​The Small Business Blog

Holomua Consulting Group would like to say thank you to all Veterans and Active Duty Service Members for your service to our Country.  Since it is Veterans Day, we thought it appropriate to report on a topic related to Veterans.  On September 25, 2014, the Veterans' Employment and Training Service (VETS) of the U.S. Department of Labor issued its Final Rule revising the reporting requirements for federal contractors and subcontractors under the Vietnam Era Veterans' Readjustment Act of 1974 (VEVRAA).  Practically speaking, the actual reporting aspect of the Final Rule, which became effective on October 27, 2014, does not have an impact on contractors until the 2015 Reporting Period (August 1 - September 30, 2015)   Nonetheless, it is helpful for federal contractors to be aware of the changes effected by the Final Rule, as it may have an impact on contractors' current data collection practices.

What is a Code of Business Ethics and Conduct, you might ask (you may also have heard it referred to as a Code of Conduct, Code of Ethics, Code of Business Ethics, or some other variation).   Well, a Code of Business Ethics and Conduct is essentially a document memorializing an organization's mission, values and principles.   As many of us are aware, it has become quite common to hear about corporate scandals related to ethics violations, corporate conduct or the like.  With that being said, we shouldn't have to list the reasons why a company should have a Code, but we will anyway.

Of late, worker misclassification has been and will likely continue to be a "hot" topic of discussion.  Worker misclassification occurs primarily in one of two situations:  (1) an employer incorrectly classifies an employee as exempt/non-exempt; or (2) an employer incorrectly classifies an individual as an independent contractor.   Classifying a worker seems pretty straightforward - so what's the issue right?  The problem is that there a financial incentive for employers not to classify workers correctly.  In particular, worker misclassification essentially provides employers with the ability not to pay overtime, employment taxes, insurance and other costs associated with employee benefits, thereby transferring the tax burden and other risks to the employee.