There is a new position that is crucial to every business, and most employers do not even know it exists. It is the Director of First Impressions.

Customers make critical decisions in a few crucial seconds. This means they will make a judgment about your organization and your brand regarding:

You may be wondering, are there any programs out there designed to curb unemployment? The answer is a resounding "Yes!"

Through a partnership with Workforce Florida, Inc, WORKFORCE plus has created an initiative called JOBS = PAYCHECKS NOW, a grant program designed to curb unemployment generated by the state's recent layoffs.

The program works in conjunction with On-The-Job Training. OJT provides opportunities for job seekers to obtain skills and work experience while employed that will improve their productivity and success in the workplace. The benefit for employers who offer OJT is they will receive a wage reimbursement totaling 50% of the new hires' first month salary (not to exceed $1,250.00) per job created.

How do you know if you can apply? If your business is located in Gadsden, Leon or Wakulla, you are eligible. You can be public, private or non-profit, but you must have at least two full-time employees.

The other requirements for participation are: Employers must create new, full-time jobs of 32 hours or greater; all positions must be posted on Employ Florida Marketplace; employers must provide OJT; the positions being created must not have been involved in a layoff over the last six months.

Employers will be reimbursed up to $625.00 after 90 days of job retention and up to an additional $625.00 after 120 days of job retention.

To apply, visit the JOBS=PAYCHECKS NOW website or call 1-866-WFP-JOB1.

Small and large businesses alike are required by the Federal Government to complete a Form I-9 for ALL new employees. For organizations fortunate enough to have a Human Resources Department, this is just another document that is part of the regular process of new hire orientation. For small, mom-and-pop operations, this isn't always the case. But even small businesses must follow the law and ensure compliance or face penalties.

Since 1986, when Federal immigration laws were updated, employers have been required to complete and maintain a Form I-9 for every newly hired employee. This form helps employers to verify that the new employee is authorized to work in the United States.

The problem is that either employers do not know about Form I-9 or they are unwilling to find out if their employees are documented to work in the United States.

Further, good-faith completion and maintenance of Form I-9 will aid the employer if the Department of Homeland Security's Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) agents request an I-9 audit. Since April 2009, under the Obama administration, this department's number of employer audits has significantly increased, and shows no sign of slowing down.

Under the Bush administration, it was typical to see large groups of unauthorized workers being herded away from manufacturing and processing plants on the evening news. Today, under the Obama administration, such raids are not occurring. Instead, ICE's stated priority is criminal or civil prosecution of employers. Additionally, fines for the even the most simple of errors on the forms can be very costly for employers with fines ranging from $110 to $1,100 per failure to correctly document. That means that each mistake made or incomplete field on the form is counted as a separate violation; so, fines quickly add up.

For example, in October 2010, Abercrombie & Fitch, a clothing retailer, settled on a fine of $1,047,110 with ICE because of the employer's failure to verify the employment eligibility of their workers, even though the audit did not reveal that the company had knowingly hired any illegal workers. In July 2009, a franchiser of a Subway restaurant was fined $111,078 for committing 108 I-9 violations, including improper form completion for 11 of the employees and failure to complete forms for the remaining 97 employees.


Another change under the Obama administration is the cooperation of ICE with other government enforcement agencies. ICE has joined forces with multiple government agencies such as the Dept. or Labor and the IRS to share resources. This may mean even more trouble for employers because an employer who is involved with a wage and hour audit may suddenly also have an ICE audit since investigators of these agencies are now cross-trained to recognize violations of laws enforced by the other agencies.


Ultimately, every employer is vulnerable. Take steps today to ensure that you are ready if your business is selected for an I-9 audit.


More information, including the correct process for completing Form I-9, can be found in the Handbook for Employers at: http://www.uscis.gov/files/form/m-274.pdf.