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Written Employment Contracts: Pros and Cons

There is no law that will tell you when to ask a new employee to sign a written employment contract, nor are there any hard-and-fast rules. The only thing that can be said for certain is that employment contracts are not for everyone or for every situation. Employment contracts can be beneficial when you want control over the employee's ability to leave your business or when the employee will be learning confidential information about your business. However, employment contracts limit your ability to alter the terms of employment.

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How can I convince an applicant's former employers to talk?

I run a small business, and am interested in hiring a salesperson. However, I'm finding it hard to get any real information from applicants' former employers -- all they seem to be willing to tell me is the applicant's title and dates of employment. How can I get more information out of these people?

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Hiring Your First Employee: 13 Things You Must Do

  1. Obtain an employer identification number.
  2. Register with your state's labor department.
  3. Get workers' compensation insurance.
  4. Set up a payroll system to withhold taxes.
  5. Have each employee fill out IRS Form W-4, Withholding Allowance Certificate.
  6. Fill out Form I-9, Employment Eligibility Verification for each new employee.
  7. Report each new employee to your state's new hire reporting agency.
  8. Post required notices.
  9. File IRS Form 940 each year.
  10. Adopt workplace safety measures.
  11. Create an employee handbook.
  12. Set up personnel files.
  13. Set up employee benefits.

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