OK. Let’s go to the story itself. Imagine – you are small company who serves to your clients as payroll/Humane Resources outsourcer. Old-days Great Plains Dynamics on Ctree or Pervasive SQL/Btrieve was excellent and inexpensive solution. You could have all your clients need installed on your home computer somewhere in Southern States, enjoying the sun and the niceties of California for k$2 per year with Great Plains software list price of around k$10 with unlimited number of Payroll/HR employees

Now – you have sudden hurricane – over Florida – somebody who is in charge in Microsoft – but really without clear understanding on what is in stake – this person needs to retune the cheap Great Plains version. Good – now you have Small Business Manager with restriction on employee count, then you have so-called Great Plains Standard which is available on MSDE and MS SQL Server 2000 – it caps you at 500 employees and … – as a result of this decision – you can’t conduct your business with Microsoft Business Solutions any more.

We have multiple examples of our customers who had to switch to Accpac, Adapta Soft and other cheap vendors of Payroll HR versions without limitation on the number of employees. We do certainly respect the right of Microsoft to compete with Oracle, SAP and PeopleSoft – but what is going on is probably non-planned and side effect of the solution which was made too soon. Of course the need to finish the contract with Pervasive software was a good idea – but cutting your small loyal customers – we actually doubt this

Happy implementing! if you want us to do the job – give us a call!

Andrew Karasev is Chief Technology Officer in Alba Spectrum Technologies – USA nationwide Microsoft CRM, Microsoft Great Plains customization company, based in Chicago, Boston, San Francisco, Seattle, Minneapolis, Los Angeles, Houston, Dallas, Atlanta, and Miami and having locations in multiple states and internationally (www.albaspectrum.com), he is Dexterity, SQL, VB/C#.Net, Crystal Reports and Microsoft CRM SDK developer.

Happy implementing! if you want us to do the job – give us a call! 1-866-528-0577

akarasev@albaspectrum.com

Author: Andrew Karasev
:
Canada duty tariff

The point being is that critical business data is at the heart of a company and without your sales ledger, payroll details, client database; most companies would not know where to turn for help. The recent floods caused chaos to a huge number of businesses and lead to some of these going to the wall, as they lost everything. Even if a suitable insurance product had been put into place for business continuity, the cash injection cannot replace the data. I know of companies who had servers backing up to duplicate servers sitting next to each other that were both flooded.

There are a number of solutions to help businesses prevent this eventuality; it doesn’t have to be just flooding for these solutions to work.

First, any back up is better than none and a good start to helping you if loose or damage your data. If you have a back up drive make sure it is away from your main system (some people even take them home, but be careful this can cause more harm as a disk drive has moving parts and these can get damaged in transit). If you have a tape back up system, make sure that the drives are regularly verified (to make sure that what you are backing up is actually backing up to the various tapes being used), a network support company should be able to offer this service. If you have back up servers make sure the location of the back up is away from the original, better still another floor or building. If these methods and solutions either seem to complex or involve too much expense or expertise why not back up your data off site with a data back up company.

Data Back up companies tend to offer a simple back up software solution which will back up all of your critical business data via your own system, encrypt this data and then transfer it via the internet to either Servers or Data Centres. Once the data back up has been completed the software will send an e-mail to you to say the process has been successfully completed. All of this can be easily automated so that once you have decided what key data you want backing up, the software will doing it at regular intervals, whatever you decide. If you need to retrieve your data at any point for any reason it can downloaded from the Server/Data Centre and re-installed to your system.

Most businesses are now considering a disaster recovery route which involves data back up and off site data back up is certainly one option I would whole heartedly recommend any business to have, as the cost of implementing this solution is extremely small compared the cost of losing your data and possibility of your business. But if you haven’t already addressed the issue of data back up, what exists for the company who has suffered the loss of data or suffered a disaster? Data recovery is a well established arm of corporate business and is a necessity in helping business who has suffered data loss. Not all data is recoverable, it depends on what has happened to the drive, but the majority of Data Recovery companies, have a high percentage rate of recovering data. Even some of the flood damaged drives examined, have been able to be recovered via a quite complex process, but this does take time and a great deal of expertise and with any type of cure is usually more expensive than the prevention.

Inevitably accidents will happen; dropping a laptop, reformatting a drive, but all is not lost. But prevention is always better cure and knowing that a cure exists at all is better than despair. Make a good business decision and make sure your critical data is securely backed up, preferably off site.

Neil Adgie – Director – Data Solutions UK Ltd

0845 200 6721

http://www.datasolutionsuk.co.uk

neil.adgie@datasolutionsuk.co.uk

Author: Neil Adgie
:
Canada duty rate

Over time, Sunday has become “just another day” and for the business owner just another day to receive or send out emails and or messages. Our lives have changed and we are now known as the 24/7 generation. Just as we no longer need to plan ahead so as to not run out of essential groceries, we can buy milk and bread at the 24/7 convenience store. So too in our business life we no longer limit working nine to five.

When we hear the bleep from the iPhone or Blackberry, the flashing light beckons us to read the message or email that has arrived and reply straight away. Despite the introduction of laptops and smartphones and all the available applications that can help to you save time, the average business owner can still put in over 50 hours a week – and more!

It is no surprise then that when it comes to processing the payroll, it’s boring. It’s not a productive task that secures the next piece of business or closes that vital deal. No matter how many employees you have in the business, they will not work without receiving a wage. Want to demotivate your staff big time – miss pay-day. Yes, payroll is boring, but it doesn’t have to be.

Whilst payroll can be the single most boring aspect of running a business, it is nevertheless one of; if not the major contributor of financial outgoings you have to deal with. It can be a burden for the small business owner paying staff and keeping out of trouble with the tax man.

So with all this technology at our fingertips it is a relief to know that one of the first business applications to become automated, payroll is now available 24/7 using cloud technology.

Even better, with the speed of the internet and user-friendly systems processing the payroll can now be fun. If your employees are all paid a standard monthly wage and there are no changes from the last pay period to record, what could better than one-click and the payroll’s done.

Now you can spend that valuable time finishing off that quotation for the next big deal, with one-click, the payroll’s done and you can now relax in the garden or read the paper in the local coffee shop. The employees will be paid, the tax man is sorted and you can spend time thinking how to be even more successful.

One Click payroll, ditch the drudge! Payroll is one of those essential tasks that looks easy enough, until you start doing it and get involved in PAYE, National Insurance, pensions, sick pay – and a whole host of other adjustments, codes and things you need to understand to get it right.

Someone has to do it – either in-house or externally. Most book keeping and accountancy practices charge a fee per payslip produced. http://www.esPAY.co.uk

Author: Stuart R Hall
:
iphone 4 antenna problem

Over time, Sunday has become “just another day” and for the business owner just another day to receive or send out emails and or messages. Our lives have changed and we are now known as the 24/7 generation. Just as we no longer need to plan ahead so as to not run out of essential groceries, we can buy milk and bread at the 24/7 convenience store. So too in our business life we no longer limit working nine to five.

When we hear the bleep from the iPhone or Blackberry, the flashing light beckons us to read the message or email that has arrived and reply straight away. Despite the introduction of laptops and smartphones and all the available applications that can help to you save time, the average business owner can still put in over 50 hours a week – and more!

It is no surprise then that when it comes to processing the payroll, it’s boring. It’s not a productive task that secures the next piece of business or closes that vital deal. No matter how many employees you have in the business, they will not work without receiving a wage. Want to demotivate your staff big time – miss pay-day. Yes, payroll is boring, but it doesn’t have to be.

Whilst payroll can be the single most boring aspect of running a business, it is nevertheless one of; if not the major contributor of financial outgoings you have to deal with. It can be a burden for the small business owner paying staff and keeping out of trouble with the tax man.

So with all this technology at our fingertips it is a relief to know that one of the first business applications to become automated, payroll is now available 24/7 using cloud technology.

Even better, with the speed of the internet and user-friendly systems processing the payroll can now be fun. If your employees are all paid a standard monthly wage and there are no changes from the last pay period to record, what could better than one-click and the payroll’s done.

Now you can spend that valuable time finishing off that quotation for the next big deal, with one-click, the payroll’s done and you can now relax in the garden or read the paper in the local coffee shop. The employees will be paid, the tax man is sorted and you can spend time thinking how to be even more successful.

One Click payroll, ditch the drudge! Payroll is one of those essential tasks that looks easy enough, until you start doing it and get involved in PAYE, National Insurance, pensions, sick pay – and a whole host of other adjustments, codes and things you need to understand to get it right.

Someone has to do it – either in-house or externally. Most book keeping and accountancy practices charge a fee per payslip produced. http://www.esPAY.co.uk

Author: Stuart R Hall
:
Netbook, Tablets and Mobile Computing

Over time, Sunday has become “just another day” and for the business owner just another day to receive or send out emails and or messages. Our lives have changed and we are now known as the 24/7 generation. Just as we no longer need to plan ahead so as to not run out of essential groceries, we can buy milk and bread at the 24/7 convenience store. So too in our business life we no longer limit working nine to five.

When we hear the bleep from the iPhone or Blackberry, the flashing light beckons us to read the message or email that has arrived and reply straight away. Despite the introduction of laptops and smartphones and all the available applications that can help to you save time, the average business owner can still put in over 50 hours a week – and more!

It is no surprise then that when it comes to processing the payroll, it’s boring. It’s not a productive task that secures the next piece of business or closes that vital deal. No matter how many employees you have in the business, they will not work without receiving a wage. Want to demotivate your staff big time – miss pay-day. Yes, payroll is boring, but it doesn’t have to be.

Whilst payroll can be the single most boring aspect of running a business, it is nevertheless one of; if not the major contributor of financial outgoings you have to deal with. It can be a burden for the small business owner paying staff and keeping out of trouble with the tax man.

So with all this technology at our fingertips it is a relief to know that one of the first business applications to become automated, payroll is now available 24/7 using cloud technology.

Even better, with the speed of the internet and user-friendly systems processing the payroll can now be fun. If your employees are all paid a standard monthly wage and there are no changes from the last pay period to record, what could better than one-click and the payroll’s done.

Now you can spend that valuable time finishing off that quotation for the next big deal, with one-click, the payroll’s done and you can now relax in the garden or read the paper in the local coffee shop. The employees will be paid, the tax man is sorted and you can spend time thinking how to be even more successful.

One Click payroll, ditch the drudge! Payroll is one of those essential tasks that looks easy enough, until you start doing it and get involved in PAYE, National Insurance, pensions, sick pay – and a whole host of other adjustments, codes and things you need to understand to get it right.

Someone has to do it – either in-house or externally. Most book keeping and accountancy practices charge a fee per payslip produced. http://www.esPAY.co.uk

Author: Stuart R Hall
:
Digital TV, HDTV, Satellite TV

Over time, Sunday has become “just another day” and for the business owner just another day to receive or send out emails and or messages. Our lives have changed and we are now known as the 24/7 generation. Just as we no longer need to plan ahead so as to not run out of essential groceries, we can buy milk and bread at the 24/7 convenience store. So too in our business life we no longer limit working nine to five.

When we hear the bleep from the iPhone or Blackberry, the flashing light beckons us to read the message or email that has arrived and reply straight away. Despite the introduction of laptops and smartphones and all the available applications that can help to you save time, the average business owner can still put in over 50 hours a week – and more!

It is no surprise then that when it comes to processing the payroll, it’s boring. It’s not a productive task that secures the next piece of business or closes that vital deal. No matter how many employees you have in the business, they will not work without receiving a wage. Want to demotivate your staff big time – miss pay-day. Yes, payroll is boring, but it doesn’t have to be.

Whilst payroll can be the single most boring aspect of running a business, it is nevertheless one of; if not the major contributor of financial outgoings you have to deal with. It can be a burden for the small business owner paying staff and keeping out of trouble with the tax man.

So with all this technology at our fingertips it is a relief to know that one of the first business applications to become automated, payroll is now available 24/7 using cloud technology.

Even better, with the speed of the internet and user-friendly systems processing the payroll can now be fun. If your employees are all paid a standard monthly wage and there are no changes from the last pay period to record, what could better than one-click and the payroll’s done.

Now you can spend that valuable time finishing off that quotation for the next big deal, with one-click, the payroll’s done and you can now relax in the garden or read the paper in the local coffee shop. The employees will be paid, the tax man is sorted and you can spend time thinking how to be even more successful.

One Click payroll, ditch the drudge! Payroll is one of those essential tasks that looks easy enough, until you start doing it and get involved in PAYE, National Insurance, pensions, sick pay – and a whole host of other adjustments, codes and things you need to understand to get it right.

Someone has to do it – either in-house or externally. Most book keeping and accountancy practices charge a fee per payslip produced. http://www.esPAY.co.uk

Author: Stuart R Hall
:
Android phones

What is the reimbursement method?

New York State payroll law allows for non profit organizations covered under section 501(c)(3) of the internal revenue code to elect not to pay in to the unemployment insurance fund, but rather reimburse the state on a dollar for dollar basis for benefits paid to unemployed workers. This means that the employer no longer pays the unemployment tax on payroll but should there be an unemployment claim to their account, the employer will pay the state directly dollar for dollar for the benefits the state paid to an unemployed employee.

Is the reimbursement method worthwhile?

Electing the reimbursement method over the contribution method is a difficult decision non profits have to make. Some of the things to look at are the unemployment claims history against your organization and the future behavior of the organization such as: (a) Are you hiring or firing employees? (b) The potential cost of unemployment claims versus the cost of tax contributions based on current payroll and finally (c) Your tax rate and current account balance with the state.

What is important to remember is that no matter what option you choose, there is no guaranteed way to determine that your selection will save you money in the long run. We have seen organizations with no unemployment claims for years and then switched to the reimbursement method. Then, 3 or 4 claims were filed against their account in one year. On the other hand, even in the above case, thousands of dollars can be saved over the long run. Consider the case of an organization with 50 employees, their annual cost of unemployment insurance at a rate of 4.1% under the contribution method would be $17,425 per year ($8,500 base payroll * 4.1% * 50 employees). Assuming that one or two employees will file for unemployment benefits per year, and the average employee’s payroll is $25,000 per year, the benefit charged to the account under the reimbursement method would be less than $12,500.00 per year.

Once I elect, can I switch from contribution to reimbursement or vice versa?

Yes, but only at the beginning of each calendar year. Keep in mind that switching will not help you with previous claims. You still have to pay your full balance owed for claims filed under the reimbursement method.

If I switch to reimbursement method, what happens to my account balance with the state?

The account balance that you had with the state under the contribution method is kept until such date that you choose to re-elect the contribution method. If you have a positive balance, you cannot use it towards your reimbursement plan; neither can you request the state to reimburse you the amount of the positive balance.

What if my account balance is negative when I switch to the reimbursement method? The balance is kept on account until such time that you choose to re-elect the contribution method. One thing to consider is that if you have a negative balance, your rate of unemployment claims are probably high and chances are that the reimbursement method is not for you.

What happens if I switch either way in the middle of a claim?

Whether the state will view your claim as a reimbursement or contribution claim, depends not on the time the claim is made or paid, but on the base period used to calculate the employee’s unemployment benefits. The base period is the payroll period upon which the worker’s unemployment benefit amount is calculated, generally, the highest quarter wages paid to the worker in the first four of the last five quarters.

For example, if the base period used to calculate an employee’s unemployment benefits is July through June, and you switched to the reimbursement method in January, 50% of the claim will be paid under the contribution method and 50% under the reimbursement method.

Keep in mind that switching will not help you with previous claims. You still have to pay your full balance owed while you were covered the reimbursement method.

How does one apply for the reimbursement method?

A request to elect the reimbursement option can be made when registering with the Department of Labor as an employer using form NYS-100N (New York State Employer Registration for Nonprofit Organizations) filed prior to your first payroll. In addition, the request can be submitted in writing to the Unemployment Insurance Division before the beginning of the calendar year in which it is to apply, or within 30 days after the calendar quarter in which the non profit organization or governmental entity becomes liable under the Unemployment Insurance Law.

The request could be mailed or faxed to the address and fax number below. Remember to include your federal tax ID, unemployment registration number and a copy of the organizations notice of 501(c)(3) status from the IRS and include your federal tax ID and unemployment insurance registration number;

New York State Department of Labor, Unemployment Insurance Division, State Office Building Campus, Albany, New York 12240-0322. Fax: 518-485-6172.

Copyright 2010 – PayMatic Payroll Service

PayMatic Payroll Service is a full service payroll bureau based in Rockland County, NY and has been helping nonprofit organizations work through the maze of payroll and unemployment laws for over 10 years. Because unemployment insurance law in New York is so complex and many organization administrators are busy enough as is, we found that many non profits do not take advantage of these laws and are either confused or are doing thing wrong.

To answer this need, PayMatic Payroll thoroughly researched New York’s Unemployment Insurance Law, analyzed scores of different organizations of various sizes and prepared this report to help organizations make informed decisions.

Please visit us at http://www.paymaticinc.com for more information.

Author: Allan Falk
:
Digital Camera Information

What is the reimbursement method?

New York State payroll law allows for non profit organizations covered under section 501(c)(3) of the internal revenue code to elect not to pay in to the unemployment insurance fund, but rather reimburse the state on a dollar for dollar basis for benefits paid to unemployed workers. This means that the employer no longer pays the unemployment tax on payroll but should there be an unemployment claim to their account, the employer will pay the state directly dollar for dollar for the benefits the state paid to an unemployed employee.

Is the reimbursement method worthwhile?

Electing the reimbursement method over the contribution method is a difficult decision non profits have to make. Some of the things to look at are the unemployment claims history against your organization and the future behavior of the organization such as: (a) Are you hiring or firing employees? (b) The potential cost of unemployment claims versus the cost of tax contributions based on current payroll and finally (c) Your tax rate and current account balance with the state.

What is important to remember is that no matter what option you choose, there is no guaranteed way to determine that your selection will save you money in the long run. We have seen organizations with no unemployment claims for years and then switched to the reimbursement method. Then, 3 or 4 claims were filed against their account in one year. On the other hand, even in the above case, thousands of dollars can be saved over the long run. Consider the case of an organization with 50 employees, their annual cost of unemployment insurance at a rate of 4.1% under the contribution method would be $17,425 per year ($8,500 base payroll * 4.1% * 50 employees). Assuming that one or two employees will file for unemployment benefits per year, and the average employee’s payroll is $25,000 per year, the benefit charged to the account under the reimbursement method would be less than $12,500.00 per year.

Once I elect, can I switch from contribution to reimbursement or vice versa?

Yes, but only at the beginning of each calendar year. Keep in mind that switching will not help you with previous claims. You still have to pay your full balance owed for claims filed under the reimbursement method.

If I switch to reimbursement method, what happens to my account balance with the state?

The account balance that you had with the state under the contribution method is kept until such date that you choose to re-elect the contribution method. If you have a positive balance, you cannot use it towards your reimbursement plan; neither can you request the state to reimburse you the amount of the positive balance.

What if my account balance is negative when I switch to the reimbursement method? The balance is kept on account until such time that you choose to re-elect the contribution method. One thing to consider is that if you have a negative balance, your rate of unemployment claims are probably high and chances are that the reimbursement method is not for you.

What happens if I switch either way in the middle of a claim?

Whether the state will view your claim as a reimbursement or contribution claim, depends not on the time the claim is made or paid, but on the base period used to calculate the employee’s unemployment benefits. The base period is the payroll period upon which the worker’s unemployment benefit amount is calculated, generally, the highest quarter wages paid to the worker in the first four of the last five quarters.

For example, if the base period used to calculate an employee’s unemployment benefits is July through June, and you switched to the reimbursement method in January, 50% of the claim will be paid under the contribution method and 50% under the reimbursement method.

Keep in mind that switching will not help you with previous claims. You still have to pay your full balance owed while you were covered the reimbursement method.

How does one apply for the reimbursement method?

A request to elect the reimbursement option can be made when registering with the Department of Labor as an employer using form NYS-100N (New York State Employer Registration for Nonprofit Organizations) filed prior to your first payroll. In addition, the request can be submitted in writing to the Unemployment Insurance Division before the beginning of the calendar year in which it is to apply, or within 30 days after the calendar quarter in which the non profit organization or governmental entity becomes liable under the Unemployment Insurance Law.

The request could be mailed or faxed to the address and fax number below. Remember to include your federal tax ID, unemployment registration number and a copy of the organizations notice of 501(c)(3) status from the IRS and include your federal tax ID and unemployment insurance registration number;

New York State Department of Labor, Unemployment Insurance Division, State Office Building Campus, Albany, New York 12240-0322. Fax: 518-485-6172.

Copyright 2010 – PayMatic Payroll Service

PayMatic Payroll Service is a full service payroll bureau based in Rockland County, NY and has been helping nonprofit organizations work through the maze of payroll and unemployment laws for over 10 years. Because unemployment insurance law in New York is so complex and many organization administrators are busy enough as is, we found that many non profits do not take advantage of these laws and are either confused or are doing thing wrong.

To answer this need, PayMatic Payroll thoroughly researched New York’s Unemployment Insurance Law, analyzed scores of different organizations of various sizes and prepared this report to help organizations make informed decisions.

Please visit us at http://www.paymaticinc.com for more information.

Author: Allan Falk
:
Digital Camera News

What is the reimbursement method?

New York State payroll law allows for non profit organizations covered under section 501(c)(3) of the internal revenue code to elect not to pay in to the unemployment insurance fund, but rather reimburse the state on a dollar for dollar basis for benefits paid to unemployed workers. This means that the employer no longer pays the unemployment tax on payroll but should there be an unemployment claim to their account, the employer will pay the state directly dollar for dollar for the benefits the state paid to an unemployed employee.

Is the reimbursement method worthwhile?

Electing the reimbursement method over the contribution method is a difficult decision non profits have to make. Some of the things to look at are the unemployment claims history against your organization and the future behavior of the organization such as: (a) Are you hiring or firing employees? (b) The potential cost of unemployment claims versus the cost of tax contributions based on current payroll and finally (c) Your tax rate and current account balance with the state.

What is important to remember is that no matter what option you choose, there is no guaranteed way to determine that your selection will save you money in the long run. We have seen organizations with no unemployment claims for years and then switched to the reimbursement method. Then, 3 or 4 claims were filed against their account in one year. On the other hand, even in the above case, thousands of dollars can be saved over the long run. Consider the case of an organization with 50 employees, their annual cost of unemployment insurance at a rate of 4.1% under the contribution method would be $17,425 per year ($8,500 base payroll * 4.1% * 50 employees). Assuming that one or two employees will file for unemployment benefits per year, and the average employee’s payroll is $25,000 per year, the benefit charged to the account under the reimbursement method would be less than $12,500.00 per year.

Once I elect, can I switch from contribution to reimbursement or vice versa?

Yes, but only at the beginning of each calendar year. Keep in mind that switching will not help you with previous claims. You still have to pay your full balance owed for claims filed under the reimbursement method.

If I switch to reimbursement method, what happens to my account balance with the state?

The account balance that you had with the state under the contribution method is kept until such date that you choose to re-elect the contribution method. If you have a positive balance, you cannot use it towards your reimbursement plan; neither can you request the state to reimburse you the amount of the positive balance.

What if my account balance is negative when I switch to the reimbursement method? The balance is kept on account until such time that you choose to re-elect the contribution method. One thing to consider is that if you have a negative balance, your rate of unemployment claims are probably high and chances are that the reimbursement method is not for you.

What happens if I switch either way in the middle of a claim?

Whether the state will view your claim as a reimbursement or contribution claim, depends not on the time the claim is made or paid, but on the base period used to calculate the employee’s unemployment benefits. The base period is the payroll period upon which the worker’s unemployment benefit amount is calculated, generally, the highest quarter wages paid to the worker in the first four of the last five quarters.

For example, if the base period used to calculate an employee’s unemployment benefits is July through June, and you switched to the reimbursement method in January, 50% of the claim will be paid under the contribution method and 50% under the reimbursement method.

Keep in mind that switching will not help you with previous claims. You still have to pay your full balance owed while you were covered the reimbursement method.

How does one apply for the reimbursement method?

A request to elect the reimbursement option can be made when registering with the Department of Labor as an employer using form NYS-100N (New York State Employer Registration for Nonprofit Organizations) filed prior to your first payroll. In addition, the request can be submitted in writing to the Unemployment Insurance Division before the beginning of the calendar year in which it is to apply, or within 30 days after the calendar quarter in which the non profit organization or governmental entity becomes liable under the Unemployment Insurance Law.

The request could be mailed or faxed to the address and fax number below. Remember to include your federal tax ID, unemployment registration number and a copy of the organizations notice of 501(c)(3) status from the IRS and include your federal tax ID and unemployment insurance registration number;

New York State Department of Labor, Unemployment Insurance Division, State Office Building Campus, Albany, New York 12240-0322. Fax: 518-485-6172.

Copyright 2010 – PayMatic Payroll Service

PayMatic Payroll Service is a full service payroll bureau based in Rockland County, NY and has been helping nonprofit organizations work through the maze of payroll and unemployment laws for over 10 years. Because unemployment insurance law in New York is so complex and many organization administrators are busy enough as is, we found that many non profits do not take advantage of these laws and are either confused or are doing thing wrong.

To answer this need, PayMatic Payroll thoroughly researched New York’s Unemployment Insurance Law, analyzed scores of different organizations of various sizes and prepared this report to help organizations make informed decisions.

Please visit us at http://www.paymaticinc.com for more information.

Author: Allan Falk
:
Hybrid and Electric Cars

What is the reimbursement method?

New York State payroll law allows for non profit organizations covered under section 501(c)(3) of the internal revenue code to elect not to pay in to the unemployment insurance fund, but rather reimburse the state on a dollar for dollar basis for benefits paid to unemployed workers. This means that the employer no longer pays the unemployment tax on payroll but should there be an unemployment claim to their account, the employer will pay the state directly dollar for dollar for the benefits the state paid to an unemployed employee.

Is the reimbursement method worthwhile?

Electing the reimbursement method over the contribution method is a difficult decision non profits have to make. Some of the things to look at are the unemployment claims history against your organization and the future behavior of the organization such as: (a) Are you hiring or firing employees? (b) The potential cost of unemployment claims versus the cost of tax contributions based on current payroll and finally (c) Your tax rate and current account balance with the state.

What is important to remember is that no matter what option you choose, there is no guaranteed way to determine that your selection will save you money in the long run. We have seen organizations with no unemployment claims for years and then switched to the reimbursement method. Then, 3 or 4 claims were filed against their account in one year. On the other hand, even in the above case, thousands of dollars can be saved over the long run. Consider the case of an organization with 50 employees, their annual cost of unemployment insurance at a rate of 4.1% under the contribution method would be $17,425 per year ($8,500 base payroll * 4.1% * 50 employees). Assuming that one or two employees will file for unemployment benefits per year, and the average employee’s payroll is $25,000 per year, the benefit charged to the account under the reimbursement method would be less than $12,500.00 per year.

Once I elect, can I switch from contribution to reimbursement or vice versa?

Yes, but only at the beginning of each calendar year. Keep in mind that switching will not help you with previous claims. You still have to pay your full balance owed for claims filed under the reimbursement method.

If I switch to reimbursement method, what happens to my account balance with the state?

The account balance that you had with the state under the contribution method is kept until such date that you choose to re-elect the contribution method. If you have a positive balance, you cannot use it towards your reimbursement plan; neither can you request the state to reimburse you the amount of the positive balance.

What if my account balance is negative when I switch to the reimbursement method? The balance is kept on account until such time that you choose to re-elect the contribution method. One thing to consider is that if you have a negative balance, your rate of unemployment claims are probably high and chances are that the reimbursement method is not for you.

What happens if I switch either way in the middle of a claim?

Whether the state will view your claim as a reimbursement or contribution claim, depends not on the time the claim is made or paid, but on the base period used to calculate the employee’s unemployment benefits. The base period is the payroll period upon which the worker’s unemployment benefit amount is calculated, generally, the highest quarter wages paid to the worker in the first four of the last five quarters.

For example, if the base period used to calculate an employee’s unemployment benefits is July through June, and you switched to the reimbursement method in January, 50% of the claim will be paid under the contribution method and 50% under the reimbursement method.

Keep in mind that switching will not help you with previous claims. You still have to pay your full balance owed while you were covered the reimbursement method.

How does one apply for the reimbursement method?

A request to elect the reimbursement option can be made when registering with the Department of Labor as an employer using form NYS-100N (New York State Employer Registration for Nonprofit Organizations) filed prior to your first payroll. In addition, the request can be submitted in writing to the Unemployment Insurance Division before the beginning of the calendar year in which it is to apply, or within 30 days after the calendar quarter in which the non profit organization or governmental entity becomes liable under the Unemployment Insurance Law.

The request could be mailed or faxed to the address and fax number below. Remember to include your federal tax ID, unemployment registration number and a copy of the organizations notice of 501(c)(3) status from the IRS and include your federal tax ID and unemployment insurance registration number;

New York State Department of Labor, Unemployment Insurance Division, State Office Building Campus, Albany, New York 12240-0322. Fax: 518-485-6172.

Copyright 2010 – PayMatic Payroll Service

PayMatic Payroll Service is a full service payroll bureau based in Rockland County, NY and has been helping nonprofit organizations work through the maze of payroll and unemployment laws for over 10 years. Because unemployment insurance law in New York is so complex and many organization administrators are busy enough as is, we found that many non profits do not take advantage of these laws and are either confused or are doing thing wrong.

To answer this need, PayMatic Payroll thoroughly researched New York’s Unemployment Insurance Law, analyzed scores of different organizations of various sizes and prepared this report to help organizations make informed decisions.

Please visit us at http://www.paymaticinc.com for more information.

Author: Allan Falk
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