Gordon Gekko vs The Underwoods? Scary!

This election season has been reality TV at its finest.  Most days I cannot wait to get home and flip on CNN to see what catastrophe is plaguing the presidential nominees. 

Whichever side of the aisle you are on, there can be issues, ramifications to our daily lives, and an uncertain future.  Change is the only constant in life, and maybe this shakeup will be beneficial for the country.  But I am not a fortune teller.  And I am nervous to say the least.

My partners and I own and run a small business, and continue to wonder how the election will affect our ability to be successful in the future.  If you are a business owner and have not been thinking about this, you should be!  My biggest concern is around regulatory requirements and how they will affect us.  Eight years ago, we never would foreshadowed the complexities of the Affordable Care Act.  Obamacare sounded like a positive movement at the time, and it it in many respects, but at the expense of small business owners in both cost and time complying with the laws.  Many business owners I speak with continue to avoid compliance, and that will come home to roost sooner or later.

Under the Obama administration, laws and penalties for overtime, I-9 compliance, and OSHA violations have all been advocated.  Recently new Fair Labor Standards Act requirements have been passed, to go into effect December 1.

Regardless of who we elect, none of these areas are going away.  It is no longer acceptable for business owners to put their head in the sand and wish these laws did not exist!

At Questco, we have taken proactive steps to ensure compliance no matter the presidential outcome, and we are helping our clients do this everyday.

The fines are steepening, more enforcement officers are being hired by all these agencies every day, and the 2015/2016 ACA compliance fines are right around the corner.  If you have not taken steps to protect your business, and more importantly, your duty to your employees, then please do something! 

If you want to learn more, then please call me, and I am happy to provide some consultation based on your situation.  I don't want to see another small business end up in a lawsuit because they "didn't know" what they were supposed to do!