Archive for the ‘Products’ Category
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Shutter Index: Bringing a Thaw to Er / Ee Relations
Our .02 Cents
The Challenge
It’s fair to say both employers and employees, in most instances, enter into workplace arrangements with the best intentions, full of goodwill… a heartfelt handshake is struck at the outset, with both parties excited at the prospects of a healthy, productive and lasting relationship. But beneath the surface loom potential problems. Employees start to ask questions (”Why isn’t my paystub correct?” “What are these deductions for?”); wage disputes can occur and escalate; costly violations of various federal anti-discrimination and labor protection laws can ensue, etc. In short, what once started out so promising soon turns into a nightmare scenario.
The Solution
Shutter Index, a product of PDR Holdings, can help. Relational in nature, Shutter Index facilitates – and in many ways enhances – the quality of interactions between employees and employees. The goal is to turn workers into active participants in a business rather than passive observers, as well as mitigate if not eliminate many of the potential downstream problems (when things go wrong) lurking just below the surface of employer-employee relations.
In more detail, Shutter Index leverages an intuitive, online technology that enables companies and their workers to interact in an entirely unique way – one that is more informed, more involved and in many way more meaningful (a common platform and language). Workplace expectations are more clearly set and followed through upon, better lines of communications achieved. The end result is an engaged workforce and an empowered employer.
Learn more … shutterindex.com 877 – 766 – 6032
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State Tax Collection Efforts Getting More Aggressive
As this article highlights, it’s getting harder and harder for people to avoid the Tax Man. Many states now have greater access to data warehouses and IT systems that compile detailed information from a variety of sources… real estate transactions, traffic tickets, etc., and they are aggressively acting upon it, initiating more investigations and audits. As well, more employers are being forced to be more vigilant when it comes to accurately withholding state taxes for employees who work in multiple states. “There’s 50 states out there and 50 different laws,” said Nola Wills, senior vice president and chief compliance officer at Harbor America, a financial services company near Houston. “It’s difficult for a small business to have all the information and resources to know that. In most cases their C.P.A. doesn’t know that, either.” Payday Resources can help navigate this tax collection maze. Contact us today to learn more.
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Partnering with Employers to Address Employee Financial Pressures
A Distressed and Distracted Workforce, Tough Times
Are your employees anxious? Increasingly preoccupied, even despondent while at work? Are you noticing drops in productivity and absenteeism rates higher than usual? If so, your employees’ personal financial worries and troubles may be contributing to such disengagement… employees simply overwhelmed by money problems, problems that don’t go away once they clock in and ones that can negatively impact the workplace.When employees face cash emergencies, commonly they turn to a quick fix – namely, payday loan companies, which discourage rapid loan repayment (frequent rollovers) and send unpaid loan balances to collections. Beyond the downside of a distressed and distracted workforce, employers waste valuable time processing tedious wage garnishments tied to employee debt obligations. Shutter Lending has charted an entirely new and innovative way forward, one that we feel is most beneficial to employers and employees alike.
Emergency Funding as a Benefit (EFB) – Streamlined Pay Advances
Under the EFB program, employees are loaned funds only in amounts that can be paid back via a direct payroll deduction on their next paycheck. As a result, the common downward spiral of mounting debt (fees compiling, continuing to add up and headed toward costly collections actions) associated with traditional short-term lending is avoided. Borrowers can benefit from reduced fee schedules, and have their advances conveniently deposited directly (within minutes of being approved) onto a payroll or debit card or into a bank account.Informed Spending/Buying as a Benefit (ISB) – Dollars Stretched to Greatest Effect
Shutter Lending further ties in various product-based deals and discounts through its ISB program, enabling employees to stretch their hard-earned dollars when making personal buying decisions. This includes at-a-glance comparative pricing, access to preferred networks of retailers and vendors and more. Credit repair/counseling and other related services (debt management strategies, savings tips) also are available, aimed at promoting more informed and responsible financial decision-making among your workforce.Here’s How It Works
To take advantage of the EFB and ISB programs, a participating employer (or other relevant third-party agency) allows Shutter Lending access to employee information via integration with payroll and/or time and attendance software. Once this technical coordination has occurred, employees will be directed toshutterlending.com, where emergency funds will be made available upon completing a simple, three-step process: Registration, Application, Approval.Learn more: info@shutterlending.com, Tel: 877-766-6032 Fax: 801-404-5245
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Shutter Index … Data Management with an HR Twist
The Power of Automation
Payday Resources (PDR) has launched Shutter Index (SI), an online HR hub for managing employment activity.
Supporting PDR’s larger HR service offering to clients, SI leverages cutting-edge technology to enable companies and their workers to interact in an entirely unique way… one that is more informed, more involved and in many ways more meaningful (a common platform and language). The end result is an engaged workforce and an empowered employer.
After all, an engaged employee is likely to be more cooperative and productive, a worker who has gotten beyond the clock-in clock-out mentality and is actively contributing to the ongoing success of the company. SI sets expectations at the outset (after the employment “handshake” is struck) between employers and employees, helping to make workers active participants in the business rather than just passive observers.
In particular, SI uses Application Programming Interfaces (APIs), as well as setup wizards, to organize and structure (essentially, warehouse) most aspects of work-related data in digital format.
Among other things, with SI in place, employers are able to:
- Complete new hire paperwork
- Update (and archive) employee information
- Track employees performance across their lifecycle
- Leverage a vast HR Library of support materials
Employees can:
- Download paystubs and W2s
- Review hours worked
- Acknowledge disciplinary actions
- Submit time off requests
Technology-Driven
As exemplified by the SI product, PDR has made substantial investments in developing a technology-rich information systems infrastructure, with online applications at the fore. Our aim is to make data more accessible and thus more impactful (data making sense) for clients, the right information driving the right workforce decisions.
Visit www.shutterindex.com or contact your Sales Rep to learn more.
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Transparent and Responsible Payday Lending
For financially-strapped people with pressing cash needs — a growing number these days, those living paycheck to paycheck — often the only place to turn to for help are payday loan companies. These companies, numbering over 24,00 in 2008 as compared to just 300 in 1992, can end up victimizing their customers by engaging in predatory lending… charging exorbitant rates (30-38% per term); discouraging rapid loan repayment (frequent rollovers); and sending unpaid loan balances to aggressive, no-holds-barred debt collection agencies.
Under such conditions, a short-term loan of a few hundred dollars can soon morph into a year-long (or even years-long) nightmare — a recurring debt burden that continues to accumulate interest at tremendous additional cost to an already cash-constrained borrower struggling to stay afloat and make ends meet. As one payday loan customer, after paying back $1100 on a $800 loan (across a two-week term), described: “It just seems like a lot of interest to pay back.”
Not surprisingly, and justifiably so, Congress has introduced bills, yet to be enacted, that attempt to better regulate this industry, three in the House and one in the Senate. (Click here and here to review two leading proposals.)
As described in earlier blog posts, PDR has partnered with Shutter Lending to chart an entirely new way forward — advocating active employer involvement in structuring pay advances via the Emergency Funding Benefit (EFB) Program. Our primary goal is to facilitate transparent and responsible lending, taking the view that employers are uniquely (perhaps best) positioned to help provide their employees with the money they need to meet short-term emergency needs; after all, a company is only as good as its workforce.
To date, the EFB approach has proven tremendously successful — a win-win for employers and employees alike.
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Nucea – A One-Stop Medical Club
A Unique Approach
Nucea Health and Fitness, based in Lindon, Utah, and a PDR partner company, is changing the way health and fitness is delivered, a one-stop “medical club” that combines a care clinic with a workout facility.
The brainchild of two brothers — Aaron and Dave Hartle, the former a nurse practitioner, the latter a physical fitness trainer — the company provides members (in a single setting) with access to a skilled and licensed clinical staff that can treat a number of common ailments: cough, cold and flu; minor illnesses and injuries; strains, sprains and stitches; school and sports physicals and exams, and more. Members also have access to on-site workout equipment — treadmills and elliptical machines, bikes and circuit machines, free weights, etc., allowing easier recovery from illness and injury and better fitness maintenance. Nucea also offers classes in general health and wellness, kid-focused fitness, and effective nutrition and weight-loss.
Meeting a Growing Need, Satisfied Customers
With employers increasingly dropping health coverage due to rising costs, Nucea is meeting a real need in the marketplace in a creative way, with plans to roll out the model to additional locations throughout Utah. “It totally fills the gap for us. I didn’t even know something like this existed,” commented Kristin Hess. She and her family are extremely satisfied members of Nucea Health and Fitness. Her husband, Garin, is a small business owner, with access only to high deductible insurance plan; these large, upfront costs often prevent her and her husband from providing the necessary medical care for their three kids, let alone themselves. “Because we have such a high deductible we often don’t go into the doctors office maybe as often as we should.”
This is where Nucea steps in. Company co-founder Aaron Hartle: “I don’t have insurance myself. We’re not big enough to provide insurance here [for our own staff]… So, I think there are a lot of people like me who need insurance or need some medical care… In our clinics, we take care of just about everything from a minor cough and cold, to stitches, to casting a broken bone.” David Hartle: “We want to have a gym in an area where we can train people to be healthier, give them work-out plans, and help them learn how to be healthy, so hopefully they don’t have to see [a medical professional] as much as they used to.”
A Benefit to Employers and Employees Alike
Added Cost Savings: Making a commitment to improving employee health saves a company an estimated $5 for every dollar invested based on Nucea research; as well, companies that offer a “medical club” stand to benefit financially in the form of fewer workplace injuries and lowered worker comp premiums (this proactive approach to employee health viewed favorably carriers).
Increased Employee Satisfaction, Loyalty: Attracting and retaining productive and satisfied employees is easier the more benefits an employer can provide — Nucea helps improve a workforce’s general well-being and outlook on life, which in turn fosters better relations among co-workers and improved morale.
Reduced Absenteeism: It makes sense… the healthier your employees the less likely they are to miss work; one study showed that weekly participation in supervised exercise reduced use of sick leave by an average of 4.8 days per person.
Membership Rates
Monthly Annual
Individual $35 $350
Couple $50 $500
Family $60 $600
*Corporate Rates Available
PDR believes clients of ours and their employees would benefit greatly from looking into this innovative approach to improving the well-being of a company’s workforce… indicative of a larger trend of employers paying more attention to the health of their workforce. Click here and here to read more.
Additional press coverage of Nucea can be found here and here.
Update, Oct 8, 2009: Time to Get Moving: This blog only adds more ammunition to the argument that companies should be pushing for a healthier workforce — especially given the strong possibility of new federal health care legislation. As the blog notes, “provisions in health care legislation under consideration in Congress would allow employers and insurers to offer premium discounts of as much as 50 percent to employees in workplace wellness programs who meet specific health targets, such as keeping their weight, cholesterol and blood pressure within healthy ranges.”
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Shutter Lending – Streamlined Pay Advances
Payday Resources (PDR) has partnered with Shutter Lending to launch an innovative short-term lending product that directly benefits employers and employees alike.
Under the Emergency Funding Benefit (EFB) Program, eligible employees of participating PDR companies are loaned funds only in amounts that can be paid back via a direct payroll deduction on their next paycheck; in other words, lending is based on actual wages earned and not credit history.
As a result, the common and costly downward spiral of mounting debt (rolled over balances; fees compiling, adding up over time) associated with traditional payday lending is avoided — the EFB Program is the very definition of responsible borrowing.
Other elements that directly benefit participating employees of PDR clients include: easy application and approval (99% of loans funded); a less invasive, hassle-free experience (private); reduced fees as compared to other payday lenders, traditional banks (overdraft fees). The EFB Program is intended for people who are actively employed and in good standing at their place of work.
To elaborate, in today’s challenging economic environment, absent any savings or access to alternate financial resources (e.g., generous friends and families), many people face increasingly dire financial circumstances — the stressful predicament of how to come up with short-term cash to cover everyday needs and unplanned emergencies… a child’s medical bill, car repairs, utilities, a week’s worth of groceries, etc.
The situation described above sets the stage for people (possibly your employees) to be taken advantage of by unscrupulous payday lenders that engage in predatory lending practices.
By offering the EFB Program to employees, companies generate goodwill among their workforce. Already underway, PDR is excited to build on the early success of the EFB Program.
And for your employees, the lending process itself — quite literally — couldn’t be easier; in fact, it’s as easy as 1-2-3 … a three-step approach that is entirely automated and handled online at shutterlending.com.
Step 1… Registration/Signup
Step 2… Application Processed
Step 3… Approval/Get PaidYour employee then receives the short-term funds they need.
Employees currently using the Shutter system give it a big thumbs up.
“The loan process is very simple at Shutter Lending. They don’t ask for much. The staff is friendly and the rates are low. I’ve used other payday loan companies in the past but they don’t compare to what I’ve experienced at Shutter. I don’t plan to go anywhere else.”
–Francisco
“Sometimes emergencies happen and bills need to get paid before you get your paycheck. I like how easy it is to work with Shutter Lending. The process is simple and straightforward and the rates are low. The best thing is that the amount I borrow is automatically deducted from my next paycheck. I don’t have to worry about making payments or falling behind on what I owe, dealing with collections. I like that the process they describe upfront is exactly what happens. I trust them and would recommend them to anyone looking for an advance.”
–Lori
“I like using Shutter. The amount I borrow comes right out of my next paycheck so I don’t ever end up paying any additional interest. I feel they treat me well and with respect. And I like that the process they describe upfront is exactly what happens. I trust them and would recommend them to anyone looking for an advance.”
–Chad
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Immigration Compliance – A Way Forward
Fear Factor: A Complicated Regulatory Landscape
Businesses have long been required to review and keep record of their employees’ paperwork, including verifying worker eligibility (I-9 form). Only recently, however, as the immigration debate has heated up, have federal authorities applied added scrutiny and enforcement pressure on employers. Under the Bush administration, rigid enforcement of rules tied to responding to Social Security Administration “no-match” letters (vigorously contested in the courts by employer groups) were close to being implemented — up until the Obama administration decided to halt this approach in the late summer of 2009. The new administration instead has focused on strict i-9 compliance at the employer level, also choosing to target law firms that have obtained Visas fraudulently, with less attention now being paid to pursuing disruptive workplace raids (e.g. Swift).
Some states are aggressively targeting businesses that knowingly hire undocumented workers—revoking business licenses (Arizona), requiring employers to verify social security numbers (Colorado, Georgia, Utah). Companies found employing undocumented workers can be heavily fined, and their owners and managers may even face felony charges. If there ever was a time to get your business in order, and make the most informed decisions, it’s now.
Safe Harbor: A Proactive Plan of Action
Working closely with client companies, PDR strives to ensure the accuracy and completeness of employee paperwork and records. As part of a larger HR product offering, particular attention is paid to safeguard compliance with the recommendations and requirements of government agencies—at both state and federal levels, especially in relation to verifying worker eligibility.
More broadly, PDR offers clients a variety of tools and resources, as well as information and education, which assist them in navigating a maze of different, ever-changing and often times confusing employment rules and regulations. The cumulative effect of these proactive measures is to help our client companies put in place a set of policies and procedures that fall within accepted business standards and contribute to a well-run organization.
Contact us to learn more: 801.404.5241
Good-Faith Efforts Help Mitigate Employer Liability
“DHS fully considers all of an employer’s attempts to verify employment authorization status and to employ only authorized workers in determining whether to pursue actions. All of these good-faith efforts mitigate against sanctions [and] provides a distinct safe-harbor provision if an employer follows the specified procedures…”
Update 10.21.09: House OK’s Three-Year Extension of E-Verify program
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SwipeClock – Time to Get on Board
SwipeClock is an innovative online time and attendance solution for businesses of all sizes, large and small.
Track employee labor via a mountable time clock unit. Employees can clock in/out with the swipe of a badge, through a personal PIN code, or a SSN. Employees may also simply clock in/out online via their PC with the web clock. Whether you make use of the traditional badge swipe or your employees clock in from their computer, you can enjoy a solution, or network of solutions, that make managing your labor more efficient.
By eliminating the time that’s required to manually calculate time card data, the cost of human error and the large expense associated with employee time theft (dishonesty), SwipeClock more than pays for itself. It offers companies a simple, affordable solution, an excellent investment for any company.
Here at PDR we, as well as at a number of client worksites, have been using SwipeClock for some time and have been able to correctly track employees hours. Extremely convenient and easy to setup and use, we encourage all our clients to implement SwipeClock into their operations — you will be better able to track and log all employee time worked in an accurate and affordable manner.
Click here for a demo of the product. Enter ONLINE as the login, DEMO as the password.
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Emergency Funding Benefits (EFB) Program
Partnering with Employers to Address Employee Financial Pressures
Tough Economic Times
More and more workers, facing increasingly difficult financial circumstances, are starting to barely scrape by… in fact, according to a recent CareerBuilder survey of 4,400 workers, six-in-ten (61 percent) of workers report they “always” or “usually” live paycheck to paycheck just to make ends meet, up from 49 percent last year and 43 percent in 2007. Three-in-ten (30 percent) workers with salaries of $100,000 or more report that they too live paycheck to paycheck, up from 21 percent in 2008.
These employers increasingly are starting to ask their employers directly for financial help, no longer just relying on friends and family. One survey showed 20% of business owners are reporting increased requests for employee pay advances — more dollars, more often… a sign of desperate workers struggling in desperate times.
While companies tend to want to do right by their employees, and some are starting to help educate financially-troubled workers, many don’t feel comfortable advancing them money ahead of payday — due to past experience (getting burned), general discomfort and / or cash flow concerns of their own. (Many businesses themselves are struggling to survive.) Workers, with nowhere to turn, often are left to borrow money from payday lenders.
An Industry in Transition, Facing Added Regulation
Some facts: Payday loans represent a $28 billion industry; each year, 10 million households borrow from a payday loan store; the average customer makes $41,000; typical loan amounts are between $300 and $1500. The meteoric growth of the payday lending industry can be seen on most street corners. A new facility (e.g., Check City, EZ Loan stores) seems to pop up every few weeks — indicative of an important service fulfilling growing consumer demand for short-term loans.
But this growth has not come without criticism and scrutiny, in many ways justifiably so. Accused of engaging in predatory lending practices (misinformation, aggressive tactics, exorbitant rates), many government agencies at all levels (local, state, federal) have begun regulating payday lending companies — instituting interest rate caps, restricting the number of facilities in a given area, etc. Some states (such as New York) have outlawed short-term lending altogether.
Streamlined Pay Advances
Unlike traditional short-term lending, PDR, in partnership with Shutter Lending, has charted an entirely new and innovative way forward — one that we feel is more beneficial to all parties involved.
Under the Emergency Funding Benefits (EFB) program, employees are loaned funds (at a discounted rate) only in the amount that can be paid back via a direct payroll deduction on their next paycheck. As a result, the common downward spiral of mounting debt (fees compiling, continuing to add up over time), is avoided. Moreover, responsible return borrowers can also benefit from reduced fee schedules.
A Win-Win-Win for All Involved
By offering the EFB program to employees, companies generate goodwill among their workforce. Employees experience a hassle-free and private application process; receive preferential pricing (as compared to other payday lender fees, traditional bank overdraft charges); and avoid costly debt cycles. Shutter gains access to a large pool of customers and lowers its default rate due to an improved wage verification process.
Already underway, PDR is excited to build on the early success of the EFB program. Call us today 801.404.5241 to learn more.
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