Hiring Your First Employee
HR & Employment Law for Entrepreneurs Series
By Adrienne B. Haynes, Esq.
Managing Partner, SEED Law
Congratulations! You’ve made the decision to bring on a new employee or review and update your employee onboarding practices.
Bringing on an employee is an important step in company growth, and each relationship should be carefully developed from the beginning. This requires regular review of HR and employment processes so that there is compliance in the department design.
Once the decision is made to hire an employee, the following checklist should help your company remain in compliance with employer responsibilities:
· Update position description to make sure it clearly and specifically explains the position duties, responsibilities, and qualifications necessary to complete the work
· Set up a system to manage, track, and report employee payroll and tax withholdings
· Calendar necessary due dates for local and state filing and communication compliance
· Calendar necessary due dates for IRS filing and communication compliance
· Prepare any employee benefit documentation for review and onboarding
· Prepare employment offer and agreement
· Schedule orientation to review and collect signed employee documentation, communicate expectations, and onboard through training or orientation
· Prepare and file state and federal required documentation for employers
· Schedule regular formal and informal reviews with the employee(s) to share and receive feedback
· Work with an external financial professional to review your record keeping and documentation and make any necessary updates
· Calendar an annual review of your department’s documentation and recordkeeping and any changes in the law that may impact the way you do business
This article is an overview of legal considerations and does not cover every legal right or obligation, consideration, exception, or restriction. Every business decision should be well researched and discussed with a professional before being made.
To schedule a consultation with a SEED Law attorney, you can give us a call at (816)945–4249 or schedule your consultation here.
Additional Resources:
Employment Taxes, https://www.irs.gov/businesses/small-businesses-self-employed/employment-taxes (last visited April 14, 2020)
Hire and Manage Employees, https://www.sba.gov/business-guide/manage-your-business/hire-manage-employees#section-header-6 (last visited April 14, 2020)
IRS Video Portal, https://www.irsvideos.gov/SmallBusinessTaxpayer/Employers (last visited April 14, 2020)
Present Law and Background Relating to Worker Classification for Federal Tax Purposes., https://www.irs.gov/pub/irs-utl/x-26-07.pdf (last visited April 14, 2020)
Publication 15 (2020), (Circular E), Employer’s Tax Guide, https://www.irs.gov/publications/p15 (last visited April 14, 2020)
Small Business Taxes: The Virtual Workshop, https://www.irsvideos.gov/SmallBusinessTaxpayer/virtualworkshop (last visited April 14, 2020)
State of Missouri Employer’s Tax Guide, https://dor.mo.gov/forms/4282_2019.pdf (last visited April 14, 2020)
