Increased Government Scrutiny of Companies That Use Independent Contractors, Consultants, or Freelancers. Are You Ready?

San Francisco, CA (PRWEB) February 23, 2010 -- By popular demand, Collabrus (www.collabrus.com) will be hosting another executive breakfast briefing on March 17^th in San Francisco, California. The program is titled, “Increased Government Scrutiny - Are You Ready?” and focuses on how employers can gain all the benefits from using independent contractors or consultants while mitigating the risks of employee misclassification and co-employment.

Using independent contractors has become a vital component of workforce planning in today’s marketplace. But this contingent workforce can expose organizations to significant risk. The IRS, EDD and numerous other government agencies have made tracking down misclassified independent contractors a top priority. Their motivation is to close what they call the “Tax Gap” – the billions of dollars per year in income taxes and unpaid employment taxes that are not collected due to the misclassification of workers. The combined back taxes, penalties and interest a company may face for violations can reach into the millions of dollars.
 
"Employers are now facing the perfect storm here in California," said Kimball Norup, SVP and General Manager of Collabrus. "The combination of highly compensated independent contractors, money-starved regulatory agencies, and a volatile job market make this a perilous time for companies that use contingent labor. As we continue to emerge from the recession and the US economy begins to enter a cautious recovery mode, we're finding that many executives want to learn about solutions which enable them to mitigate their risks and lower the costs associated with using contingent labor."

The event is tailored to senior executives in Human Resources, Finance, Procurement, and Legal from Bay Area companies who use contingent labor. At the briefing attendees will learn:

* Critical facts about the current regulatory environment
* Basic differences between an employee and an independent contractor

* The most common triggers for an employment tax compliance audit

* The potential financial implications of being audited
* Simple steps to take which mitigate the risks involved with using independent contractors

The featured speaker will be Mr. Walter Branam. Walt has over 30 years experience working with tax and labor issues through his audit and management work at the California Employment Development Department (EDD). As a former Tax Auditor, Tax Administrator, EDD’s first Taxpayer Rights Advocate and designer of the EDD’s Settlement Program, Walt’s knowledge of Federal and State employment laws, regulations, and audit criteria provides valuable insight into how to prevent worker misclassification. Walt has been a keynote speaker with the California Bar Association, Committee on Taxation, and a highly requested speaker by numerous professional groups. Walt brings his expertise to the private sector as the in-house Specialist for Compliance Services at Collabrus Inc.

More details on the event can be found online: http://www.collabrus.com/events.html

Who: Human Resources, Finance, Procurement, Legal executives at all Bay Area companies who use contingent labor

What: Complimentary breakfast briefing that will educate attendees on the issues and solutions, including a Q&A session with our world-class compliance expert

When: Wednesday, March 17, 2010. 9:00 – 10:30am. Breakfast served at 8:30am, program begins promptly at 9:00am.

Where: The Boardroom, San Francisco Chamber of Commerce, 235 Montgomery Street, 12^th floor, San Francisco, CA

RSVP: If you are interested in attending this briefing please contact: Ashley O’Hagan, 415-288-1826 x221, by email: aohagan@collabrus.com, on online: www.collabrus.com/events.html

There is no cost to attend, but space is limited, so make sure you sign up early. This event has been approved for 1.5 HRCI credits.

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Contact:

Kimball Norup

knorup@collabrus.com

415-288-1826 x230