When you hire someone to work in your business you must treat the person as your employee (with few exceptions). Some providers try to treat these helpers as independent contractors, but that is not correct. You must meet Labor laws no matter how few hours your employee works for you in a year.
- Tom Copeland’s: The Costs and Benefits of Hiring an Employee
- Tom Copeland’s: Is Your Employee Contract “At Will”?
Before You Hire:
- Ask your insurance agent whether your business liability policy provides coverage for child abuse by all your employees or unpaid workers.
- Contact your licensor and ask if there are any state regulations about the qualifications of the workers you hire. Your state may also require background checks.
- Check with your state attorney general’s office for guidelines on hiring and firing employees (illegal discrimination).
- Find out if you are subject to any deed restrictions, homeowners association covenants, or zoning laws that might restrict your right to hire employees.
- Carefully screen potential employees (criminal background check, credit check, past work references, previous co-workers references, education credentials)
AN EMPLOYER’S GUIDE TO WORKERS’ COMPENSATION INSURANCE IN MAINE
With the diversity of programs, resources offered here are a starting point and are not all inclusive. Be sure to read the current licensing rule to be sure your handbook/manual meet requirements.
As with your Care Agreement for parents/legal guardians, you can break up the Staff Handbook material into a contractual section and a policy responsibility section. Be sure to have a signature requirement for the policy responsibility section.
Employee Handbook At-Will Agreement
Staff Handbook – individual sections
Contracts – multiple samples
State of Maine sample: Employee Handbook Outline
All needed federal tax forms can be downloaded from http://www.irs.gov. You will need to check with the state for necessary forms specific to Maine.
- Form SS-4
- Form I-9
- Form W-4
- Form 941 or 944
- Form 940
- Form W-2
- Form W-3
Maine Department of Labor (any program with staff, whether full or part-time needs to be aware of Labor Rules/requirements)
- required Labor posters (state and Federal) – these posters are required to be easily accessible within the program. They can be posted, or copied and maintained in a easy access binder or file.
- Maine’s Employee Rights Guide
- Employee Law Publications
- Forms and Publications
- Maine’s Paid Family and Medical Leave program
Redleaf Press Family Child Care Tax Workbook and Organizer which is updated yearly is a reliable resource regarding taxes for family child care providers. As different states have different rules it is always recommended to check with your state’s department of revenue and/or labor.
fccamaine.com 