Information Every Business Needs to Know™ HR & Benefits Newsletter July/August 2007 Issue   Brought to you by: AxisPointe, Inc. Employee Benefit Services 2001 Rt. 46 Suite 504A / Parsippany, NJ 07054 Phone: 973-299-0022 / Fax: 973-299-0097   In This Issue 1. Child Labor Rules 2. Reporting Capital     Gains 3. Resources for Small     Businesses 4. Preparing for Hurricane     Season 5. Part II: Reporting of     Misclassified     Employees Supreme Court Upholds FLSA Home Healthcare Worker Overtime Exemption For additional information on this issue check out the following websites: Jacksonlewis.com Supreme Court Ruling HR & Benefits in the News WORKPLACE Immigration Reform DOT Issues Guidance on Drug Testing Requirements Workforce Management State Employment Law News What’s new in Employment Law    EMPLOYEE BENEFITS Medicare News Final Section 409A Regs Require Employer Action by Year-End. [Littler Mendelson] HUMAN RESOURCES DOL Issues Final Rule on Elimination of Labor Certification Substitutions . [Buchanan Ingersoll & Rooney] EEOC Issues New Guidance on Work/family Balance and Promotes Employer Best Practices News from www.ELInfonet.com Be sure to check out the Human Resource  section in BenefitsEssentials and our NewsBlog for late-breaking Tax, benefits and HR News.   Spotlight on: Child Labor Rules for the 21st Century U.S. Labor Department to Update Child Labor Rules for the 21st century The U.S. Department of Labor (DOL) has published a proposal to update the Fair Labor Standards Act (FLSA) regulations governing the employment of teenage workers, a measure that will improve protections for the nation's young workforce. "The proposal contains the most ambitious and far-reaching revisions to the child labor regulations in the last 30 years," said Wage and Hour Division Administrator Paul DeCamp. "It will safeguard the health and education of millions of working teens while at the same time allowing them to enjoy the benefits of a phased introduction to the workplace." Key proposals include new bans on particularly hazardous activities such as working at poultry slaughtering plants, riding on forklifts as passengers, fighting forest fires, and loading and operating non-paper products balers and compacters. The proposal would also prohibit 14- and 15-year-olds from employment in youth peddling activities, also referred to as door-to-door sales. Under the FLSA, 14- and 15-year-olds may work only in occupations explicitly authorized by the Secretary of Labor by regulation and only under conditions that do not interfere with their schooling or health and well-being. Sixteen and 17-year-olds, on the other hand, may work in any occupations except those that the secretary has found to be "particularly hazardous" or "detrimental to their health or well-being." For additional information, see: The Federal eRulemaking Portal at www.regulations.gov [RIN docket numbers (1215-AB57) and (1215-AB44)]. The DOL Wage and Hour Division at www.wagehour.dol.gov . For compliance information on the current child labor rules, see the YouthRules! Web site at www.youthrules.dol.gov . Source: ESA News Release [Number 07-0550-NAT] For more information, visit the FLSA sections in BenefitsEssentials.com    Back to top Reporting Capital Gains The IRS has prepared Fact Sheet-2007-19, the twelfth in a series, which provides information regarding many aspects of capital gains reporting: Understanding Basis Schedule D Home Property outside U.S. Installment Sales Investment Transactions Gains from the Sale of Business Property Capital Gains Distributions Incorrect reporting of capital gains accounts for part of an estimated $345 billion per year in unpaid taxes, according to Internal Revenue Service estimates. For Additional Information, see: Fact Sheet-2007-19 The Tax Gap   Back to top Resources for Small Businesses IRS Highlights Responsibilities and Resources for Small Businesses Publication 4591, Small Business Federal Tax Responsibilities, provides essential information for small businesses and the self-employed in one convenient location. The downloadable tri-fold brochure includes: Information about Federal Tax Responsibilities Most Often Used Forms or Publications for Small Businesses Web Resources-Starting, Operating and Closing a Business Links to Federal and State Government Agencies IRS Media Resources and Services Back to top Disaster Preparedness for Hurricane Season The National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) has updated its Hurricane Preparedness Web site for this year’s hurricane season. A major goal of the site is to inform businesses about hurricane hazards, and to educate them about actions to save lives at work, home, on the road, or on the water. History teaches us that a lack of awareness and preparation are common threads among all major disasters. By knowing your vulnerability and what actions you should take, you can reduce the effects of a disaster.   Additional Resources: SSA/IRS Reporter Tax Relief in Disaster Situations Reconstructing Your Records Publication 552, Recordkeeping for Individuals Publication 553, Starting a Business and Keeping Records FEMA: 2007 Federal Disaster Declarations Ready.gov - From the U.S. Department of Homeland Security http://www.nhc.noaa.gov/HAW2/english/intro.shtml Back to top How to Correct Reporting of Misclassified Employees Part II - How to Correctly Classify Employees In our last issue, we discussed misclassification of employees. This month, we will discuss how to correctly classify workers. One of the most important factors for meeting employment tax obligations is to accurately classify workers as either employees or independent contractors. Who Are Your Employees? A general rule is that anyone who performs services for you is your employee if you can control what will be done and how it will be done. This is so even when you give the employee freedom of action. What matters is that you have the right to control the details of how the services are performed. Before you can know how to treat payments that you make for services, you must first know the business relationship that exists between you and the person performing the services. The person performing the service may be: An independent contractor A common-law employee A statutory employee A statutory nonemployee For additional information on the different types of employees and information on independent contractors, refer to Independent Contractors vs.Employee . Caution:  Employee misclassification can affect retirement plan coverage, vesting and funding.  Relief may also be available for retirement plans.  Information about the IRS correction programs that enable sponsors of retirement plans to preserve the tax benefits of their plans is available on the Employee Plans Compliance Resolution System (EPCRS) pages of IRS.gov. For Additional Information: IRS information for Businesses with Employees Headliner Volume 152 IRS Offers Tips on How to Correct Reporting of Misclassified Employees Publication 1976 Section 530 Employment Tax Relief Requirements Publication 15-A Employer's Supplemental Tax Guide Free File State Information Additional information about worker classification is available on www.BenefitsEssentials.com Back to top