We're back at the beautiful Hyatt Regency on Goat Island in Newport, RI overlooking Narragansett Bay. This year's

conference will be held May 2-4, 2013 with a very special opportunity on May 2nd!

4 Good Reasons to Attend!

REASON 1 - WHAT YOUR PEERS THINK: My first NEAPS conference was back in 1997. What have I gained from attending this event? An annual dose of education, motivation, and a group of people I that are today my closest friends. Thanks NEAPS! - J. Madden - Harbor Legal Search "I went to my first NEAPS conference 6 years ago and I haven't missed one since. It's two days of learning what is working best in the recruiting industry and not just within the four walls of our company. I highly recommend it for anyone that considers recruiting their profession and wants to learn tricks that will help them improve everyday." S.Provost - Prestige Scientific   "I've been attending NEAPS Conferences since the late 80's. It's a "can't miss" on my calendar for both myself and my staff. Foremost is the amount of education about new strategies, trends, and methodologies that are at the front of our industry. I have seen such an evolution in this business, without continuing education it would be impossible to keep up with them. This conference compares to the national offerings. It's a package of top notch speakers for an amazingly affordable price" T. Madden, President, McIntosh Staffing Resources   NEAPS has always provided me the swift kick in the ... that I need every year to get recharge, re-energized and retrained in new concepts and approaches to our profession. I have been attending since 1999 and will continue to do so well into the future. It is a fantastic way to get training for myself and my team. M. Carlson - The Suburban Group, Inc.

REASON 2 - CERTIFICATION IMMERSION PROGRAM RETURNS! Looking to "UP" your game in the eyes of your clients and candidates? Want to gain a competitive edge over your competition? Then you need to become CPC/CTS CERTIFIED!   This on-site, one-stop training program has been designed to help staffing industry professionals achieve CPC or CTS certification in the most efficient and thorough manner.   This item is designed for the NEAPS - New England Association of Personnel Services and will be held in Newport, RI at the Hyatt on Goat Island, the site of their annual conference. The NAPS will not be able to guarantee a seat for you if you do not have a confirmation number, which is obtained when you purchase this item.   SPECIAL OFFER: If you are a registrant of the NEAPS conference, you will receive 25% off of your certification registration!

REASON 3 - DANNY CAHILL'S 'INTENSITY TRAINING' SESSION You know him, you love him - Danny will work with YOUR issues on YOUR desk in an all day, all Danny seminar. You'll leave this session completely drained and exhausted but primed to take on all comers! You'll never have a workout like this again!

REASON 4 - YOU CAN'T GET ACCESS TO TRAINERS LIKE THIS ALL TOGETHER ANYWHERE! You'll hear from some of the best trainers and speakers in our profession today!   SARCH, GIONTA, DAVIS, ERB, FIELDS,LaDEUCEUR, MARSHALL, McSPADDEN, ROTHMAN Seeing these speakers individually will cost you thousands of dollars - see them all, in one location over two days! Are you currently CPC/CTS/CERS Certified? Did you know you need to earn CEU's every year to keep your certification? This conference fulfills those CEU requirements!!

Accomodations

We're back at the beautiful Hyatt Regency on Goat Island in Newport! Situated on Narragansett Bay, this hotel offers first class accommodations, great food selections, excellent conference space and Newport has something for everyone! With a room rate of $149 pp, you'll be hard pressed to find a place to stay in Newport for less!

 

 

 

 

 

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Important Legal Announcement for Staffing Companies Placing in MA

 

MA Staffing Law Effective Jan. 31, 2013

 

Staffing Firms Should Begin Preparing Now

 

As previously reported, on Aug. 7, 2012, Massachusetts Gov. Deval Patrick signed An Act Establishing a Temporary Workers Right to Know. The law will become effective on Jan. 31, 2013. The Massachusetts Department of Labor Standards (DLS) will administer this new law, while the Office of the Attorney General will be the enforcing entity.

 

ASA and its affiliated chapter, the Massachusetts Staffing Association, are in ongoing discussions with DLS regarding forthcoming regulations, and continue to educate the agency about how staffing firms operate.The regulations likely will not be finalized before the law's effective date; as soon as they are promulgated, ASA and MSA will send out an additional issue alert.

 

Staffing firms should begin preparing to comply with the law now. Although DLS has informally indicated to ASA and MSA that it will not refer minor violations of the law to the attorney general until final regulations go into effect, the law appears to allow for private lawsuits by candidates and employees. Therefore, staffing firms should plan to comply with the law starting on Jan. 31.

 

The law is summarized on the DLS website. According to DLS:

"Workers have a right to know the basic information about their job. The law requires staffing agencies to provide employees with notice of basic information before going to a job, such as the staffing agency's contact information; workers' compensation carrier; the rate of pay for the job; shift start and end time; details related to any meals or transportation; whether the position requires special clothing, tools, licenses, or training; and the name of the worksite employer. Job information can be given over the telephone as long as it is confirmed in writing before the end of the first pay period. The DLS will provide a sample notice to all staffing agencies that will satisfy the notification requirements prescribed by the law.

 

The notification requirements do not apply to 'professionals...secretaries or administrative assistants.' Workers must be advised of their rights under this law. Staffing agencies must post a notice of the workers' rights provided under this law, as well as the DLS' contact information. The DLS will provide a sample notice to all staffing agencies that will satisfy the notification requirements prescribed by the law.

 

Staffing agencies will continue to be licensed or registered with DLS, as well as inspected. Currently, M.G.L. c. 140, sec. 46A-46R mandates that staffing agencies be either licensed or registered by DLS, as well as inspected by DLS compliance officers. This will continue as the new law does not change these statutes.

 

Fees that a staffing agency or worksite employer charge to a temporary worker are covered by this new law. The new law prohibits a staffing agency from charging for the following:

1. The cost of registering with the staffing agency or procuring employment

2. The provision of a drug screen, bank/debit card or other form of payment that exceeds the actual cost per applicant

3. A CORI request

4. All transportation costs (except those provided for below)

5. Any good or service (unless done under the terms of a written contract that makes clear that it is voluntary and for which the staffing agency will not profit from the fee charged)

6. Any good or service that would cause the applicant or employee to earn less than the minimum wage.

 

Transportation costs cannot be more than the actual cost of the transportation, exceed 3% of total daily wages, or reduce wages below minimum wage. Additionally, if specific transportation services are required, no fees can be charged. Lastly, an agency must refund any transportation fees if no employment exists.

The law does not regulate fees that staffing agencies can charge to worksite employers for their services.

 

Staffing agencies are prohibited from engaging in certain activities. Under the law, staffing agencies may not:

§ Knowingly provide false, fraudulent, or misleading information to workers;

§ Use any name that they have not registered with DLS;

§ Assign or place an employee by force, fraud, or for illegal purposes; or

§ Refuse to return personal belongings or excessive fees or charges to an employee.

Violations of this law can result in civil fines up to $15,000 or $25,000 for willful violations."

 

DLS has advised ASA and MSA that it will be updating its website and engaging in an education campaign to apprise staffing firms of their obligations and answer any questions they may have. DLS also has advised that it will publish a sample job notice and sample poster, informing temporary workers of their rights, prior to Jan. 31-DLS currently is in the process of revising the job notice based upon input provided by ASA and MSA.

 

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Innerviews

 

The Voice of Northern New England Association of Personnel Services

 

December - January 2013

 

 

 

NH WebTax for Online Employer Tax Filing

Now up and Running

Employers can now file their Employer Quarterly Tax and Wage Reports online with the option of remitting your payment through electronic funds transfer (EFT). You may also pay a prior balance due and make profile changes to your account information.

In order to access the WebTax application, you must have a New Hampshire Unemployment account number and an active account in the New Hampshire Unemployment Insurance System (NHUIS). If you are not currently set up with a NHUIS UI Account, go to Register New UI Account . You will be directed to the NHUIS main page.

Choose the "Register to Maintain Your Account Online" link on the left side of the page. When you register in NHUIS, you will be issued a temporary password. You must immediately use that password to sign on to NHUIS again and establish your permanent password. Once those steps are completed you can return to WebTax and Log on.

 

Upcoming Events 2013 NNEAPS Calendar see more info and registration information on nneaps.org January 17 NNEAPS Speaker Series - Paul Donehue April 4 NNEAPS Speaker Series - Ed Lentz, ASA Health Care Reform Q&A May 2-4 NEAPS Annual Conference WatersEdge CT September 10-13 NAPS Annual Conference Las Vegas October 3 - 4 NNEAPS Owners Meeting Migus Lodge, ME November 14 Annual Meeting/Board of Directors Venue TBA

 

 

 

MEMBER NEWS

 

 

CONGRATULATIONS HENRY GLICKEL, Sales Recruiters

EXCELLENCE IN EMPLOYMENT AWARD

SALEM, NH - 2012) - Henry Glickel, Manager of Talent Acquisition and Employee Retention for By Appointment Only, Inc. (BAO), received The Association of Employment Professionals' (AOEP) H. Michael Boyd Excellence in Employment Award. The announcement was made today by Louis V. Gaglini, president of the AOEP Executive Management Committee.

"We are pleased to honor Henry who shows genuine dedication and continues to make lasting contributions to the field of employment recruiting and retention," Gaglini said.

The "Excellence in Employment" Award is presented annually to recognize an individual who has best demonstrated true professional behavior and "best-in-class" practices in his pursuit and execution of excellence in employment. The award was presented by Gaglini at the 2012 Recruiter's Best Practices Summit at Bentley College with over 80 members in attendance.

 

 

 

More Staffing Firms Focus on Culture

The percentage of staffing firms that cite the creation of a "positive company culture" as a management priority has trended up over the past few years, according to a new report based on the 2012 Staffing Company Survey by Staffing Industry Analysts. That may mean more profitability.

"On average over the past three years, 'creating a positive company culture' has been the third-most correlated with profitability among all the priorities that we track," said Theo Vadpey, author of the report.

The survey found that 14 percent of staffing firms in 2012 said "creating a positive company culture" is a top management priority. That compared with 12 percent in 2011 and only 6 percent in 2010.

During the height of the recession in 2009, the percentage dropped to 8 percent. And in 2008, it was 9 percent.

The report tracked 16 priorities in all.

And despite the uptick in culture, staffing firms remain focused on growth. The top three priorities, overall, for staffing firms in 2012 were "growing revenue," 53 percent; "expanding/diversifying clients," 40 percent; and "growing market share," 35 percent.

The survey included responses from 622 individual staffing firms and took place in September.

 

 

We thought ours was fool proof. We had a powerful gas generator and have 2 locations as well as the homes of the two principals. Once we were able to get outside and see where we stood we realized that all 4 of those locations were out of power. We talked about getting a generator up and running in our main office but realized that running the office off the generator would not be an easy task. The other issue we faced was that there was a shortage of gas in our area. We had barely enough to run our home generators and employees said even if we did open they could not make it in. We finally had power in our Somerset office on Thursday but had no data because our server was down in our main office. Yes we could have moved it but we were not sure what that would entail nor did we know how long our main office would be down.

Once we got power in the main office we only had 1 phone line and no internet for 2 more days. Our phones are still only down to one and our fax is not working.

I know we were hit with a lot of factors that don't normally all come together at the same time but it did and it makes me wonder what can be done to prevent this.

What I have learned so far.

• Make sure you have a secure backup in a safe location.
• Make sure you have dual internet service in case one does not go down
• Make sure you can remotely forward your calls.
• Don't expect to rely on your vendors because as we found out they were dealing with their own issues.
• Make sure you have business interruption insurance
• Get a back up natural gas generator powerful enough to run your office
• Have a few working laptops and a hot spot ready to go
• Make sure you can access your web site and email accounts to paste messages
• Make sure you have print outs off all employees/clients and payroll history
• If you cannot do payroll and have to do manually short all 30 or more employees 10 hours and 5 for those less. Then when you can get up and running you can just back out that gross and all falls into place
• Have a stack of checks in both offices and a stamp so you can do this

This has been a huge learning experience for me. In 21 years I have never thought we would be in this position so I hope some of the above might help someone else in the future.

My question is if I am missing anything and I'm sure I am what else can we do. And most importantly has anyone solved the issue of what to do with the data to get back up and running? I know the cloud but that would not have even helped since everyone was out of power.

Thank you and I hope anyone else in this area affected by the storms are safe.

 

 

 

 

 

Companies of all sizes will hire twice as many online workers in 2013, according to the 2013 online work predictions forecast released today by online staffing provider Elance.

"The staffing industry is ripe for disruption and the fundamental drivers of online work's growth - instant access to high quality talent, speed of hiring and cost savings - align with business needs of all sizes." said Fabio Rosati, CEO of Elance. "When you pair the category's fundamentals with recent trends on Elance, it's clear that online work is primed for explosive growth in 2013."

Elance's forecast predictions for online work in 2013:

• Transformation of the services economy: Service hiring will double online in 2013.
• Students emerge as solopreneurs: One in four university students will work online in 2013.
• Healthcare reform opens door for career flexibility: The number of full-time employees that quit corporate jobs to work online will triple in 2013.
• Unemployment will be overstated by 5 percent in 2013. Unemployed and underemployed will go online to earn extra money, and these jobs aren't reported in the employment figures.
• Online work: Companies of all sizes will hire twice as many online workers in 2013.

 

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DON'T MISS THIS

 

TRAINING OPPORTUNITY FOR STAFFING AND SEARCH PROFESSIONALS!

 

 

Sales and Business Development Strategies for Today's Staffing

 

and Search Professionals

with

PAUL DONEHUE

 

 

National Sales Motivator

 

This exciting opportunity to rev up your engines for the new year. It will give you a myriad of take aways including:

 

• Insight into today's consumer expectations and decision-making habits
• Identifying selling behaviors that best align with buying and decision-making protocols
• Communication awareness and integration
• Mastering four critical skills for effective sales, networking and contact management success

This program is suitable for all staffing specialists, sole practitioners, owners, manager and search professionals.

 

 

Reserve your seat today!

 

January 17, 2013

 

1-5PM

 

Sheraton Harborside Portsmouth

 

 

(A Break with Award Winning New England Chowder is included )

$79 for NNEAPS, MAPS, CAPS and RI Members

 

$49 for 4 or more wth the same company

 

 

$129 for Non Members

 

Registration Deadline January 14

 

Please send registration to

 

Deb Kennedy, NNEAPS Programs Chair

 

c/o CNHES

 

244 Main Street, Concord, NH 03301

 

603-225-1115

 

Members must have paid association dues for 2013 to qualify for membership pricing

 

 

 

 

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New Hampshire Legislative Update:

LAW CHANGES THAT IMPACT EMPLOYERS
Benefit Charges, Claimant Work Search Requirements and
Suitable Work Considerations, Wage Garnishment

web-tax-notice

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Member Spotlight

(Please click picture to hear the interview)

 

Featuring NAPS President John Sacerdote

Topic: The Value Of NAPS

 

 

 

 

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InnerViews

 

Voice of the  

 

Northern New England Association of Personnel Services

 

October/November 2012

 

 

Thinking Forward from the Past... from NNEAPS President April Metivier

 

Some of the best reminders can come from colleagues and trainers in our industry.  This week I met with my co-workers to initiate our business plan for 2013.  While going through this process, I couldn't help but recall Jeff Skrentny's presentation back in January.  He highlighted his work as a consultant supporting owners and managers of recruiting businesses, advising them to bring their attention back to working on their businesses instead of focusing on the day-to-day operations.  As a consultant, he posed some of the following questions to the owners, managers and staff of these businesses:

 

What is your online presence?
Do you have a plan for the year?
Do you have processes that can be quickly found?
Does your team/do you have a daily plan?
Do you have and refer back to your training manual to get back to the basics?
What is the attitude of the office?
What is the energy in the office?
Does your team look forward to having in-person interviews or dread them?

In preparation for 2013, I found it was time to blow the dust off of my Skrentny notes from January and actually answer some of these questions.  By starting to plan now, perhaps I can assess our business' strengths and weaknesses.  All of us get so caught up in chasing after the next revenue stream that it's rare we actually take the time to step back and truly work on our business, as Jeff suggested, instead of in it. 

To that end, I invite you to attend our upcoming events where we reflect on and discuss improving ourselves as leaders/mentors and our businesses, from high level planning to the individual recruiter working a desk.

On Thursday, October 18^th and Friday, October 19^th we're hosting our Owners/Managers Retreat. Set at the scenic Stage Neck Inn in York, ME you'll enjoy networking and learning and sharing proven strategies to launch you into a successful 2013...and beyond.

We're also hosting our Annual Meeting during which Deb Titus, a well-known New Hampshire speaker, will give a motivational speech on Friday, November 16^th.  The Association will be presenting industry/company awards at this event, as well.

I welcome you to attend one or both of these events where you will learn and engage and prepare for a brand new year.

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Just In Time-Congress Extends Important Immigration Programs Set to Expire

 

Law reauthorizes programs affecting religious workers, doctors in medically underserved areas, and immigrant investors creating jobs and stimulating the economy.

by  Attorneys Jim Reidy

and Lyndsee Paskalis,

of Sheehan Phinney Bass and Green

Just when you thought nothing was going on in Washington these days (besides two suddenly successful sports franchises) Congress recently voted to reauthorize certain key immigration programs that were set to expire.  The law reauthorizes programs affecting religious workers, doctors in medically underserved areas, and immigrant investors creating jobs and stimulating the economy.  These critical immigration programs are now in place for an additional three years, until September 30, 2015.

 On Friday, September 28, President Obama signed this bill, S. 3245, in to law.  The bill came to his desk with the strong support of Congress, having passed by unanimous vote in the Senate and an overwhelming majority in the House.  Specifically, this bill extends the E-Verify program along with the EB-5 Regional Center Program, the Special Immigrant Non-minister Religious Worker Program and the Conrad State 30 J-1 Visa Waiver Program.  Again, these important visa programs are now available for another three years, until September 30, 2015.

What is the immediate impact on U.S. workers, businesses and families?  To begin, the Conrad State 30 J-1 Visa Waiver Program provides a mechanism for foreign physicians educated and trained in the U.S. who seek to work in medically underserved areas, and commit to doing so for at least three years, to remain in the country for that purpose.  Placing these much-needed physicians and specialists in areas where the need is so great provides a critical benefit to the populations they serve.  Others in the service field, religious workers, can utilize the Special Immigrant Non-minister Religious Worker Program, which offers up to 5,000 special immigrant visas each year, to work with some of the most at-risk and needy communities in our country.  Without these foreign workers' ability to undertake this important and necessary service, large segments of our populations could be severely impacted.

 On the business end, the Immigrant Investor Program (EB-5) provides an avenue for continued economic growth by allowing certain foreign investors with adequate financial resources to inject a minimum of $1 million ($500,000 in some cases) in a designated commercial enterprise known as a "regional center" that creates or preserves at least 10 full-time jobs for U.S. workers within two years.  This has continued to be a successful model for securing capital investment for U.S. companies with a simultaneous goal of maintaining or improving job opportunities for U.S. workers.

Also important for businesses is the reauthorization of E-Verify, an optional (with some exceptions), free, Internet-based system that allows employers to quickly and safely verify the employment authorization of new hires by entering certain personal information into the system and comparing it against U.S. government records.  Although not a replacement for the mandatory Form I-9 Employment Eligibility Verification that all U.S. employers must complete on or before the third day of work, the E-Verify system adds another layer of assurance that employers are hiring only those workers who are expressly authorized to work in the U.S.

Many in the business community and those directly affected by the work performed by these foreign nationals are pleased with the extension of these programs, as they recognize the important resources and benefits that they add to our society.

 

Note:  This is general guidance and is no substitute for specific legal advice.

Attorney Jim Reidy, a NNEAPS Board member, is a partner at Sheehan Phinney Bass + Green.  His practice is in the area of labor and employment law where he exclusively represents management.

Attorney Lyndsee Paskalis is an associate at Sheehan Phinney Bass + Green and member of the Labor & Employment group.  Lyndsee works in the area of employment related immigration.

 

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