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Business Matters December 2020
Dec 02, 2020
Management
We’re Not Through the Pandemic Yet: Six Points to Keep in Mind for your Workplace this Winter
As the weather gets colder and Canadians start to move indoors, an increase in COVID-19 case numbers – maybe even a second wave – is likely. Whether or not there will be further shutdowns, there is little doubt that the cold and flu season is on its way. As many of those symptoms are similar to those of COVID-19, your business will need to be ready for increased absences.
Stock options are beneficial to employees, allowing them to purchase shares in their employer corporation (or related company) below fair market value. Stock options can be a useful way to remunerate key employees when a company has a cash shortage (and the options would actually bring cash in when an employee exercises them), although this would also dilute the existing shareholders’ ownership of the company. Employees granted company stock options are not taxed; however, employees who exercise the stock option and purchase the shares are considered to have received a benefit. How and when that benefit is taxed depends on who the employer is and whether the stock option price is below the fair market value of the shares at the time the option is granted.
In October of 2018, the federal government legalized the possession and use of marijuana for recreational and medicinal purposes in Canada. As a result, business owners have been dealing with a changing landscape. This means that they must understand not only the rights of customers but also the rights of their employees.
Why Should You Care About Your Health Care Spending Account?
Families may not realize that they have a great opportunity to significantly reduce the cost of medical treatments and therapies through a health care spending account (HCSA). These accounts are not well understood and, if available, are typically underutilized due to a lack of awareness of how they can help.
Performing Transactions Online: Know What’s Happening to Your Data
Online purchasing transaction security is not absolute. There are not really “safe” and “unsafe” options anymore, meaning only alternatives remain that have varying degrees of security. However, understanding how your data is stored and used is an important first step.
Common Financial Guidelines for Planning Your Retirement
Preparing for retirement can be a very stressful experience, with so many factors that you need to consider. How much money will I need to maintain my standard of living? How much will I want to travel? How long will I live? What if I outlive my money? There’s so much uncertainty, that financial rules of thumb for planning your retirement have become very popular – following them relieves at least some of that uncertainty. It is important to understand the assumptions, and the limitations of these guidelines, so that you understand whether they are relevant for your particular situation.
Whether you prepare the return yourself or have them prepared by Towler & Associates, CPAs, it’s time for all Canadians to be gathering their paperwork together for their 2018 personal tax returns. So, what changes for 2018 might affect your business? And, what other tax changes are coming into effect in 2019?
Automating an owner-managed business entails more than purchasing a new piece of equipment. The most successful transition requires a careful analysis of the existing production process, an understanding of where and when change is required, staged rather than wholesale transition, targeting repetitive employee tasks that can be automated, integration of production changes with business systems, involvement of employees and outside experts, and owner metamorphosis from micromanager to business manager.
In 2018, many owner-managers across Canada chose to adjust staff levels, wages and prices when the minimum wage was increased. For many, it is still too early to determine the final impact on the corporate bottom line as a full fiscal year has not been completed.
Every owner-manager has experienced new employees enthusiastically jumping head-first into the task at hand — only to see that enthusiasm for their job morph into complacency over time.
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