Raise your hand if you are in human resources, and you feel stressed and burned out? Human resource leaders love their job, but a recent report shows that many HR professionals are considering leaving HR due to feeling overworked and understaffed.  

1,000 HR Leaders and C-suite executives were part of a recent survey conducted for Sage's The Changing Face of HR in 2024 report. Out of 1000 interviewed, almost 950 stated that "HR is simply too much work."  

The COVID-19 pandemic reshaped how corporations and small businesses handle remote and in-person employees. More than 60% of workers who have the option to go into an office choose to work from home now. Finding a healthy and sustainable balance between remote workers and in-person employees is essential. Companies that don't actively work to maintain this balance risk losing out on hiring and keeping valuable employees.

The Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC) is responsible for enforcing federal laws that make it illegal to discriminate against a job applicant or an employee because of their race, color, religion, sex, and more. The EEOC receives thousands of complaints every year from employees who believe their workplace has discriminated against them. Complaints can range from being denied a job or promotion or unjustly fired to being paid less than comparable employees. In 2020, over 55% of these claims fell into a category the agency refers to as retaliation claims. What's a retaliation claim, and what can your company do to protect itself against one? 

Prices in the US are soaring. In fact, in 2022, prices increased faster than they ever did in the last 40 years. Fortunately, the federal government has announced some individual payroll tax adjustments for the year 2023, which may help alleviate the effects of high inflation to some extent. The federal government announces these payroll tax changes — mainly concerning wage caps, income tax brackets, and non-taxable contributions — every year to adjust to economic conditions. Read to the end for our downloadable Payroll Tax Changes Checklist for 2023.

Having the right HR and payroll solution is pivotal to the success and overall flow of workforce management. If your business is currently expanding, it is highly likely that you'll be expanding your team in order to accommodate business growth. With growth, having a reliable and flexible HR and payroll platform that can handle your increasingly complex needs will become essential for managing your workforce. 

Giving your employees the opportunity to log overtime hours enables you to meet the demands of busy periods and staff shortages without having to bring on extra staff. Your employees earn more, and you, as an employer, reap the benefits of higher workforce efficiency.

You’ve finally decided that you’re going to outsource some or all of your payroll woes! But when you sit down to research the market and find potential vendors, you’re overwhelmed by a never-ending list of payroll service providers — each claiming to be the best.

When considering payroll options, it’s important to choose a reputable company. Ultimately, it’s your business that’s responsible for paying your employees and your taxes on time — not the payroll service provider.

There’s a lot at stake here. You should do your homework to ensure the payroll company you pick is compliant with regulatory standards, offers what you need, and is reliable.

Payroll is a prime target for fraud on many levels since it is often an employer’s biggest expense. For that reason, payroll fraud is quite common– affecting about 30% of businesses annually, according to the College Investor. If payroll fraud is left unaddressed, it can grow from a minor inconvenience to more significant payroll fraud consequences that can result in financial drain.

A prime example of this happened in 2021 when a small business of about 20 employees fell victim to a spoofed website scam that was mirroring a banking site the company used to issue payroll direct deposits. The business manager logged in to the fraudulent site, effectively handing over the username and password to the online business bank account. The result? A slew of payments made from the account resulting in overdrawn funds – 68 transactions in total and $249,000 lost.

In 2020, the Boston police department uncovered overtime fraud perpetrated years before by nine police officers. The officers were accused of leaving their overtime shifts two or more hours early but continuing to submit fraudulent overtime slips claiming to have worked the entirety of each shift. The falsified timesheets resulted in over $200,000 in pay for fictitious overtime within the department.

These high-profile cases are just two types of payroll fraud that can affect an employer. Understanding the nuances between each type will help you stay vigilant and stop crimes before they cost your company thousands of dollars.

When it comes to classifying employees, there are two basic types that workers fall under: exempt or nonexempt. One of the most significant differences between the two categories is eligibility for overtime pay. Employers are required to pay nonexempt workers at least one and a half times the regular rate of pay for work performed over 40 hours in a workweek. Exempt employees are not required to be paid overtime, though certain salary and job duties criteria must be met.

It is crucial to follow the Fair Labor Standards Act (FLSA) and U.S. Department of Labor (DOL) regulations governing whether an employee is exempt from overtime because misclassifying a worker has serious repercussions for employers. As with most laws affecting the employer-employee relationship, the FLSA and its classification rules are complex, and the official guidance changes over time.

When you think of a nonprofit organization, you might picture an army of volunteers graciously donating their time without pay. In reality, nonprofits run much like corporations with paid employees and regularly scheduled paydays. They face challenges similar to for-profit businesses like accurately withholding payroll taxes while also facing obstacles unique to nonprofits such as staying within a tightly limited budget, using grant money for certain payroll expenses, and determining reasonable executive compensation. While all this may sound overwhelming, proactive research and preparation can help make understanding and implementing nonprofit payroll easier. Here’s a look at what leaders of nonprofit organizations need to know.