the United States
Make employment in the United States easy. Let us handle payroll, benefits, taxes, compliance, and even stock options for your team in the United States, all in one easy-to-use platform.
- Capital City
Washington, D.C.
- Currency
United States Dollar ($, USD)
- Languages
English
- Population size
328,239,523
Facts & Stats
- Capital City
Washington, D.C.
- Currency
United States Dollar ($, USD)
- Languages
English
- Population size
328,239,523
- Ease of doing business
Very easy
- Cost of living index
$$$$ (28 of 139 nations)
- Payroll frequency
Biweekly or Monthly
- VAT - standard rate
Different for every state
- GDP - real growth rate
2.2% (2019)
The United States of America needs little introduction. The nation’s economy is bolstered by world-leading exports and innovation in technology, sports, arts, culture, media, and music.
Home to Hollywood, Silicon Valley, and iconic brands like Apple, Google, Ford and Nike, the United States present’s one of the world’s most attractive recruitment pipelines. The country’s population is highly educated, driven to succeed, and open to remote work.
The trend toward flexible, hybrid, and remote work continues in the US, with The Great Resignation taking hold. Smart employers on the lookout for experienced international talent should be considering taking advantage of this labor movement. For employers outside the US, offering a competitive benefits package can give you a genuine edge over local competitors.
Statutory provisions for annual leave, sick leave,social security, and healthcare are comparatively low in the US. That means employers who can provide these benefits as part of an employee-focused total rewards program will find great success when attracting and retaining top quality US candidates.
Grow your team in United States with Remote
Looking to employ workers in United States? Companies hiring in United States must either own a legal entity in the country or work with a global employment solutions provider, usually one that provides employer of record services.
Remote can employ your team in United States on your behalf through our local legal entity in the country and handle payroll, benefits, taxes, and compliance for your United States team. You can also pay contractors now in United States with Remote.
Risks of misclassification
United States, like many other countries, treats self-employed individuals or contractors and full-time employees differently. Misclassification of contractors in United States may lead to fines and penalties for the offending company.
Employing in United States
American labor regulations are spelled out across several federal and state statutes, designed to safeguard workers’ rights and stave off unfair employment practices.
These include:
Title VII (of the Civil Rights Act)
The Americans with Disabilities Act
The Age Discrimination in Employment Act
The Equal Pay Act
The Fair Labor Standards Act
The Family and Medical Leave Act, and
The National Labor Relations Act, etc.
To a great degree, American employees enjoy protection from discrimination based on age, religion, sexual orientation, gender expression, and race.
Common questions that could come up during the hiring process include the minimum wage, overtime rates, and guaranteed paid time off. Remote can help you offer a complete, competitive, and compliant benefits package to your American employees.
Minimum wage
Minimum wage rates in the United States are set by U.S labor law and a number of states and local laws. The federal minimum wage is fixed at $7.25 per hour, while state and local rates vary, with employees in SeaTac, Washington earning as high as $17.53 per hour.
Payroll cycle
There’s no mandatory payroll cycle in the United States, although private employers usually pay salaries twice a month. For customers of Remote, all employee payments will be made in equal bi-monthly installments, payable in arrears.
Onboarding Time
We can help you get a new employee started in the United States quickly. The minimum onboarding time we need is only 2 working days.
Our team ensures your employees are onboarded and paid as quickly as possible while keeping your business compliant with all local employment legislation. The minimum onboarding time begins after the employee submits all required information onto the Remote platform. The onboarding timeline is also dependent upon registration with local authorities.
For all non-nationals of the country of employment, the Right to Work assessment (if applicable) will add three extra days to the total time to onboard. There may be extra time required if we need to follow-up on the right to work assessment.
Please note, payroll cut-off dates can impact the actual first day of employment. Remote has a payroll cut-off date of the 10th of the month unless otherwise specified.
7 Public holidays
Competitive benefits package in the United States
Remote supports our clients by offering competitive benefits packages that will help you attract and retain the best talent across the globe! Our benefits specialists have done the research on norms and requirements in each local market and have crafted packages that will allow your employees to thrive, no matter what country they live in.
Our benefits packages in the US are tailored to fulfil the local needs of your employees. Typically, our packages contain some or all of the following benefits:
Health Insurance
Dental Insurance
Vision Insurance
Mental Health Support
Pension or 401(K)
Life and Disability Insurance
Local market insights
In the US, the majority of employers offer supplemental health insurance to their workforce.
The country does not have a public health system, and as such, private health insurance is a hugely important benefit that allows employees to access routine care and pay for care in the event of an emergency without going into debt. The United States is a unique environment for benefits compared to the rest of the world and can be one of the most expensive countries to employ in due to the high costs of benefits (particularly healthcare).
This link leads to the machine-readable files that are made available in response to the federal Transparency in Coverage Rule and includes negotiated service rates and out-of-network allowed amounts between health plans and healthcare providers. The machine readable files are formatted to allow researchers, regulators, and application developers to more easily access and analyze data.
Our core benefits (which often include things like healthcare) are required in most countries where we hire. Because Remote is the employer of record, it’s important for us to offer the same core benefits to all employees in a country to ensure fair equity and non-discriminatory hiring practices, which protects your business and ours. Note that we do not add a markup on any benefits premiums or administration costs.
If you'd like specific information about our benefits packages in the US, start onboarding your first employee with Remote today.
For more insight into fair equity and benefits best practices, download our Global Benefits Guide and share with the rest of your hiring team.
Taxes in United States
Learn how employment taxes and statutory fees affect your payroll and your employees’ paychecks in United States.
6.2%
Social security (This percentage is capped at a ceiling of $160,200. Any salary on top of this amount does not trigger a 6.2% social security payment from the employer)
1.45%
Medicare
6%
Unemployment tax (charged on the first $7,000 an employee earns per year)
Types of leave
American employees generally earn at least 10 days of paid leave for every 12 months of employment.
Employment termination
Termination process
All states (except Montana) fall under "employment at-will" which means employees or employers can terminate their relationship at any time.
Employers can generally fire employees without any reason, explanation, or warning. Several states recognize exceptions to the at-will employment doctrine in cases such as:
Employment contracts — employees who’re covered by collective bargaining agreements or contracts may have protections against summary dismissal that at-will employees lack
Implied contracts — employers cannot fire employees arbitrarily if an implied contract has been agreed upon in principle, whether or not it’s documented
Good faith and fair dealing — employers cannot terminate employees to avoid paying for agreed benefits like healthcare, pensions, or commission-based work like sales
Public policy — state laws can prohibit employers from letting employees go without just cause
Remote’s legal experts can help you navigate terminations to ensure employees are only let go fairly without leading to legal complications
Notice period
Notice periods can be included in the employment contract with agreement between both parties.
Employers typically provide at least two weeks advance notice although it’s not generally required if employees are hired on an at-will basis.
Severance pay
Severance pay in the United States is generally one or two month’s pay for every year worked, although there’s no requirement for it under the Fair Labor Standards Act.
Probation periods
Probation periods are not required under Federal Law in the United States. In all states (except Montana) "employment at-will" legislation applies which means the addition of a probation period is not necessary for employers.