Payroll/Employee Leasing Companies - Who Do You Use? What Do You Think?

moviml8

Hi,

After looking at this site and reading some damn good advice from a lot of different posts, I thought I might ask for your experience.

I am a painting contractor in Florida. I know how to paint, sell jobs, and serve customers. The administrative/employee management side of the business is a HUGE headache

I have asked around and a few other contractors use a PEO/Employee leasing company. I understand they can lower my costs on payroll taxes, give me a break on my workers comp and offer my guys benefits that I cannot and also protect me from employee related suits.

Sounds pretty damn good.

What do you do? Who do you use?

One guy I spoke with was a broker and he represents like 14 other Employee Leasing Companies.

He can get these companies to compete for my business, so i do not have to call them and listen to some sales pitch.

Any thoughts or recommendations would be great!

Charles Bagley

Do you really want to put your financial destiny in someone elses control?

moviml8

Charles,

You bring up a good point. I tell ya, my experience has been usually when i ask for infomation I get advice from a drywaller, who knows this plumber who his ex girlfriends brother was a roofer and knew this insurance guy...

What I am finding out is, I know ahell of a lot about my buiness, at least the profit generating pieces, but i am not strong on the non profit generating pieces..

And when i read like in INC magazine and other places about these PEO companies...it starts to sound pretty good.

Susan Betz

We use Southeast Personnel Leasing. They are one of the largest, if not the largest, personnel leasing companies in the country.

They cover everything, including workman's comp. The charge is nominal. There is a minimum payroll requirement but it's like $1500/week (don't quote me on that).

I have had nothing but good experiences with them so far. You deal with the same payroll tech week after week, so you're never left in outer space when something comes up.

We actually switched from doing it ourselves to this company on the advice of our CPA.

__________________
Fences of Distinction, Ocala, FL
http://www.fencesofdistinction.com

moviml8

Susan,

I am not far from your neck of the woods. I appreciate the tip about the CPA. I may ask who you use, my CPA recently shut down shop and I am way to disorganized to do it all myself.

Susan, I had heard about Southeast and this guy I was asking about

Michael Murray
First Place Employer Services

Represents 10 or so companies and has them compete for my business.
He has given me a few references to check. His company is also active in the PDCA.

Now what is interesting is Southeast wanted a set-up fee, they are charging me $1.00 per employee each week, have a delivery fee of almost 10 bucks and do not have the greatest Internet reporting.

A few if his references, all contractors, were at some point with SE.

This guy was able to lower their cost, eliminate the need for a set up fee, do away with a delivery fee and hook the company up with a real affordable benefit program that can be used to attract and retain good strong employees in this tough labor market.


I looked at his web site and it all seems legit, anything i should be aware of based on your experience?

Susan Betz

Adams and Booth. Great firm. Real people.

Just this: if it sounds too good to be true, it probably is.

__________________
Fences of Distinction, Ocala, FL
http://www.fencesofdistinction.com

moviml8

Susan,

I have checked refernces and he showed me three quotes and they are all strong...

Did you have a set up fee?

Do you have a delivery fee?

Sounds like you are pretty experienced in this.

As a painter my total payroll burden was around 24.00 a hundred

Susan Betz

Yes, we paid a setup fee, and pay a delivery fee. I can live with these fees. For us, it was important that we not get a fly-by-night operation.

If you're comfortable with your path, then follow it.

__________________
Fences of Distinction, Ocala, FL
http://www.fencesofdistinction.com

gregaxis

Axis Group is a qualified PEO broker, located in the heart of PEO country. The most powerful PEOs are based in Tampa, b/c this is where the industry first started in 1985. Everyone uses employee leasing here. We work with 2 PEOs, for example, that collectively process over 3 billion in FL payroll alone. And we work with several very large national PEOs. Some of the guys down here own their comp carriers, so they are in the driver's seat to price AND underwrite. So that means high rise window washing, tower maintenance, a roofer with a recent fatality, a startup tree trimmer - all are welcome here. We write a lot of brand name nationwide construction companies that have come to see Tampa as PEO nirvana.
Greg Arnold,

gregaxis

I did you see mention that you are in the area. FL? If so, when I run the numbers on a fairly small scale, I'm coming up with 22.34% as the most I would charge you.
7.65% FICA, 0.80% FUTA, 1.16% SUTA, 3% ADMIN, and that was with NO discount on Workers Compensation Insurance. Please contact my office if you would like for me to sharpen the pencil by providing specific details on your payroll size, # employees, loss history (I assumed you had zero losses).

Regards,

Greg Arnold

Pearce Services

Greg,

What you are offering on this site may be in conflict with the terms of use. That being said, I think you may be able to offer some knowledge to the many on this site that are looking to run our operations with less overhead.

If you can tone down the sales pitch, I think many people here would like to learn what they can from you.

In your earlier post, you mentioned the assumption that we have no losses against our WC Ins. If an accident occurred to one of your leased employees, how does that effect your price to us?