Do you know your payroll deposit schedule?

The Business Owner's Payroll Tax Guide

Deposit schedules, the trust fund penalty, worker classification risk — what most owners with employees don't know until it's too late.

Payroll Taxes for Employers: FICA, FUTA, SUTA, Deposit Schedules, and the Trust Fund Penalty

When you hire employees, you're responsible for withholding and remitting payroll taxes on a strict schedule. Late deposits trigger penalties starting at 2%. The trust fund penalty — 100% of withheld taxes, assessed personally — is not theoretical.

Employee vs Independent Contractor: How the IRS Classifies Workers and the Cost of Getting It Wrong

Classifying a worker as a contractor when the IRS considers them an employee creates substantial liability — back payroll taxes, penalties, and interest going back years. The IRS three-category test, California's ABC test, and how to protect yourself.

Does Hiring This Person Actually Pencil Out?

The fully loaded cost of an employee vs. the salary number — employer FICA, FUTA, SUTA, workers comp, benefits, and the revenue math behind whether a hire breaks even.

Case Study: A Walnut Creek Gym's Trainers Were Never Legally Contractors

A boutique fitness studio paid its trainers on 1099s for years — standard practice across the industry, and also not legal in California. Running the actual classification test, and the real cost of fixing it, changes the math less than the owner feared.