accountinglaborlawreferences.com

posted by Administrator on Feb 17

Suppose you have a small business that has just taken off sometime back. It is also doing quite well and you have brilliant plans for expansions that you are confident will work. However you have human and financial resources that are tied down due to the daily operations of the business and that makes it impossible to concentrate on the core business and plan future strategies for growth and expansions. Accounting can be one such division which although very crucial in nature can end up blocking a major chunk or resources. This is the reason why more and more companies are going in for accounting outsourcing that helps to save both time and money for the company.

Accounting outsourcing forms a part of corporate dismantling and reorganizing the finance structure for more enhanced efficiency which in turn increases the profitability of the organization. It involves the reorganization of the labor force within and outside the company. Accounting outsourcing involves a two-way information interchange, trust and co-ordination between the client and the vendor. The organizational function of accounting is outsourced to a third party who in turn prepares the accounts records and offers financial consultancy and accurate, up-to-date records on a daily basis to the client. In the global marketplace accounting outsourcing is easily accessible to companies both national and international.

Accounting outsourcing also fares well for the economy of the country where it is being outsourced as it provides employment to many qualified professionals. Accounting outsourcing also helps an organization to formulate competitive strategies that gives leverage to their financial positions in the world market place. By freeing up essential resources of a company and yet ensuring that it receives accurate financial data for reference and use, an accounting outsourcing firm manages to raise its demand in the competitive business world. The huge benefits offered to the parent company in terms lower labor costs and less stringent worker right laws makes the option of accounting outsourcing very tempting to all global companies. The quality of work handed in by the accounting outsourcing firm is also at par with the standards set by the management and consumers in case a reputable vendor has been hired.

Also when hiring a firm for handling the accounting outsourcing services in a different country a business needs to undergo careful research about the credibility and credentials of the company. Past reference from similar firms in the industry and a proof of previous track record can reassure the client about the vendor. Accounting outsourcing also enables a firm to purchase intellectual capital of the country that is handling the outsourcing work. Most organizations consider outsourcing as a powerful business tactic and economic tool for developing products and services. Rather than making further investments in resources for the accounting division a business can redirect the resources to other essential areas for the business. Most economists across the world do not consider accounting outsourcing as threat to the parent company’s nation and economic status; rather it’s just a job relocation. When an assured accountability is maintained from the vendor and the client’s side, accounting outsourcing can work out to be a winning situation for all parties involved.

posted by Administrator on Feb 11

I. EMPLOYMENT LAW LEGISLATION

1. What legislation governs employment law in China?

Employment law in China is governed by a relatively comprehensive set of laws, more recently supplemented in late 2007 to strengthen workers’ rights.

Major laws include:

- Labour Law of the People’s Republic of China (1994) (“Labour Law”)

- Labour Contract Law of the People’s Republic of China (2007) (“Labour Contract Law”)

- Labour Arbitration and Dispute Resolution Law of the People’s Republic of China (2007) (“Labour Arbitration Law”) (effective May 1, 2008)

- Trade Union Law of the People’s Republic of China (1994)

These laws and then supplemented by a myriad of national and local laws, regulations, measures and circulars.

2. Are there different laws which govern foreign-invested employers and domestic Chinese employers?

The Regulations on Labour Management in Foreign Investment Enterprises (1994) governs employment by Sino-foreign equity and cooperative joint ventures, along with Sino-foreign joint stock companies. The Regulations very much mirror that of the Labour Law. Additionally, as any inconsistency with the Labour Law will be resolved according to the higher-level law, little reference is made to these Regulations.

II. LABOUR AGREEMENTS

1. What are the different types of employment contacts?

Employment in China, like most other jurisdictions, is divided into full-time and part-time. According to the Labour Contract Law, part-time employment is defined as a labour relationship in which the employee works, on average, no more than 4 hours per day and no more than the aggregate of 24 hours per week.

Employment relationships which exceed the hours in this definition are termed full-time employment, which is further divided into 3 types:

1) fixed term: expiry date agreed upon at outset;

2) open-ended / non-fixed term: no expiry date stipulated; or

3) project-based / completion of defined task: contract to expire on completion of pre-defined project or task.

2. What are the requirements of a labour contract?

According to the Labour Law and the Labour Contract Law, other than part-time employment, all labour contracts must be in writing and contain the following terms:

- name, address and legal representative of the employer;

- name, address and identification number of the employee;

- term of labour contract;

- job description and work site;

- working hours, rest and vacation;

- labour remuneration;

- social insurance;

- labour conditions, working conditions and occupational hazard prevention; and

- other matters stipulated by laws and regulations.

If the labour contract contains a probationary period only (sometimes called “a probationary period contract”), then the probation term set out therein is deemed to be the term of the labour contract and the probationary period is invalidated.

3. What are the penalties associated with not signing a written employment agreement?

A labour relationship commences on the date on which the employee commences work for the employer, and by law, it is required that a written labour contract be concluded within one month of this time.

If a labour contract is not concluded within the one month of commencement, the employer will be liable to the employee for double labour remuneration, of up to 1 year. After 1 year with no written labour contract, fixed-term labour contracts are deemed to be open-ended.

4. What is the maximum probationary period allowable by law?

Maximum probation periods allowed by law are as follows:

- less than 3 months: no probation period;

- 3 months to 1 year: 1 month;

- 1 year to 3 years: 2 months; and

- 3 years or more or open-ended: 6 months.

5. If I am in the process of establishing a company in China, however, need to hire employees in the interim, what can I do?

Technically, as your China company cannot yet contract, it cannot hire employees until it meets all the formal registration requirements. However, as business requirements dictate that you will need staff immediately or soon after you get started in China, many foreign companies contract with a labour services provider such as CIIC or FESCO to hire the employees and then second them to their start-up operations. They then, either transfer their employment contracts when established or continue to maintain the labour services relationship.

III. WAGES, BENEFITS AND SOCIAL SECURITY

1. What are the components of wages or salaries?

According to the Provisional Regulations for the Payment of Wages (1994), wages or salary are composed of:

- wages based on time;

- wages based on piece-work;

- bonuses;

- subsidies;

- allowances;

- overtime payments; and

- wages paid under special circumstances.

According to the Minimum Wages Provisions (2004) and based on the minimum wage standards promulgated locally, employers may not pay their employees less than the current minimum wage standard.

2. What are the standard working hours and when am I required to pay overtime?

The standard working hours in China are 8 hours per day, 5 days per week, for a maximum working period of 40 hours, with 2 rest days (typically Saturday and Sunday). Any additional requirements by the employer must be compensated according to the standard set out below:

- Working days: 150% standard wages;

- Rest days: 200% standard wages; and

- Holidays: 300% standard wages.

3. What are the national public holidays?

National public holidays (as of 2008) are set out below:

- New Year’s Day (January 1): 1 day;

- Spring Festival (lunar new year, typically January or February): 3 days;

- Women’s Day (March 8): half day for women;

- Qingming Festival (April 5): 1 day;

- May Day (May 1): 1 day;

- Dragon Boat Festival (5th day of 5th lunar month): 1 day;

- Mid-autumn Festival (15th day of the 8th lunar month): 1 day; and

- National Day (October 1 – 3): 3 days.

4. What are the social security payments required by law?

Employers are obligated to provide the following benefits and social security payments to employees:

- Basic old age insurance;

- Unemployment insurance;

- Medical insurance;

- Maternity insurance; and

- Work-related injury insurance;

The employee and employer jointly contribute to the first 3 types of insurances, while the employer alone contributes to the latter 2, with rates varying based on location of employment.

IV. NON-COMPETE AND CONFIDENTIALITY

1. Can all employees be subjected to non-compete obligations?

Not all employees can nor should be bound by non-competition obligations. The Labour Contract Law limits employees who may be bound by non-compete obligations to:

- senior management;

- senior technical personnel; and

- those employees who have access to business secrets of the employer.

It is required that the employee and employer conclude a written agreement, either separately or in the labour contract, with regards to term, scope, territory, compensation during the non-compete period and liquidated damages for employee breach.

The maximum term for the non-compete is 2 years.

2. What are the typical compensation requirements for non-competes?

Although it is required that compensation be paid on a monthly basis to the employee during the non-compete period, the law does not state a standard amount. In practice, it is common to pay at least 50% of the employee’s wages.

3. Are liquidated damages permissible for breach of non-compete obligations?

Yes.

V. TERMINATION AND ‘LAYOFFS’

1. Under what circumstances can an employee be terminated without notice?

An employer may terminate an employee without requirement for notice in the following situations:

- during the probation period, if the employee is determined to be unfit for the position;

- employee materially breaches employer’s rules and regulations;

- employee engages in serious dereliction of duty, graft or corruption causing substantial damages to the employer’s interests;

- employee has established an employment relationship with another employer and that relationship affects the completion of his tasks and he refuses to appropriately remedy the situation after employer notification;

- employee used fraud in concluding the labour contract; or

- employee is subject to criminal investigation.

2. Under what circumstances must an employee be given notice of termination?

An employer must give 30 days’ prior written notice or payment in lieu thereof, if it terminates the labour contract under the following situations:

- the employee is unable to perform his original duties or re-assigned duties, after returning from medical leave or non-work-related injury;

- the employee is incompetent and remains incompetent after training or adjustment of position; or

- the occurrence of a major change of objective circumstances which were relied upon when signing the labour contract, and the employee and employer are unable to agreed on modified terms of the labour contract.

3. Under what circumstances may an employee terminate the labour contract without notice?

An employee may unilaterally terminate the employment contract without requirement for notice in the following instances:

- employer fails to provide labour protections and working conditions in accordance with the labour contract;

- employer fails to pay remuneration in full and on time;

- employer fails to pay social security payments in accordance with the law;

- employer’s rules and regulations violate laws and regulations, harming the employee’s rights and interests;

- employer uses fraud, coercion or the employee’s unfavorable position to conclude the contract; or

- other situations set out in laws and regulations.

4. In what instances is compensation required and how much?

Severance compensation is due in a number of situations, which are summarized below:

- termination by employee under situations which result in his right to terminate the contract immediately (Item 3, discussed previously);

- termination by employer under situations which require 30 days’ prior written notice (Item 2, discussed previously);

- the employee is terminated due to restructuring or difficulties in business operations;

- the labour contract is terminated after being proposed by employer and there is mutual agreement on termination;

- a fixed-term labour contract expires (except where employee refuses to renew the contract on terms equal to or better than previously concluded);

- termination of labour contract due to revocation of employer’s business license; and

- termination of labour contract due to bankruptcy.

Employers must pay severance in the amount of one month’s salary for each year of service, with half a month’s salary for each partial year.

If the employee earns more than 3 times the average monthly wage of the locality, then the compensation will be capped at 3 times the average monthly wage, up to a maximum of 12 months.

5. Can employees be ‘laid off’?

Under the following circumstances, labour contracts may be terminated due to business difficulties:

- restructuring due to the Enterprise Bankruptcy Law;

- serious difficulties in production or operations;

- a staff reduction is necessary due to changes in production, technical innovation or adjustment of management operation style; or

- other major changes in economic circumstances relied upon at the time of conclusion of the labour contract, rendering them non-performable.

For large-scale layoffs (20 or more employees, or in smaller organizations where employee layoffs are less than 20 employees but this accounts for 10% or more of the total employees), the employer must first explain the circumstances to the trade union or all employees (where there is no trade union) 30 days in advance, and may reduce the workforce only after consideration of the opinions of the trade union or employees and reporting the restructuring plan to the labour administration.

VI. LABOUR ARBITRATION AND DISPUTE RESOLUTION

1. How are labour disputes resolved in China?

Like most jurisdictions, mediation is the preferred method of dispute resolution, however, this is a voluntary process. The Labour Arbitration Law provides that mediated settlement agreements for salaries, medical fees for job-related injuries, severance and penalties may be entered into court for enforcement.

Labour dispute claims, according to the Labour Law and the Labour Arbitration Law, must first be submitted to the local labour arbitration committee located in the jurisdiction of the employer. The labour arbitration committee must then render its award within 45 days after the dispute has been accepted.

Arbitration decisions are final for employers in the following instances: salaries, medical fees for job-related injuries, severance, and penalties, where the disputed amount does not exceed an amount equal to 12 months’ local minimum wage.

Employees and employers (with the exception of those instances set out previously) may within 15 days of the arbitration award submit the dispute to the people’s court for hearing.

2. What is the statute of limitations for bringing a labour dispute claim?

The limitation period is 1 year after the employee knew or should have known that their rights have been infringed, however, if the dispute occurs under an existing labour contract, the limitation period does not start until the labour contract has expired or has been terminated.

posted by Administrator on Feb 11

The Delaware State Agency that oversees the collection and reporting of State income taxes deducted from payroll checks is:

Division of Revenue Withholding Division

820 N. French St.

Wilmington, DE 19801

302-577-8200
http://www.state.de.us/revenue

Delaware allows you to use the Federal W-4 form to calculate state income tax withholding.

Not all states allow salary reductions made under Section 125 cafeteria plans or 401(k) to be treated in the same manner as the IRS code allows. In Delaware cafeteria plans are: not taxable for income tax calculation; taxable for unemployment insurance purposes. 401(k) plan deferrals are: not taxable for income taxes; taxable for unemployment purposes.

In Delaware supplemental wages are required to be aggregated for the withholding calculation..

You must file your Delaware State W-2s by magnetic media if you are required to file your federal W-2s by magnetic media.

The Delaware State Unemployment Insurance Agency is:

The Department of Labor

Division of Unemployment Insurance

4425 N. Market St.

Wilmington, DE 19802

302-761-8446

[http://www.delawareworks.com/Unemployment/welcome.shtml]

The State of Delaware taxable wage base for unemployment purposes is wages up to $8,500.00.

Delaware has optional reporting of quarterly wages on magnetic media.

Unemployment records must be retained in Delaware for a minimum period of four years. This information generally includes: name; social security number; dates of hire, rehire and termination; wages by period; payroll pay periods and pay dates; date and circumstances of termination.

The Delaware State Agency charged with enforcing the state wage and hour laws is:

The Department Labor

Division of Industrial Affairs

Labor Law Enforcement Section

4425 N. Market St.

Wilmington, DE 19802

302-761-8200

[http://www.delawareworks.com]

The minimum wage in Delaware is $6.15 per hour.

There is also no general provision in Delaware State Law covering paying overtime in a non-FLSA covered employer.

Delaware State new hire reporting requirements are that every employer must report every new hire and rehires. The employer must report the federally required elements of:

Employee’s name Employee’s address Employee’s social security number Employer’s name Employers address Employer’s Federal Employer Identification Number (EIN)

This information must be reported within 20 days of the hiring or rehiring.
The information can be sent as a W4 or equivalent by mail, fax or electronically.
There is a $25.00 penalty for a late report in Delaware.

The Delaware new hire reporting agency can be reached at 302-577-7171 or on the web site at [http://www.state.de.us/dhss/dcse/index.html] .

Delaware does not allow compulsory direct deposit.

Delaware requires the following information on an employee’s pay stub:

Wages due pay period dates hours worked for hourly workers itemized deductions

Delaware requires that employee be paid no less often than monthly.

Delaware requires that employees must be paid within 7 days after the end of the pay period.

Delaware payroll law requires that involuntarily or voluntarily terminated employees must be paid their final pay by the next regular payday or by mail upon request.

Deceased employee’s wages up to $300.00 must be paid to the surviving children under 21 custodian, surviving spouse, children 21 and over or the deceased’s parents (in that order) when a “Proper Demand” has been made.

Escheat laws in Delaware require that unclaimed wages be paid over to the state after five years.

There is no provision in Delaware law concerning record retention of abandoned wage records.

Delaware payroll laws allow for a tip credit against Delaware State minimum wage of $3.92 per hour.

In Delaware the payroll laws covering mandatory rest or meal breaks are: a 30-minute meal period during a 7 and one half-hour shift. Taking place after the first two hours and before the last two hours o the shift.

The Delaware law requires that wage and hour records be retained for a period of at least three years.

The Delaware agency charged with enforcing Child Support Orders and laws is:

Division of Child Support Enforcement

P.O. Box 904

New Castle, DE 19720

302-577-7171

[http://www.dhss.delaware.gov/dhss/dcse/services.html]

Delaware has the following provisions for child support deductions:

When to start Withholding? 7 days after first payday after receipt of order. When to send Payment? Payday. When to send Termination Notice? “Promptly” Maximum Administrative Fee? No Provision Withholding Limits? Federal Rules under CCPA.

posted by Administrator on Feb 10

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posted by Administrator on Feb 7

Many schools offer marketing and sales courses for people looking to get ahead in business and retail. Vocational schools will generally offer a certificate of completion or undergraduate degrees, such as the associate degree with an emphasis on business. Courses in the field can be quite diverse, and can include instruction in areas of business administration, accounting, business law, communications, consumer behavior, economics, finance, foreign language (if applicable), marketing and market research, mathematics, public affairs and speaking, political science, sales, statistics, technical writing, and visual arts.

While many employers appreciate candidates who have achieved their bachelor or master degrees, there are many organizations that are satisfied with entry-level vocational credentials, such as certificates in retail management, or certification in public relations.

If you are interested in preparing for employment in the field, it is important that you have reached a high level of maturity. The best candidates for careers in marketing and sales should be ambitious, creative, adaptable to change, and possess leadership skills.

Though degree programs are primarily focused on the business aspects of the trade, additional courses can help you gain the skills to effectively communicate both verbally and in writing.

According to the U.S. Department of Labor Statistics, occupational growth in marketing and sales is expected to be faster than the average career. Graduates can anticipate improved opportunities to attain gainful and rewarding employment. While there are a variety of earning potentials, entry-level salaries start out at around $33,000 and may go up to $100,000 or more annually.

If you are ready to enter this diverse and lucrative field, contact schools in your area offering training in marketing and sales today!

DISCLAIMER: Above is a GENERAL OVERVIEW and may or may not reflect specific practices, courses and/or services associated with ANY ONE particular school(s) that is or is not advertised on our website.

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