Press

This past week Prestige visited Capitol Hill for the NAPEO PEO Capitol Summit. 

Partners Brian Lehmann, Alan Cooperberg, Andy Lubash and Jean Goldstein are photographed with Politician, Steve Israel (center).

Brian Lehmann, Alan Cooperberg, Andy Lubash and Jean Goldstein of Prestige are photographed with Politician, Steve Israel (center).

Prestige partners Alan Cooperberg and Andy Lubash meet with Rep. Peter King (R-NY)

Prestige partners Alan Cooperberg and Andy Lubash met with Rep. Peter King (R-NY)

 

On May 9, 2014, Prestige went live on the air with 103.9 LI News Radio’s Jay Oliver! 

Click Here to hear what happened! 

 

Bob Nolan, Business Development Manager at Prestige, LI News Radio’s Jay Oliver & Kerry Coulton, Marketing Coordinator at Prestige.


LI-NEWS-STUDIO1-300x218

103.9 LI News Radio Studio, MacArthur Airport

Long Islanders… Tune in daily to 103.9 News Radio to hear our advertisements! 

Supreme Court Ruling – Same Sex Marriage

 

Defense Of Marriage Act (DOMA) Supreme Court Decision

 On June 26, 2013, the U.S. Supreme Court ruled a section of the Defense of Marriage Act (DOMA) as unconstitutional. The ruling maintains that, effective immediately, same-sex couples who were legally wed in states that allow same-sex marriages should now be treated as legal spouses under the US Tax Code.  There is also a chance it may apply retroactively when further clarification on the ruling is released.  One caveat was that if a couple was married in a state that allows same sex marriage, but lives in a state that does not recognize same-sex marriage, the DOMA changes would not apply to them. Now, same-sex spouses are considered lawfully married under the Internal Revenue Code as long as the marriage is valid in the state where it was entered into – even if they reside in a state that does not recognize the validity of same-sex marriages.

 Health FSA (FSA) and Health Reimbursement Arrangement (HRA)

FSAs and HRAs may need to be extended to same-sex ‘legal’ spouse. The spouse’s expenses would now be eligible for reimbursement under an FSA and/or HRA.  In addition, the legal marriage or divorce of a same-sex couple would now be considered a qualifying event permitting elections to be changed.

 Dependent Care FSA (DCA)

The Dependent Care married income limit will now apply to legal same-sex couples.

 Health Savings Account (HSA)

The annual HSA family contribution limit applies to legal same-sex couples.

 COBRA

Same-sex spouses and their children will now be COBRA-qualified beneficiaries and may elect benefits upon an eligible COBRA qualifying event.

 Group Health Insurance

Employees with a same-sex spouse will no longer be required to pay income taxes on the cost of the spouse’s health coverage. Awaiting further guidance.

 States that allow same-sex marriage as of July 1, 2013 are: California, Connecticut, Delaware, Iowa, Maine, Maryland, Massachusetts, Minnesota, New Hampshire, New York, Rhode Island, Vermont, Washington, as well as District of Columbia.

 We will provide more information as it becomes available.

 

Long Island Business News

PEOs getting healthy on Obamacare

by Claude Solnik

Published: August 2nd, 2013

 While it’s too soon to identify all of the winners of the Affordable Care Act, here’s one early contender: professional employer organizations.

Better known as PEOs, the service firms got their start in the 1980s, offering payroll and other basic services to companies looking to outsource their business office. Since then, PEOs have expanded to include health insurance and administration, retirement plans, even recruiting.

There are now about 700 PEOs nationwide, according to the Alexandria, Va.,-based National Association of Professional Employer Organizations. NAPEO estimates PEOs insure as many as 6 million American workers and their families, with a steady stream of companies and individuals signing on annually.

The average firm using a PEO employs 19, although companies with as many as 1,000 workers also contract for their services.

The industry saw 2012 revenues rise to $92 billion – that includes client payrolls – a 13.6 percent jump since 2010, according to NAPEO. The biggest reason for the spike: the steady march of health-care reform.

While the PEO industry has been strongest in Texas, Florida and California, Long Island-based PEOs said they’re also seeing a surge of interest.

“We’ve never been busier,” said Andy Lubash, a principal of Prestige Employee Administrators in Melville, which represents 500 firms and more than 10,000 employees. “We’re getting calls from everywhere, all types, all sizes.”

Farmingdale-based Alcott HR Group now serves about 300 companies and 4,500 employees. Business is rapidly increasing in what the firm hopes is just the beginning of a boom.

“We‘ve been growing 10 percent-plus a year,” said Alcott CEO Lou Basso, who predicts more companies will go the PEO route as federal health requirements kick in. “It’s not just about cost or coverage. It’s about guiding them through the process, which can be time consuming. And time means money for small businesses.”

New York State is setting up its own online health insurance exchange designed to simplify the selection and comparison of policies. While that could hurt PEOs in the long run, the industry’s trade group said the Affordable Care Act will be a net win as companies transition to the new system.

“It is the action-enforcing event, the thing getting small businesses in the door,” said NAPEO CEO Pat Cleary.

Henry Montag, a financial planner in Uniondale, said PEOs have become a safe haven for firms struggling to keep up to date on government mandates.

“The fear of not being in compliance with Obamacare is the driving factor,” Montag said. “Plus the scale of economies that a PEO offers makes it an attractive combination. You can kill two birds with one stone.”

Montag said new insurance requirements, including covering dependents up to the age of 26, and mandates for preventive care and pre-existing conditions, all push health insurance costs higher, making PEO-negotiated rates more attractive.

“From the standpoint of controlling costs, the health-care reform act was supposed to bend the cost down. It bent it up,” said Danny Nessim, president of A&C Management Group, a brokerage in Great Neck. “The PEOs pool medium and small companies for benefits. I think it’s the wave of the future.”

PEOs charge fees, typically based on a percentage of payroll and usually ranging from 3 percent and up. Some firms work on a flat-fee basis, while others break out charges for each service by employee.

While Obamacare is fueling interest in PEOs, it is only part of a stream of new regulations that companies must comply with or risk fines. New York’s Wage and Theft Protection Act, for example, implemented last February, requires employees to acknowledge their annual pay rate by signing a form. Other regulations require everything from employee handbooks to the clunky IT-214 tax form.

Each new regulation becomes another reason a PEO can come in handy.

“Regulations have been increased dramatically,” said Brian Lehmann, another principal at Prestige. “Our value proposition has changed from ‘We can get you great medical plans’ to ‘You have no idea how un-compliant you really are.’”

 

 

 

Melville, NY, April 19, 2013 – Prestige Employee Administrators, Inc, a world-class Human Resources outsourcing firm that offers support to small and medium sized businesses, has named Robert Nolan as Business Development Manager.  Mr. Nolan is an experienced sales professional who has a long and successful track record in Sales and Account Management for corporate clients with many years dedicated as a Strategic Account Executive in the Great-West Healthcare Family.

Mr. Nolan has most recently served as an Account Executive at one of the largest Insurance Brokerage firms in the country and holds a B.A. in English/Communications from Dowling College in Oakdale, NY and a minor in Business Administration and Marketing.

In this new role with Prestige, Mr. Nolan will work closely with the executive team to ensure the business development initiatives carry out the company’s mission of surrounding clients with the highest quality of Human Resources Services.  “Prestige is excited to appoint Mr. Nolan to this new position and utilize his extensive business development experience to develop new long lasting partnerships and drive new business at Prestige,” states, Andrew Lubash, one of Prestige’s Principals .

 

About Prestige Employee Administrators, Inc.

Prestige Employee Administrators, Inc. is a full service Human Resources outsourcing firm that offers strategic Human Resources support, payroll services, employment services and outstanding benefit programs to small and medium sized firms.  As a PEO – Professional Employer Organization, Prestige combines the purchasing power of many smaller companies and can often deliver this expertise at little or no incremental cost to its clients. When you partner with Prestige, companies receive a comprehensive array of services to care for their staff and ease the burden that complex, time-consuming and costly employment related rules, regulations and filing requirements place on a firm. For further information, please visit www.prestigeemployee.com.

 

Company Contact:

Monique Merhige

Marketing Communications Manager

Prestige Employee Administrators, Inc.

555-555-5555

Email: [email protected]

 

 

PRESTIGE NAMES NEW BUSINESS DEVELOPMENT MANAGER

“Long Island Human Resources Outsourcing Firm Expands Leadership Team”

 

  

Melville, NY, April 19, 2013 – Prestige Employee Administrators, Inc, a world-class Human Resources outsourcing firm that offers support to small and medium sized businesses, has named Robert Nolan as Business Development Manager.  Mr. Nolan is an experienced sales professional who has a long and successful track record in Sales and Account Management for corporate clients with many years dedicated as a Strategic Account Executive in the Great-West Healthcare Family.

Mr. Nolan has most recently served as an Account Executive at one of the largest Insurance Brokerage firms in the country and holds a B.A. in English/Communications from Dowling College in Oakdale, NY and a minor in Business Administration and Marketing.

In this new role with Prestige, Mr. Nolan will work closely with the executive team to ensure the business development initiatives carry out the company’s mission of surrounding clients with the highest quality of Human Resources Services.  “Prestige is excited to appoint Mr. Nolan to this new position and utilize his extensive business development experience to develop new long lasting partnerships and drive new business at Prestige,” states, Andrew Lubash, one of Prestige’s Principals .

 

 

About Prestige Employee Administrators, Inc.

 

Prestige Employee Administrators, Inc. is a full service Human Resources outsourcing firm that offers strategic Human Resources support, payroll services, employment services and outstanding benefit programs to small and medium sized firms.  As a PEO – Professional Employer Organization, Prestige combines the purchasing power of many smaller companies and can often deliver this expertise at little or no incremental cost to its clients. When you partner with Prestige, companies receive a comprehensive array of services to care for their staff and ease the burden that complex, time-consuming and costly employment related rules, regulations and filing requirements place on a firm. For further information, please visit www.prestigeemployee.com.

 

Company Contact:

 

Monique Merhige

Marketing Communications Manager

Prestige Employee Administrators, Inc.

555-555-5555

Email: [email protected]

Compliance Alert:  NYC Prohibits Discrimination Against Unemployed

Keeping You Compliant With The Latest Government Regulations!
Prestige is working diligently in 2013 to ensure our clients stay in compliance with all the new laws and regulations affecting small to medium size businesses.

GOVERNMENT REGULATION

NYC Legislation Bill 814-A Prohibits Discrimination Against The Unemployed Effective on June 11, 2013

 

NYC has enacted new legislation (Bill 814-A) that prohibits discrimination against the unemployed. This new legislation goes into effect on June 11, 2013 and protects those individuals “not having a job”, being available for work, and seeking employment.” 

  • Applies to employers with at least four employees in New York City
  • The legislation prohibits employers from discriminating against job applicants on the basis of employment status.
  • The legislation prohibits publishing an advertisement for any job vacancy that lists current employment as a requirement and/or qualification for the job, or that unemployed individuals will not be considered for employment.

 

PRESTIGE SOLUTION

What Prestige Is Doing To Keep You Compliant! 

  

Prestige Employee Administrators, Inc. is preparing our clients by informing them about this new legislation prior to June 11, 2013.  By supplying our clients with knowledge, we can prevent any future lawsuits or damages.  In addition to damages, the Commission also may impose a civil penalty of $125,000 on an employer found to have engaged in an unlawful discriminatory practice.

 

  • Prestige is providing clients with information on the NYC Legislation Bill 814-A and how it can affect their business way in advance of the effective date.
  • Prestige is prepared to assist clients with any claims that arise from this new legislation.
  • All worksite employees can contact Prestige directly with any questions or issues that arise.

 

Prestige is helping to prevent our clients from any future litigations or lawsuits from a job applicant by making them aware of the details/rules of this new law.   Information is key in preventing any future problems arising from this new legislation.   Clients can rest easy knowing Prestige is on their team. Prestige is committed to keeping our clients compliant in 2013 and will continue to send compliance alerts.