In the realm of human resources, compliance issues are some of the most volatile, fraught with risk for the employer at every turn.
Failure to remain compliant in your hiring, compensation, benefits and related human resources functions can lead to substantial penalties and fines. In many cases, it also sets your business – and you, as an owner, officer, manager or decision-maker – up for substantial legal liability.
By outsourcing your company’s HR functions to a PEO, you can reduce these risks significantly without incurring extra costs.
The Ever-Changing Compliance Landscape
Thanks to the ever-changing legal landscape of human resources, you could be fully compliant one week and guilty of compliance violations a month later – and never know.
HR compliance involves not only following the letter of the law but also countless other functions. Verifying worker eligibility, reporting, posting required notices, avoiding harassment and discrimination and complying with compensation and benefits laws are just a few of the issues that are involved in keeping your business compliant.
In addition to federal laws, you must also pay attention to state and local laws that could go above and beyond the federal compliance baseline.
The Risks of HR Non-Compliance
In addition to penalties and fines, non-compliance can expose you to lawsuits, audits, governmental reviews and, in some cases, it could cost you your ability to stay in business. Business owners and managers could, under certain circumstances, even be subject to criminal action.
Although some of these potential risks may sound extreme, the government takes human resources compliance very seriously. At the minimum, you could be facing significant costs to undergo an audit or face a potential legal action.
Why Outsourcing HR Helps Ensure Compliance
Few small business owners or managers are truly HR experts, nor can they typically afford to hire one. However, unless you plan to familiarize with every federal, state and local law that governs human resources – and stay up to date with the ongoing changes – you need another option.
Professional employer organizations (PEOs) are true human resources experts. With an entire contingent of regulatory and government compliance experts on staff, you never have to worry about missing out on a law change or new reporting requirement.
And, as the de facto employer of record for your company, a PEO carries most of the compliance liability on your behalf.
A professional employer organization serving small and medium-sized businesses in Utah, WTA, Inc. handles all aspects of governmental and regulatory compliance as a part of our comprehensive suite of services. Contact us today to learn more about how outsourcing your human resources functions can protect your company and potentially save you money as compared to conducting these functions in house.