Did you know you need to have workers’ compensation coverage as soon as you hire a single employee in New Jersey? If your worker gets injured on the job and you don’t have coverage, the penalties and potential lawsuits could destroy your business.
NetPEO has helped many companies find a PEO to help them stay compliant with regulations like workers’ compensation. If you need workers’ compensation services, our New Jersey PEO can help you get the coverage you need.
When do I Need to Get Workers’ Compensation Coverage?
If you are the principal owner of a sole proprietor, partner, or member of an LLC, you do not need workers’ compensation coverage. You must have coverage as soon as you hire an employee, whether full-time or part-time, or when you hire or name corporate officers.
Workers’ compensation protects you by allowing employees to get compensation for injuries and illnesses without going to court. It is a no-fault system. As long as both sides fulfill their responsibilities, your employee can get financial compensation without affecting your business.
As an employer, you’ll need to know what to do when a workers’ compensation claim comes. If you have coverage through one of our PEOs, you’ll also have an expert team of HR professionals to handle questions about the compensation process.
More Than an Insurer
A PEO isn’t an insurance broker. It’s a way for businesses to get expert HR and payroll help on their staff without the cost of hiring someone full-time. It’s also superior to outsourcing because PEOs operate under a co-employment system.
Once a PEO has multiple clients, they can pool all those employees like a single company. Then they can approach insurers and benefits providers and get far better rates and superior insurance policies.
One struggle of small businesses is the cost of paying for workers’ compensation insurance, but you can dramatically reduce costs by using our New Jersey PEOs workers’ compensation services while gaining access to a lot more.
Can I Just Get a Few Services?
Partnering with a PEO doesn’t mean you have to turn over your entire HR and payroll department to them. NetPEO’s system lets you choose services a la carte as your business grows. You have the flexibility to shrink or expand services as your business changes.
Some things that our clients ask us to help them with include complicated tasks like:
- Benefits administration
- Payroll and tax compliance
- Regulatory compliance
- Company policy creation and enforcement
- Creation of employee handbooks
- Workers’ compensation
- Recruitment and onboarding
If it falls into the HR or the payroll department, there’s a PEO that can provide that service for you. Once you have one, you can stop worrying about those tasks and turn your attention back to making your business more profitable.
Where does NetPEO Fit in?
NetPEO is a PEO, but we’re also a PEO broker. We have one of the largest PEO networks nationwide. We help businesses of all sizes find PEOs that match their needs and industry niche. Not all PEOs are suited for all industries!
One thing that sets us apart from other PEO brokers is that we have a continual feedback process to see how the relationship is working. If you’re unhappy with your PEO, NetPEO will help you find a better one and assist with the transition.
We also give feedback to the PEOs in our brokerage about what clients are looking for from their partnerships. This creates a feedback loop of continual improvement. It’s no wonder that we have one of the highest satisfaction rates in the industry!
Workers’ Compensation and Independent Contractors in New Jersey
Even if you have someone working for you as an independent contractor, you may still be required to offer workers’ compensation coverage in New Jersey. You might be familiar with the federal definition of an independent contractor, but New Jersey takes a broader approach.
If you already have a business running with independent contractors and don’t have coverage, you could be out of compliance. In fact, even if your workers are unlawfully employed, you’re still required to cover them under New Jersey law!
Situations like this are why having a New Jersey PEO workers’ compensation service with HR experience to contact is important. They know the regulations and how to get your business compliant with the law before an injury happens.
Penalties for Failure to Insure in New Jersey
New Jersey takes failure to insure seriously. If the government discovers you didn’t get it willfully, you’ll get charged with a crime. The penalties for non-coverage for each uninsured employee is up to $5,000 for the first ten days and $5,000 for each ten-day period thereafter. That’s with no injuries!
If you don’t have insurance and get sued successfully, you and your business will be directly liable for medical expenses, disability, and dependency benefits. You’ll also get civil penalties. These costs can become liens against your business and your assets, including all partners and corporate officers.
The state even has a reporting portal for employees to notify the state when their employer doesn’t offer workers’ compensation. So don’t put off getting coverage! Let our New Jersey PEOs help you get workers’ compensation, so you don’t get hit with these penalties.
Talk to NetPEO About Workers’ Compensation Services
Get a free quote from NetPEO about getting workers’ compensation services by filling out our online request form or calling the number on your screen. We’ll schedule a consultation about workers’ compensation and what you need to do to get compliant.
Remember, you only have 10 days to get covered after hiring your first employee before you face significant penalties! If you’ve looked at the insurance market and hated the prices you saw, you could far better rates by partnering with a PEO.
See how much you can save on workers’ compensation services in New Jersey through NetPEO. Call today.
