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02 September
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The Mistake of a Business Owner Regarding Wage Theft

Posted by Evon Spangler
in Uncategorized

Wage theft should be a serious concern for employers in Minnesota. That is because the wage theft law in Minnesota is the most stringent in the country. Wage theft is very broad. It simply means that any time you do not pay a worker wages, compensation, benefits or any money that is owed to them that is considered wage theft. Wage theft has both criminal and civil consequences to the employer. So, for example, does your business provide Earned Sick and Safe Time (ESST) to its employees? ESST has been in effect since January 1, 2024. It covers any employee whom...

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17 June
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Fraudulent Paid Leave Claims

Posted by Evon Spangler
in Uncategorized

Paid Family Medical Leave (PFML or Paid Leave) is a mandatory state benefit that started on January 1, 2026. Employees, including W-2 owners, cannot opt out of Paid Leave. Even if you have not followed the law and offered Paid Leave to your employees, your employees are eligible for it, and you will be responsible for the employer costs associated with it in addition to any penalties for not following the law. Tens of thousands of claims have already been filed with Paid Leave. Some of those claims are fraudulent. It is important that you, as the employer, are dealing properly...

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25 March
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Power of Attorney and Health Care Directive

Posted by Evon Spangler
in Uncategorized

If you do not have minor children whereby you need to name a guardian for your children in the event of your death, a power of attorney and a health care directive are generally the two most important documents you need as part of your estate plan. This is because of the high probability you could lose capacity or competency. A power of attorney allows the person(s) to whom you have chosen to act as your attorney-in-fact with the authority over your financial affairs, except as limited in your power of attorney. Contrary to popular belief, you cannot sign your spouse’s...

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04 March
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Myths About Wages

Posted by Evon Spangler
in Uncategorized

There are two categories of employees: exempt employees and non-exempt employees. If an employee is exempt under federal or Minnesota’s wage and hour laws that means that employees are exempt from overtime and minimum wage requirements. An employee who is non-exempt under federal and Minnesota’s wage and hour laws means that an employer has to pay that employer overtime and must follow minimum wage requirements. Myth #1: Sue’s Drycleaning, Inc. pays her employees a salary rather than hourly, and therefore the company believes they are exempt from paying overtime. The fact that an employee is paid a salary does not make them...

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05 February
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Estate Planning Pitfalls

Posted by Evon Spangler
in Uncategorized

Beneficiary designations are a critical part of your estate plan, even if you have a will or a trust. Wills are always probated if there are assets to probate. Probate occurs only on those assets, if any, that do not automatically pass by operation of law and the total value is more than $75,000 and does not include real estate. There are four types of beneficiary-like designations that pass by operation of law: 1) the traditional beneficiary designation - in a life insurance or retirement plan, for example; 2) a payable upon death designation for a bank account; 3) a...

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07 January
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Minnesota Paid Leave Applies to Everyone

Posted by Evon Spangler
in Uncategorized

Paid Family Medical Leave (PFML or Paid Leave) is a mandatory state benefit that starts on January 1, 2026. Generally, all businesses are automatically signed up for Paid Leave. The only way for an eligible business to opt-out of the State’s Paid Leave plan is through a written exemption your business received from the State of Minnesota approving your private Paid Leave insurance plan. In other words, you cannot get out of providing Paid Leave to eligible employees by ignoring this mandatory state benefit. If individual employees want to opt-out of Paid Leave they are prohibited from opting-out. If you,...

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26 November
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New Employment Laws

Posted by Evon Spangler
in Uncategorized

Are you aware that… * it is illegal in Minnesota for employers to misclassify workers as independent contractors when they are actually employees? * in Minnesota the misclassification of workers as independent contractors when they are actually employees is considered wage theft? * in Minnesota the misclassification of workers as independent contractors when they are actually employees has the potential for civil and criminal consequences? * in Minnesota there is a 14-factor test that an employer must meet to show that construction workers are classified correctly as independent contractors? * in Minnesota a sole proprietor and an unincorporated association are included in the definition of...

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20 November
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Paid Leave Details

Posted by Evon Spangler
in Uncategorized

Paid Leave serves two purposes: 1) payments to the employee that covers a portion of the employee’s usual pay during their leave; and 2) ensure job protection to an employee who has worked for at least 90 days prior to taking leave when they return from leave. It is a social insurance program. That means both employees and employers contribute premiums for the Paid Leave benefit. In an attempt to make things easier for employers, Paid Leave uses the same online reporting system as Unemployment Insurance (UI). Beginning on January 1, 2026, employers will start collecting the employee’s portion of the...

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23 October
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Paid Leave Summary

Posted by Evon Spangler
in Uncategorized

Paid Family Medical Leave (PFML or Paid Leave) is coming to Minnesota, and the time to prepare is now. All employers, with limited exception, must provide paid leave to their Minnesota based employees starting January 1, 2026. You can provide Paid Leave through the State of Minnesota or through a private plan that has been approved by the State of Minnesota. However, some insurance companies are closing or have closed their private plans for enrollment. If a private plan is not an option, then you must use the State of Minnesota’s plan. By December 1, 2025, employers must have informed their...

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13 August
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Employee Handbook Pitfalls

Posted by Evon Spangler
in Uncategorized

Employee handbooks should not be finalized and then set in a drawer to gather dust. Instead, an employee handbook needs to be consulted, followed and revised. An employee handbook should be revised at a minimum one time per year. That is because laws continually change, which requires revisions to the handbook. In addition, circumstances change throughout the course of time in your business, which necessitates updates to the employee handbook. If your business pulled your employee handbook off of the internet or from another business, now is the time to review it. A common mistake that we constantly see is employers...

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