Nowadays, it’s so important to make sure that your business is and stays compliant with all the laws and regulations that affect it. Failure to do so can end in a lawsuit, a hefty fine, or in some cases, a jail term. All these outcomes will, of course, damage your reputation in your community, with your employees, and with your customers.
This could easily cost you your business if your indiscretions haven’t already lost you the ability to trade within the state that you were operating in. Therefore, if you want to avoid this, you need to be following these rules.
Table of Contents
1. Online accessibility
You need to make sure that your business is accessible to everyone; if it isn’t, you’re discriminating, which is a federal offense, and this is why you need to understand the importance of auditing accessibility. In order to perform an audit of your business’s online accessibility, you’re going to need some software tools built to highlight any barriers that may be present. Picking the right one is important, so you should seek the guidance of a specialist website when making this choice.
2. Labor laws and worker compensation
Having a competent HR department either in your business or outsourcing this department to a specialist company will help you stay compliant with labor laws, as this is one of the main areas that HR deals with. However, you’ll have to make sure that you supply a workers’ compensation pack in order to look after each employee’s well-being and have them feel valued. This is a state law, and you’ll find that every state across America issues this mandate. However, some states may allow businesses without employees to opt-out.
3. Health and safety
It’s up to you to keep your workforce safe while they’re working for you. This means providing them with the appropriate training and supplying them with all the protective clothing and equipment that they need to perform their job roles. You may find your business is subject to an OSHA inspection within working hours; if there’s an accident at your site, this inspection could well happen within the 24-hour period following the incident. Failure to comply can result in serious fines.
4. Finances and accounts
You’ll also need to make sure that you’re fully compliant and up to date with your taxes. A qualified accountant will be able to help you with this by auditing your books and ensuring that everything is in order. They’ll also be able to ensure that you pay the right amount of tax and that your payments are up to date. Late or nonpayment can result in penalties and added interest charges or levies.
A few final thoughts
It’s a good idea to ensure that your business fully complies with any law that’s imposed upon it. Federal law is aimed at the whole of America, whereas state laws apply only to the state that uses them. This doesn’t mean, however, that all states differ or, for that matter, are all the same. If you’re in any doubt about the law of the state that your business operates in, you should seek legal advice from a lawyer in that area.
