The Hiring Process: Stage 1
Here are some helpful resources to assist you as you start your hiring process.
Click on the blue headings for more information about that topic.
Interviewer Guidelines
The interview is a great opportunity to learn about the candidate and his or her appropriateness for your position. The questions at the link above are designed to help you conduct a thorough and thoughtful interview.
Background Checks
As part of our thorough screening and placement process, Town + Country Resources conducts full candidate screening and basic background investigations at no additional charge on every candidate we place. Additional background checks can be ordered on an a la carte basis.
Compensation, Benefits & Sick Time
Offering competitive compensation is an important step in fostering a good working relationship and making sure that you are able to retain a valued employee long term. In our experience, one of the main reasons families lose valued staff is because the employees are not paid when the employer is traveling, especially on vacation.
Wages and benefits vary from position to position, and are affected by things such as a candidate’s level of experience & training, as well as the specifics of your job duties and work schedule. It is competitive to offer two weeks of paid vacation, 4 to 6 paid sick days and 7 to 9 paid holidays per year. At a minimum, all California employers are required to provide minimum paid sick time, and some individual cities (including San Francisco and others) impose additional paid sick time requirements. Additional benefits may include a monthly medical insurance stipend.
The Hiring Process: Stage 2
Here are some additional resources that you will need as you finalize your employment relationship.
Working Interview Guidelines
We recommend that when you identify a candidate you are interested in hiring that you have the candidate work for up to one week in your home performing the duties associated with the position before making a final hiring decision. Click above for some suggestions for an effective working interview. Please note that no agency fees are due for the first week of a working interview, but after that first week, agency fees are due. The title above is linked to suggestions for an effective working interview.
Making an Offer & Work Agreement
Once you have completed the Working Interview and are ready to make an offer, you are welcome to do so directly with your Candidate. We recommend making the verbal offer first. Your offer should include all the important details, including schedule, hours, salary, responsibilities and any other aspects of the job that are particularly important to you. It is best to make an offer only after you have made decisions about these important details. After settling the main points, putting together a written agreement is one of the most important things you can do to help get your relationship off to the right start and keep it on track. This can be completed either before they begin working for you, or within the first week of employment. The written agreement addresses the specifics of your offer in greater detail.
Note that California is an “at-will” employment state. This means that either party may terminate employment at any time, for any reason with no notice. However, language in a work agreement that contradicts the basic “at-will” rule (e.g., requests for a notice period or specifying a one-year contract) will likely overwrite the “at-will” rule in that case, and would likely be contractually enforceable in a court of law. Also note that in California, when you hire or change the compensation arrangements for a non-exempt employee, you must provide written notice of certain wage, salary and insurance information. See below for more information.
Employment Eligibility Verification (Form I-9)
It is the employer’s responsibility to have the employee complete an I-9 (employment eligibility verification form) at the time of employment.
Certain Tax, Payroll & Notice Requirements
When Town + Country refers a candidate to you, we are not the employer of the candidate. The candidate you hire most likely will be your employee, but in very rare circumstances, could an independent contractor. If you direct and control the manner and means by which the candidate performs his or her work you likely have employer responsibilities, including employment taxes and workers’ compensation, under state and federal law. In particular, California law requires employers to have workers’ compensation insurance. As a starting point, we suggest that you contact your homeowners insurance carrier or agent to understand what coverage you currently have or may need. For additional information contact your local Employment Development Department, the Internal Revenue Service or Homepay.
Under IRS rules, you must register with the Employment Development Department (EDD) as a household employer for California payroll tax purposes, if you meet certain wage thresholds. Please contact the IRS or Homepay to make sure you are within the annual limits.
Under California law, an employer is required to give each non-exempt employee written notice of certain wage, salary and insurance information when they are first hired, or if any of the information on the form changes (e.g., you give your employee a raise) at any time. Employers are also required to provide all employees with pay stubs every pay period. Follow the link above to get more information regarding wage, tax & payroll rules and services as well as some helpful tax forms.
Overtime Laws
Overtime pay is regulated both federally and by the State of California. In most cases, household employees must be paid over-time for the hours worked beyond eight hours (or in some cases, nine hours) each day and forty hours (or in some cases, 45 hours) in a week, though different rules apply for certain categories of jobs.
Insurance
Follow this link to get more information about Worker’s Compensation and Umbrella Liability Insurance, Health Insurance and Auto Insurance.
Termination
California is an “at-will” employment state. This means that either party (employer or employee) may terminate employment for any reason, at any time with no notice, as long as you have not made any promises to the contrary.
Please feel free to contact us if you have any questions.
