. Employers who are proactive in their employee hiring, disciplinary and termination processes, as well as in their management of employment claims, stand the best chance of improving their experience rating, the rating that determines each company’s unemployment tax rate.

For most small- to medium-sized businesses – especially those with high employee turnover rates, such as those in the hospitality industry – the process of disputing unemployment claims can be a time-consuming and frustrating process. Losing just one claim dispute can cost thousands of dollars, which can be devastating to many businesses, especially in today’s troubled economic times. This is why it is vital to make sure your company is in best position to dispute any and every wrongful unemployment claim made by your former employees – and the best way to do this is to maintain extensive and thorough written records and to never miss important deadlines associated with filed claims.

When a former employee files a claim for unemployment, the burden falls on the employer to prove that the individual should not be eligible for payment. If you are not able to provide adequate written evidence that the employee was at fault for his or her termination, or if you do not respond to the claim within the designated amount of time, the law will find in favor of the claimant every time. This is why it is paramount to keep clear documentation of your employee policies, changes in these policies, written warnings issued to employees, and any records or evidence of employees breaking your company policies. All of these documents will help you in the event that you need to prove an employee was terminated for misconduct.

Should an unemployment dispute progress to a hearing, the judgment will depend on first-hand testimony from you as the employer and anyone else that can speak to the matter at hand, so it is important for you to be available and well prepared for these hearings. In the event that the decision is not in your favor and you disagree, you have a right to file an appeal and you must be prepared to present your facts and evidence.

With all of this in mind, it is easy to see why many employers – especially those with high employee turnover – lack the resources to properly manage, respond to and dispute their unemployment claims when necessary and ultimately, can end up paying thousands of dollars to claimants who shouldn’t rightfully be receiving money. This is also why you should consider investing in hiring a third party to manage your unemployment claims for you. Today, many human resource, payroll and financial management firms offer unemployment services that can help employers improve their hiring, disciplinary and termination processes and the associated documentation and can also handle all of the paperwork and appeals associated with unemployment claims. Turning these responsibilities over to someone with the resources and expertise to properly handle them may save you valuable time, stress and cost.

At Payce, we have recently added unemployment cost management to our list of human resource and payroll services. Now our clients can rely on Payce to handle the administration of all of their unemployment claims, provide consultation and representation at all hearings, audit every benefit charge, and provide Web-based management reports that allow the progress of all existing claims, hearings and appeals to be viewed and tracked online. We aim to help all of our customers achieve significant cost savings by making sure every unemployment claim is accurately accessed, documented and protested when appropriate.
To learn more about unemployment cost management from Payce, please call us at 1-800-729-5910 or email us @ bpfeifer@paycepayroll.com.

New solution streamlines claims management; lowers unemployment costs for employers.

BALTIMORE- (December 15, 2010)-Payce Payroll, one of the mid-Atlantic’s leading payroll service firms, today announced that it is now offering its clients unemployment cost management as one of its flexible and comprehensive payroll and human resources solutions. This new service will enable employers to lower their unemployment costs while outsourcing the often complex and challenging task of managing unemployment claims. Payce is now offering the following services to manage unemployment costs:

• Claims administration – every unemployment claim is reviewed for accuracy and legitimacy and tracked electronically to ensure an accurate determination of a claimant’s eligibility
• Hearing consultation and representation – proactive consulting on effective documentation and disciplinary practices are provided at unemployment hearings
• Benefit charge audits – every benefit charge statement is examined to ensure appropriate payment to each claimant and protest erroneous charges
• Insight management reports – Web-based claims reporting allows clients to review existing claims, appeals and hearings online

“Unemployment tax is the only tax that a business owner actually has control over, and many business owners – particularly those in industries with high employee turnover – are paying more money than necessary, simply because they do not have the proper time or resources to successfully manage their claims,” said Brian Pfeifer, chief operating officer, Payce Payroll. “Now we have the means to take this responsibility off of our clients’ plates and manage their unemployment tax process from start to finish. When every claim is accurately accessed, documented, and protested when appropriate, most business owners will find a significant annual cost savings.” Unemployment cost management is the newest offering from Payce, which specializes in providing flexible and comprehensive payroll and human resources solutions to businesses throughout the greater Baltimore and Washington metropolitan area. Headquartered in Towson, Md., Payce Payroll has served the local business community for 27 years.

About Payce Payroll
Founded in 1983, Payce Payroll is one of the leading payroll service firms in the mid-Atlantic region. Headquartered in Towson, Md., Payce specializes in providing efficient payroll management, tax filing, human resources and related business services while delivering a high level of dedicated and reliable customer service. Payce currently holds strategic partnerships and alliances with organizations including: Restaurant Association of Maryland, EPIC Pharmacies, Inc., Restaurant Association of Metropolitan Washington, Maryland-National Capital Building Industry Association, ASA of Baltimore, Health Facilities Association of Maryland, Maryland State Licensed Beverage Association, USB Payment Processing NE and the Associated Builders and Contractors, Inc. For more information, please call 443-279-9000 or visit www.paycepayroll.com.

Cost of Living adjustments have caused the taxable wage base limits to adjust each year increasing the taxable wage base since 1975. However, this is the second year that the current wage base of $106,800 will remain the same (2010 and 2011). With the wage base unchanged, the maximum OASDI tax payable by an employee will remain at $6,621.60 or 6.2% of the wage base.

The Medicare portion of the Federal Insurance Contributions Act (FICA) will also remain the same at 1.45% of all taxable wages earned.

For the latest upcoming news affecting your taxation feel free to contact Payce at 800-729-5910.

The Internal Revenue Service has announced that it will defer the reporting requirement for employers to report the cost of coverage under an employer-sponsored group health plan until at least 2012. A draft Form W-2 (Wage and Tax Statement) for 2011 will indicate where employers can report aggregate costs of employer-sponsored coverage (Box 12 with new code DD) optionally. The reported amounts are not taxable.

The IRS intends to publish guidance on the new requirement before the end of this year at http://www.irs.gov/pub/irs-drop/n-2010-69.pdf