By JIM ABRAMS, Associated Press Writer Jim Abrams, Associated Press Writer – Mon Sep 21, 3:32 pm ET
WASHINGTON – Despite predictions the Great Recession is running out of steam, the House is taking up emergency legislation this week to help the millions of Americans who see no immediate end to their economic miseries.
A bill offered by Rep. Jim McDermott, D-Wash., and expected to pass easily would provide 13 weeks of extended unemployment benefits for more than 300,000 jobless people who live in states with unemployment rates of at least 8.5 percent and who are scheduled to run out of benefits by the end of September.
The 13-week extension would supplement the 26 weeks of benefits most states offer and the federally funded extensions of up to 53 weeks that Congress approved in legislation last year and in the stimulus bill enacted last February.
People from North Carolina to California "have been calling my office to tell me they still cannot find work a year or more after becoming unemployed, and they need some additional help to keep their heads above water," McDermott said.
Critics of unemployment insurance argue that it can be a disincentive to looking for work, and that extending benefits at a time the economy is showing signs of recovery could be counterproductive.
But this recession has been particularly pernicious to the job market, others say.
Some 5 million people, about one-third of those on the unemployment list, have been without a job for six months or more, a record since data started being recorded in 1948, according to the research and advocacy group National Employment Law Project.
"It smashes any other figure we have ever seen. It is an unthinkable number," said Andrew Stettner, NELP's deputy director. He said there are currently about six jobless people for every job opening, so it's unlikely people are purposefully living off unemployment insurance while waiting for something better to come along.
The current state unemployment check is about $300 a week, supplemented by $25 included in the stimulus act.
That doesn't go very far when a loaf of bread can cost $2.79 and a gallon of milk $2.72, Senate Finance Committee Chairman Max Baucus, D-Mont., said at a hearing last week on the unemployment insurance issue.
"We need to keep our unemployed neighbors from falling into poverty. We need to figure out how best to make our safety net work," Baucus said.
The jobless rate currently stands at 9.7 percent and is likely to hover above 10 percent for much of 2010. Gary Burtless, a senior fellow at the Brookings Institution, said at the Finance Committee hearing that, according to Labor Department figures, 51 percent of unemployment insurance claimants exhausted their regular benefits in July, the highest rate ever.
"It is likely the exhaustion rate will continue to increase in coming months" as the unemployment rate continues to rise, he said.
Stettner predicted that Congress will likely have to continue extending jobless benefits through 2011.
McDermott in July introduced a more ambitious bill that would have extended through 2010 the compensation programs included in the stimulus act. Those benefits are now scheduled to expire at the end of this year.
But with a price tag of up to $70 billion, that bill would have been far more difficult to pass. McDermott instead decided to offer the scaled-down 13-week extension to meet the urgent needs of those seeing their benefits disappear this year.
McDermott said his bill would not add to the deficit because it would extend for a year a federal unemployment tax of $14 per employee per year that employers have been paying for more than 30 years. It would also require better reporting on newly hired employees to reduce unemployment insurance overpayments.
Three-fourths of the 400,000 workers projected to exhaust their benefits this month live in high unemployment states that would qualify for the additional 13 weeks of benefits under his bill, McDermott said.
They include Alabama, Arizona, California, District of Columbia, Florida, Georgia, Illinois, Indiana, Kentucky, Massachusetts, Michigan, Mississippi, Missouri, Nevada, New Jersey, North Carolina, New York, Ohio, Oregon, Pennsylvania, Puerto Rico, South Carolina, Tennessee, Washington, Wisconsin and West Virginia.
Other states could qualify for more benefits if their unemployment rates are approaching the 8.5 percent threshold.
Monday, September 21, 2009
Sunday, March 29, 2009
Welcome Katherine Knapp to The Recruiters Roundtable Team!!!
The Recruiters Roundtable is proud to announce the addition of Ms. Katherine Knapp to the Management and Subject Matter Expert teams. Please take a moment to join me in welcoming Katherine to the table! Ms. Knapp’s addition to the Management team at The Recruiters Roundtable in addition to being the resident SME in all facets of purchasing, procurement, supply chain, buying, planning, sourcing, etc., will allow her to contribute her expertise and knowledge through a myriad of vehicles to help all of our members better understand the procurement, supply chain and procurement processes, industry standards and best practices.
Ms. Knapp is a senior-level professional who possess over 10 years experience in purchasing, procurement, supply chain, project management, management, etc., and has worked in a variety of industry verticals and their respective business units. A native of
You can email Katherine directly at: KnappKatherine@yahoo.com and connect with her on LinkedIn at: http://www.linkedin.com/in/katherineknapp.
Welcome Aboard Katherine!!!
~Keith
Keith D. Wolsko
Managing Editor & Founder - The Recruiters Roundtable
Sr. Human Capital & Talent Acquisition Specialist -
Recruiting/Sourcing/RPO/Systems/Process Consultant
Keith@therecruitersroundtable.com
http://www.therecruitersroundtable.com
http://www.linkedin/in/keithwolsko
Friday, March 20, 2009
Are you passing up Staffing business?
It’s no secret - the economy is currently in the tank. Businesses are laying off workers, bankruptcy is at an all-time high, the housing market is terrible, and companies are cutting expenses to survive. To say the least, the forecast for success, for the most part, is bleak for the foreseeable future. However, there are some areas that are seeing some slight growth, or growth potential, to include the healthcare and information technology staffing sectors. My question is, if you are staffing/recruiting in those areas, especially on a contract basis, are you turning down business because of lack of funding to support that business?
There may be a few reasons a staffing company may turn down business. One may be a lack of manpower to recruit employees for client openings. With many staffing companies trimming expenses, there may have been a need to lay off recruiters, which hinders the ability of the company to recruit as many employees to work on assignment. The second reason is that clients of staffing firms are taking longer to pay their vendor invoices. Companies are trying to hold on to cash reserves for as long as possible, and their vendors are starting to see extended payment terms for their services. A third reason may be that the creditworthiness of a potential client (i.e. the client’s ability to pay for services) may have diminished with the weakened economy.
With all of these variables in place, staffing companies may be taking a wait and see approach before expanding their business. Again, my question is, why wait to expand your business? Staffing companies should be taking advantage of every opportunity to grow the revenues of the company. If the ability to fund the business and process the payroll and payroll taxes were taken out of the equation, wouldn’t you seek to grow your business? There is a simple solution to taking on the new business, and it involves partnering with a funding source that understands your business.
Staffing owners are in the ultimate Catch-22 business - the more contract placements you make, the greater the need for sufficient working capital funding to carry payroll and other costs of doing business. Your employees expect to be paid weekly, or at least bi-weekly, yet it takes from 30 - 60+ days for your clients to pay for your services. Without proper funding to cover those costs, it can be difficult to grow your business. Also, you must have resources available to process the payroll, file and pay 941 payroll taxes, pay your employee, create and send out invoices, and send out year-end W2s and/or 1099s. Partnering with a funding source that can not only cover working captial costs, fund weekly profits, process payroll, payroll taxes, pay employees, file 941s, and send out W2s can be a life saver for staffing companies.
So what’s it going to cost? Most funding companies charge anywhere from 2% - 5%, depending on the services they are providing. The real question should be, what’s the opportunity cost of passing up additional business? Patnering with a funding company will allow you to cover the costs of doing business, assist in credit profiling of your potential clients, monitor your outstanding receivables, assist with collection efforts, and taking some of the administrative load off your plate will be your best option for growth.
If you would like to discuss your situation, you may email Dale Busbee, Sterling Resource Funding Corp, at dbusbee@sterlingresourcefunding.com or call (985) 641-8817.
There may be a few reasons a staffing company may turn down business. One may be a lack of manpower to recruit employees for client openings. With many staffing companies trimming expenses, there may have been a need to lay off recruiters, which hinders the ability of the company to recruit as many employees to work on assignment. The second reason is that clients of staffing firms are taking longer to pay their vendor invoices. Companies are trying to hold on to cash reserves for as long as possible, and their vendors are starting to see extended payment terms for their services. A third reason may be that the creditworthiness of a potential client (i.e. the client’s ability to pay for services) may have diminished with the weakened economy.
With all of these variables in place, staffing companies may be taking a wait and see approach before expanding their business. Again, my question is, why wait to expand your business? Staffing companies should be taking advantage of every opportunity to grow the revenues of the company. If the ability to fund the business and process the payroll and payroll taxes were taken out of the equation, wouldn’t you seek to grow your business? There is a simple solution to taking on the new business, and it involves partnering with a funding source that understands your business.
Staffing owners are in the ultimate Catch-22 business - the more contract placements you make, the greater the need for sufficient working capital funding to carry payroll and other costs of doing business. Your employees expect to be paid weekly, or at least bi-weekly, yet it takes from 30 - 60+ days for your clients to pay for your services. Without proper funding to cover those costs, it can be difficult to grow your business. Also, you must have resources available to process the payroll, file and pay 941 payroll taxes, pay your employee, create and send out invoices, and send out year-end W2s and/or 1099s. Partnering with a funding source that can not only cover working captial costs, fund weekly profits, process payroll, payroll taxes, pay employees, file 941s, and send out W2s can be a life saver for staffing companies.
So what’s it going to cost? Most funding companies charge anywhere from 2% - 5%, depending on the services they are providing. The real question should be, what’s the opportunity cost of passing up additional business? Patnering with a funding company will allow you to cover the costs of doing business, assist in credit profiling of your potential clients, monitor your outstanding receivables, assist with collection efforts, and taking some of the administrative load off your plate will be your best option for growth.
If you would like to discuss your situation, you may email Dale Busbee, Sterling Resource Funding Corp, at dbusbee@sterlingresourcefunding.com or call (985) 641-8817.
Thursday, March 12, 2009
10 Steps to Starting Up a Successful Temporary Staffing Company
So you’ve decided to start up a temporary/contract staffing company, and you would like to know what’s involved in ensuring success in your new venture. To follow are 10 tips for making your new venture a success.
1. Define Your Market - Most entrepreneurs that start a staffing company come from within the industry. Some have worked for other agencies as a branch or regional manager, recruiter, or sales professional. Others have owned a staffing company, sold their company, then returned to open a new company. Whatever the background, defining a specialty staffing area can be the key to your success. Whether it’s concentrating on accounting, finance, admin/clerical, light industrial, healthcare, IT, or professional areas, you must define your area of focus. Depending on your crew, it may be necessary to concentrate on one area first, then branch out to others as you bring in industry experts from other areas.
2. Define Your Strengths - Everyone has strengths. Whether it’s in sales/business development, marketing, operations, financial acumen, or other areas will depend on your role within the organization. You will want to take over roles matching your strengths, and leave the other areas to professionals best suited to handle the other functions in your business. For instance, if your specialty is business development, you want to be the one calling to get job orders and secure contracts. You may want to bring in an operations professional to handle day-to-days tasks of running the agency.
3. Define Your Weaknesses - This step goes hand in hand with #2, but can also include specialty areas as well. If you have a background in healthcare, you will probably want to attack that marketplace as an expert in the industry, versus taking on IT or Accounting clients. Stick with your strengths, and bring in experts to handle other specialty areas.
4. Get The Basics - The first step in opening a business is to incorporate in states that you are going to conduct business. I would recommend either going online to your Secretary of State’s website, or visiting a local office to incorporate. Whether it’s as a SubChapter C, S, or LLC, you want to make sure that you distance your personal business from your staffing business. Consult with your attorney on setting up your business as a corporation, but putting a layer of protection from your personal and business assets is paramount when starting your business. You may want to also consult your Accountant when setting up your business to inquire about setting your business up on a cash vs. accrual basis for accounting purposes. Also, if you are going to have candidates interviewing for positions, you are going to want to consider having a corporate office location, whether as an executive suite, in a strip center, or in a separate building. Appearance is everything, and you don’t want to be meeting candidates at your local Starbucks for interviews. Also, be prepared to contact your phone company for a business line, and consider leasing or buying office equipment (copy/fax machine, phone system, etc). Office supplies are also necessary to run your business.
5. Determine Insurance Needs - This is the fun stuff, as they say. Nobody likes to buy insurance, but unfortunately, it’s a requirement for running a temporary/contract staffing business. Minimum insurance requirements will be for General Liability and Workers Comp. You may also want to consider having E&O and Professional Liability Insurance coverages. Find an insurance carrier that understands the staffing industry! A list can be found under insurance providers for the American Staffing Association (www.americanstaffing.net). If you are a start-up, you may have to contact your state’s Insurance Fund to get your first Workers Comp policy. However, once you have an established business, you may be able to gain insurance from a private insurance carrier. Again, make sure you are dealing with a broker or agent that understands what your company and the staffing industry.
6. Determine Your Funding Needs - Without proper funding, your business is going nowhere. Understanding that you have to lay out money to incorporate your business, buy insurance, get an office location, purchase or lease equipment, purchase office supplies will get you to the point of opening your business. At that point, now you have to hire employees. They will be on your payroll and covered by your insurance. Now you need to place them on assignment and they expect to be paid weekly or bi-weekly. Once you bill for your services, it may take 30, 60, up to 90 days to get paid from your clients. You will have to carry that payroll for up to 90 days, unless you have a funder who will carry that payroll for you. You may have put up your savings to get the business off the ground, but if it takes off, you may run into a cash crunch fairly quickly. There are several options to cover your payrolling and working capital costs, but again you will need to find a funding source that understands your business and is able to fund your business based on the volume of business you generate. Banks these days are being very cautious about who they lend funds to, so I would recommend your finding a receivables financing company that specializes in the staffing industry. If you don’t enjoy the administrative functions of running a business, or would like to outsource your back office (billing, payroll, payroll tax) functions, some funders exclusive to staffing will not only finance your business, but take on the back office piece.
7. Market Your Services - Once your business is set up, now is the time to start marketing your services to potential clients. Some folks already have target companies in mind, based on prior business relationships. Warm calls and referral business is always preferred to cold calls, but when you are getting started, you have to utilize any methods to pick up new business. Joining social networks such as Linkedin, Twitter, Facebook, or others is a great place to start. Use your existing contacts to leverage other contacts. Let everyone you know that you have a started a new business venture that you are excited about and want to share. Network, Network, Network.
8. Find Candidates / Employees - In days past, the only way to find candidates was to pick up the phone and call into companies, or run a newspaper ad. There’s something to be said about those methods, but with the advent of the internet, social networks, job boards, etc., finding candidates has changed. Posting jobs to Monster, Careerbuilder, Dice, The Ladders, is great, if you can afford to subscribe to those services. Networking through Linkedin, Twitter, Facebook, and other social networks can be as effective, and much less expensive. Joining professional organizations such as The Amercian Staffing Association, local staffing organizations, or attending trade shows / staffing conferences can bring credibility to your organization, and provide excellent networking opportunities.
9. Become an Expert - People like to deal with professionals they feel comfortable with, view as an expert in their field, and provide value to the relationship. Take the time to learn about the industry, your specialty recruitment areas, and the clients you plan to call on. View each sales call as a job interview. Be prepared to discuss your prospective client’s company as if you planned on working there. Know their business, study their history, become familiar with their culture. If you are viewed as an expert in the industry, especially in your field, then it becomes a matter of finding out if your prospective client can afford your bill rate and if you can add value to their organization.
10. Repeat the Process - If you take the proper steps to set up your company correctly, then it’s a matter of building out your company. You may want to start small, then take on new business slowly. Or, if the opportunity presents itself, you may be able to capture unique opportunities to grow your business quickly. Remember to define your market, know your strengths, find an suitable funding source, and network, network, network.
If you would like to discuss your situation, please feel free to give Dale Busbee, Business Development, Sterling Resource Funding Corp a call at (985) 641-8817 or via email dbusbee@sterlingresourcefunding.com
1. Define Your Market - Most entrepreneurs that start a staffing company come from within the industry. Some have worked for other agencies as a branch or regional manager, recruiter, or sales professional. Others have owned a staffing company, sold their company, then returned to open a new company. Whatever the background, defining a specialty staffing area can be the key to your success. Whether it’s concentrating on accounting, finance, admin/clerical, light industrial, healthcare, IT, or professional areas, you must define your area of focus. Depending on your crew, it may be necessary to concentrate on one area first, then branch out to others as you bring in industry experts from other areas.
2. Define Your Strengths - Everyone has strengths. Whether it’s in sales/business development, marketing, operations, financial acumen, or other areas will depend on your role within the organization. You will want to take over roles matching your strengths, and leave the other areas to professionals best suited to handle the other functions in your business. For instance, if your specialty is business development, you want to be the one calling to get job orders and secure contracts. You may want to bring in an operations professional to handle day-to-days tasks of running the agency.
3. Define Your Weaknesses - This step goes hand in hand with #2, but can also include specialty areas as well. If you have a background in healthcare, you will probably want to attack that marketplace as an expert in the industry, versus taking on IT or Accounting clients. Stick with your strengths, and bring in experts to handle other specialty areas.
4. Get The Basics - The first step in opening a business is to incorporate in states that you are going to conduct business. I would recommend either going online to your Secretary of State’s website, or visiting a local office to incorporate. Whether it’s as a SubChapter C, S, or LLC, you want to make sure that you distance your personal business from your staffing business. Consult with your attorney on setting up your business as a corporation, but putting a layer of protection from your personal and business assets is paramount when starting your business. You may want to also consult your Accountant when setting up your business to inquire about setting your business up on a cash vs. accrual basis for accounting purposes. Also, if you are going to have candidates interviewing for positions, you are going to want to consider having a corporate office location, whether as an executive suite, in a strip center, or in a separate building. Appearance is everything, and you don’t want to be meeting candidates at your local Starbucks for interviews. Also, be prepared to contact your phone company for a business line, and consider leasing or buying office equipment (copy/fax machine, phone system, etc). Office supplies are also necessary to run your business.
5. Determine Insurance Needs - This is the fun stuff, as they say. Nobody likes to buy insurance, but unfortunately, it’s a requirement for running a temporary/contract staffing business. Minimum insurance requirements will be for General Liability and Workers Comp. You may also want to consider having E&O and Professional Liability Insurance coverages. Find an insurance carrier that understands the staffing industry! A list can be found under insurance providers for the American Staffing Association (www.americanstaffing.net). If you are a start-up, you may have to contact your state’s Insurance Fund to get your first Workers Comp policy. However, once you have an established business, you may be able to gain insurance from a private insurance carrier. Again, make sure you are dealing with a broker or agent that understands what your company and the staffing industry.
6. Determine Your Funding Needs - Without proper funding, your business is going nowhere. Understanding that you have to lay out money to incorporate your business, buy insurance, get an office location, purchase or lease equipment, purchase office supplies will get you to the point of opening your business. At that point, now you have to hire employees. They will be on your payroll and covered by your insurance. Now you need to place them on assignment and they expect to be paid weekly or bi-weekly. Once you bill for your services, it may take 30, 60, up to 90 days to get paid from your clients. You will have to carry that payroll for up to 90 days, unless you have a funder who will carry that payroll for you. You may have put up your savings to get the business off the ground, but if it takes off, you may run into a cash crunch fairly quickly. There are several options to cover your payrolling and working capital costs, but again you will need to find a funding source that understands your business and is able to fund your business based on the volume of business you generate. Banks these days are being very cautious about who they lend funds to, so I would recommend your finding a receivables financing company that specializes in the staffing industry. If you don’t enjoy the administrative functions of running a business, or would like to outsource your back office (billing, payroll, payroll tax) functions, some funders exclusive to staffing will not only finance your business, but take on the back office piece.
7. Market Your Services - Once your business is set up, now is the time to start marketing your services to potential clients. Some folks already have target companies in mind, based on prior business relationships. Warm calls and referral business is always preferred to cold calls, but when you are getting started, you have to utilize any methods to pick up new business. Joining social networks such as Linkedin, Twitter, Facebook, or others is a great place to start. Use your existing contacts to leverage other contacts. Let everyone you know that you have a started a new business venture that you are excited about and want to share. Network, Network, Network.
8. Find Candidates / Employees - In days past, the only way to find candidates was to pick up the phone and call into companies, or run a newspaper ad. There’s something to be said about those methods, but with the advent of the internet, social networks, job boards, etc., finding candidates has changed. Posting jobs to Monster, Careerbuilder, Dice, The Ladders, is great, if you can afford to subscribe to those services. Networking through Linkedin, Twitter, Facebook, and other social networks can be as effective, and much less expensive. Joining professional organizations such as The Amercian Staffing Association, local staffing organizations, or attending trade shows / staffing conferences can bring credibility to your organization, and provide excellent networking opportunities.
9. Become an Expert - People like to deal with professionals they feel comfortable with, view as an expert in their field, and provide value to the relationship. Take the time to learn about the industry, your specialty recruitment areas, and the clients you plan to call on. View each sales call as a job interview. Be prepared to discuss your prospective client’s company as if you planned on working there. Know their business, study their history, become familiar with their culture. If you are viewed as an expert in the industry, especially in your field, then it becomes a matter of finding out if your prospective client can afford your bill rate and if you can add value to their organization.
10. Repeat the Process - If you take the proper steps to set up your company correctly, then it’s a matter of building out your company. You may want to start small, then take on new business slowly. Or, if the opportunity presents itself, you may be able to capture unique opportunities to grow your business quickly. Remember to define your market, know your strengths, find an suitable funding source, and network, network, network.
If you would like to discuss your situation, please feel free to give Dale Busbee, Business Development, Sterling Resource Funding Corp a call at (985) 641-8817 or via email dbusbee@sterlingresourcefunding.com
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