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Q: The majority of our people in the field are union employees. Do you make any of them sign a document that states they will not receive their last paycheck until all equipment they had in their possession which is the property of the company has been returned. I have a hard time getting cell phones and power cables returned which costs us money. Does your company just eat the cost? I was told that our unions won’t allow us to hold a union employee’s paycheck but I don’t buy it.
Jim Gaba
Sierra Nevada Construction, Inc.

A: It is not the unions. Many states forbid withholding income for such things. I think this is a good thing, as anyone who has dealt with landlords and security deposits can attest to. The idea that employers would be able to withhold a paycheck over a $50 cell phone is scary. Your only recourse is through small claims court. Of course, it is always easier to get the stuff back before you let them go.
Geoffrey Smith
Schweiger Construction Company

A: By law in PA you cannot hold a paycheck. We have them sign a form, however our HR person has a checklist to acquire all those things before termination, she relays it to the field supervisor.
John Thompson
Joseph B. Fay Company

A: It looks like in Nevada you can't deduct items from a final paycheck unless the employee has authorized you to do so in writing:

http://resources.lawinfo.com/en/Legal-FAQs/Wage-And-Hours/Nevada/what-deductions-may-an-employer-make-from-an-.html

In the future, you might want to include a document in your hiring materials that allows you to deduct the cost of any unreturned company-owned property from the final paycheck. Make them sign it when they get hired and that should give you the protection you need.
Nathan Jovin
Soltek Pacific

Q: I’m looking at implementing hosted Exchange and can use some insight into providers (pro or con), cost and reliability.
Jim Gaba
Sierra Nevada Construction, Inc.

A: I’ve used Intermedia’s hosted Exchange service on a joint venture project that we created a new company for. They are one of the largest hosted Exchange providers and have a pretty good management interface. You have a la carte options for Blackberry/IPhone integration, SharePoint, archiving and more – www.intermedia.net/
Ben Stromberg
Knutson Construction Services

A: I would recommend going direct with Microsoft (I believe they are contracting with Siemens for the back-end support). Microsoft recently called me offering $5 per mailbox, per month, as opposed to Intermedia and Sherweb’s offering which ranged from $7.95-$9.95 per mailbox.
Jeff Sowell
Charter Construction

A: I have used (and am using) Intermedia for Exchange hosting with BES. Management is a piece of cake. But in my mind a little pricey – 10-12 users at just over $200 per month. I keep saying that if they get closer to $300 per month, we can bring it in house.
Greg Smolens
Sunland Asphalt

A: We have 35 users and moved to an in-house Exchange implementation. After you get setup done, it is fairly simple to maintain and there is no extra cost for features like webmail and iPhone/WinMo access. Of course there is a huge initial upfront cost, but it quickly paid itself back.
Jeremiah Jilk
John S. Meek Company Inc.