#hiring
Financial considerations when hiring employees or contractors
California AB 692 voids stay-or-pay clauses signed on or after January 1, 2026 — audit your offer letters now or risk $5,000 per affected worker.
The federal W-4 doesn't cover state tax in most states — collect each hire's state certificate (CA DE 4, NY IT-2104) or withholding defaults to max.
An EEOC charge is an allegation, not a verdict: block retaliation, file a documented position statement in ~30 days, and weigh free mediation (70%+ settle).
WOTC lapsed Dec 31, 2025 — keep filing IRS Form 8850 within 28 days, since past lapses were renewed retroactively and only timely filings qualify.
The US Federal Bonding Program issues free $5,000–$25,000 fidelity bonds covering an at-risk hire's first six months — no premium, no deductible.
Seasonal hires get full FLSA protection: overtime past 40 hours, the highest applicable federal, state, or city minimum wage, and Form I-9 within three days.
Your client list is only a trade secret if you protected it first — inventory secrets, sign NDAs with the DTSA notice, and lock down access.
OFCCP's Section 503 final rule takes effect September 21, 2026: Form CC-305, the 7% utilization goal and disability data collection end — the written AAP stays.
Illinois HB 3773 took effect January 1, 2026 and covers employers with one employee — give AI notice, drop zip-code proxies, run four-fifths bias tests.
Local payroll tax is the employer's liability, not the software's. Ohio's 20-day rule, Pennsylvania PSD codes, NYC resident-only tax and Yonkers' 0.5% levy.
A draw against commission is an advance settled against later commissions. Once paid it is wages under the FLSA, so never claw it back from a final paycheck.
Finance employers now hire three senior staff per entry-level hire, and a third of new hires quit within a year. Here is what that does to bookkeeping costs — $3,000–$4,500 a month in-house versus $300–$2,500 outsourced — and how to restructure around it.
