business interruption

In many cases, the reasons for letting someone go are quite obvious and difficult for employers to ignore. This includes things that can be measured, like a decline in performance made clear by shrinking sales numbers and frequent absences. Then there are the ones that are witnessed or reported from other workers, such as poor team dynamics and low overall morale.
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Business is a great way to supplement your income, pursue your passions, or build a foundation for a future full-time venture. However, it's important to be aware of the risks involved before you take the plunge.
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Both business owners and employees have likely heard of OSHA, which stands for the Occupational Safety and Health Administration, a federal agency that sets and enforces safety regulations to ensure a safe and healthy working environment for employees.
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No matter what part of the country you live in, summertime is when service industry businesses are in full swing. The nice weather brings people out, it's when many try to tackle home improvement projects, kids are out of school, and families tend to travel more it's an action-packed time of year.
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Now that the tax deadline for 2022 has passed, as a business owner, you might be left thinking about ways to make it easier when the next one rolls around. Since many are busy enough actually running the business, it's easy to push the accounting work to the side, which is fine... until tax season approaches. By then, you have a mammoth job ahead of you.
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As a business owner in Illinois, you have the option of hiring contract or permanent employees – and many more businesses are using contract workers while sorting out the uncertainty in the economy. A contract employee is essentially a freelancer who has agreed to work for you for a mutually-agreed upon period of time, which may be extended if you see fit. A permanent employee has been hired with the understanding that he or she will go on working for you until a termination or a resignation. Both types of employees have their advantages and disadvantages. Some of the advantages of contract employees, however, are illusory.
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Successful small businesses are often the result of the proverbial blood, sweat, and tears of the owner. They require no small measure of risk, sacrifice, and commitment. Long hours, unpredictability, increased responsibility, financial insecurity, and a host of other factors all make running a small business a challenging and taxing endeavor.
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Over the last decade, there's been a shift in the workplace, one that prioritizes the health and happiness of employees. For large corporations, like Facebook and Google, that might include time allotted to working out each week in an on-site facility, and for most, it's meant a shift in work schedules from in-person office time to hybrid models. This new "business as usual" allows increased personal freedom and an improved work-life balance for many. However, for managers, it has necessitated an overhaul of procedures to ensure traditionally effective business standards are met.
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There's no getting around the fact that many jobs require desk time, and for many people, that means eight-plus hours a day just sitting. In an ideal world, a life complete with regular yoga practice, chiropractic adjustments, strength training, constitutionals, ideal nutrition, and relaxing massages might be the obvious solution. But few can support such luxuries. Still, adjustments must be made to the sedentary necessities of the grind if it's to continue, well, grinding. Here are a few simple solutions to the desk debacle:
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Remote work options, both fully and hybridized off-and-on site iterations have overtaken traditional office models, studies have shown that it can have adverse effects on some employees' mental health. The American Psychiatric Association (APA) conducted a comprehensive online survey in the spring of 2021 of 1,000 remote workers' self-reported mental health, and the majority reported negative impacts on their mental health. In fact, Since transitioning to a remote model; isolation and loneliness, in particular, were noted by nearly two-thirds of respondents.
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The appeal of freelance, contract work, and work-from-home careers is broad and deep, including the unlimited opportunity for financial growth, unfettered freedom, flexible schedules, the pursuit of personal goals, and the list goes on. And, while that's all as true as the day is long, so is the lack of structure and unmitigated personal accountability. For freelancers, time management is of the utmost importance. Without a strong commitment to making and keeping deadlines, responsibly managing workflow, and sticking to some sort of structured daily schedule, freelancing can spell personal and financial disaster.
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The "Great Resignation" and labor shortages throughout 2021 made recruiting and retaining employees a challenge for businesses across the country. And, while 2022 remains an employee's market, there's room for hope. The U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics' April 2022 jobs report showed that both the unemployment rate and participating labor force closely mirror pre-pandemic numbers, remaining steady at 3.6 percent and 62.2 percent, respectively.
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An impending lawsuit is never good news. Not only are they costly, but, perhaps worse, they can permanently damage a company's reputation, an expense no business can easily afford during highly competitive consumer and employee markets like the current. While companies are sued for a range of reasons, there are a few recurring culprits that can be avoided with appropriate planning, clear communication, and due diligence.
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When COVID-19 shut the entire world down two years ago, many wondered how businesses would pivot and persist. As closures and restrictions continued far beyond anyone's initial projections, it became obvious that "business as usual" was going to be anything but. And, while the transition to a remote model for schools and businesses throughout the world was an unprecedented shift with no real map for structure or outcomes, many made the adjustment with relative ease and found the remote model was not without benefit. Now, as the corporate world attempts a return to what was, it faces a number of concerns and considerations, not the least of which being a pool of employees that might rather remain remote.
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For small business owners, hiring and managing employees can be a rewarding but stressful part of the job. During uncertain times, maybe you need extra help but are thinking twice about committing to an official employee. So when should you hire, and when might an independent contractor or outsourcing company be a better fit? Here are some tips to guide that decision.
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Business Interruption Insurance (BII) is an often overlooked insurance coverage that protects against exposures to loss every bit is vital as fire or litigation.If your business is forced to close your risk is not limited to temporary loss of income, which can be devastating in and of itself.You also run the risk of losing customers who turn elsewhere for their product or service needs.You may have difficulty paying key suppliers during an income interruption causing further long term loss as those suppliers sever their business relationship with your company.
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Twenty five percent of the businesses forced to close due to a disaster or emergency never reopen. Smaller businesses are especially vulnerable because they do not typically have the resources to cover continuing expenses if income is interrupted. A business can greatly reduce the chances of a disaster becoming a death sentence for you business by planning ahead. Here's what you need to have in place.
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