We are here for you!
Needless to say, last week was a very trying week, but also a rewarding week as well! I am here for you!
Many of you are asking so many excellent questions. The most popular question is, “I have paid my last payroll for March 2020, what should I do”?
As you know, each situation is different. Some of you are continuing to pay your teams. Some have decided to pay their teams their paid-time off hours (PTO). Some of you have stopped paying your teams. That is all fine. Please keep in mind, if you eventually suggest to your teams to file for unemployment, your message should be consistent with all of your employees. You should put the message in writing , either via group e-mail or group text e-mail. Below is a suggested letter that you may send. Please keep in mind, I am not a labor attorney; you should run this by your HR attorney before releasing it. The letter is merely an accommodation and a suggestion.
######################
Dear Employee,
Because of the current crisis, we have decided to close the dental office at this time. As a result and as your employer, I (we) have decided to lay you off from your current employment with_____________________ DDS, DMD, EIN#______________, effective Monday, March 23, 2020.
We are encouraging you to file for (Maryland, District of Columbia, Virginia, West Virginia, North Carolina, Texas, Missouri ) unemployment at this time. Here is the website that you should use to file your unemployment claim. Please note, our last payroll date is _______________.
Maryland
District of Columbia
Virginia
West Virginia
North Carolina
Texas
Missouri
Please acknowledge receipt of this letter by indicating your signature and date below and return a copy to us for your personnel file.
Very truly yours,
________________________________, DDS, DMD
#####################
Once again, I am not a HR attorney, so please be sure to have your HR attorney approve the above.
Stimulus Package
We are still waiting to hear about the Federal “$1 Trillion Dollar Stimulus Package”. As I mentioned on the MSDA webinar on Friday, March 20, 2020, it is my understanding the Stimulus Package could include up to 4 months of your payroll. THIS IS UNCONFIRMED at this time, for there is currently a major debate going on within Congress. The $1 trillion could in fact be $2 trillion…we simply do not know…we have to wait and be patient!
My point of bringing up the Stimulus Package is this: the whole unemployment issue could be a “non-issue” because the Stimulus Package may include a “government loan” whereby the Federal Government will reimburse our payrolls. Please remember, Schiff & Associates is in this with you because 99% of our client base are all dentists…like you!
Finally, I want to emphasize to each of you that you must remain calm, remain confident, and have positive “themes” within all of your correspondence with your teams. Together we shall overcome this crisis!
If you have specific questions, please email me (aschiff@schiffcpa.com). I will respond as quickly as possible.
Wishing you the very best,
Allen Schiff, CPA, CFE
Schiff & Associates, LLC
