Guides
Hiring Your First Employee: A Step-by-Step Checklist (US, 2026)
The federal and state steps for hiring your first W-2 employee, in order: EIN, state registrations, I-9, W-4, new-hire reporting, workers' comp, posters, and payroll filings.
How to Get an EIN Before Your First Hire (US, 2026)
A first-time employer's guide to getting a free IRS employer identification number before payday: who needs one, how to apply online, fax, or mail, and when you can use it.
Form I-9 for First-Time Employers (2026)
How a first-time US employer completes Form I-9: current edition, Section 1 and Section 2 deadlines, acceptable documents, anti-discrimination rules, retention, and E-Verify.
Employer Payroll Taxes in 2026: What You Owe per Employee
Plain-English breakdown of 2026 employer payroll taxes: 6.2% Social Security up to $184,500, 1.45% Medicare, FUTA at 0.6% of $7,000, state unemployment, with a worked $60k example.
Contractor or Employee? How to Tell, and What Each Really Costs
How the IRS and Department of Labor decide whether a worker is a 1099 contractor or W-2 employee, red flags for misclassification, and how to compare the true cost of each.
What Does a Part-Time Employee Really Cost? A Worked Example at $18/Hour
Line-by-line cost of a 25-hour-a-week part-time employee at $18/hour in 2026: employer FICA, FUTA, state unemployment, workers' comp, and paid sick leave.
How to Calculate PTO Accrual for Part-Time Employees
The per-hour-worked PTO accrual formula, worked examples for 20-, 25-, and 30-hour schedules, and how state paid-sick-leave minimums like 1 hour per 30 interact with your policy.
State guides
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