United States: Operating a Business

Sole proprietorship

Number of partners: One person only.
Capital (max/min): No minimum legal capital required.
Shareholders and liability: The owner is liable for the company's debt.

General Partnership

Number of partners: No limit on the number of partners.
Capital (max/min): No minimum legal capital required.
Shareholders and liability: The General Partner is personally liable, with no limitation, for the company's debts and obligations.

Limited Partnership

Number of partners: In addition of general partners there is one or more limited partners.
Capital (max/min): No minimum legal capital required.
Shareholders and liability: The general partner has unlimited liability for the debt, whereas any limited partners have limited liability up to the amount of their investment.

Public Company

Number of partners: No limit on the number of partners.
Capital (max/min): No minimum legal capital required.
Shareholders and liability: Liability is limited to the value of the capital contributed.

Limited Liability Corporation or LLC

Number of partners: No limit on the number of partners.
Capital (max/min): No minimum legal capital required.
Shareholders and liability: Liability is limited to the value of the capital contributed.

Business Setup Procedures

The Competent Organisation

The U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission. The certificate of incorporation, also called Doing Business As (DBA) must be registered with the Trade Register of the State where the company is located. General Partnerships do not need to be registered.

For Further Information

Doing Business- U.S., for more information on procedures to start a business in the U.S.
U.S. State Corporations Databases

Financial Information Directories

Dun & Bradstreet - Worldwide directory with financial information on businesses

Recovery Procedures

Principle

See U.S Code Chapter 11 - Bankruptcy

Minimum Debt-to-Capital Ratio Triggering Liquidation

See U.S Code Chapter 11 - Bankruptcy

Bankruptcy Laws

See U.S Code Chapter 11 - Bankruptcy

Reorganization and Rehabilitation Laws

See U.S Code Chapter 11 - Bankruptcy

For Further Statistics

U.S. Bureau of Labour Statistics

For Further Information About the Labour Market

U.S Bureau of Census

Opening Hours

 

• Legal Weekly Duration

40 hours

• Maximum Duration

None. The standard workweek is 40 hours, although many salaried positions (held by workers who are paid weekly or monthly, not by the hour) entail standard workweeks in excess of 40 hours. For hourly employees who work more than 40 hours, overtime pay equal to one and one-half times regular salary is standard.

• Night Hours

Usually from 6 p.m. to 6 a.m.

Working Rest Day

2 days a week.

Paid Annual Vacation

2 weeks vacation per year and 2 weeks sick leave.

Retirement Age

The full retirement age is 66 for people born between 1943 and 1954. For those born between 1955 and 1960, the full retirement age gradually increases to 67. For anyone born in 1960 or later, full retirement benefits are payable at age 67.

Child Labour and Minimum Age For Employment

16 years.

Pay

Minimum Wage

The federal statutory minimum wage in the United States is US $7.25 per hour, established under the U.S. Fair Labor Standards Act by the U.S. Department of Labor, although many states set higher rates.

Average Wage

The average yearly salary in the US is $65,470, according to data from the Bureau of Labor Statistics.

Other Forms of Pay

• Pay For Overtime

Overtime pay one-half their regular rates of pay. Almost all employees who make less than USD 455 a week (USD 23,660 a year) are eligible for overtime

• Pay For Rest Days Worked

One-half their regular rates of pay.

• Pay For Night Hours

Extra pay for working weekends or nights is a matter of agreement between the employer and the employee

• Pay For Overtime at Night

Extra pay for working weekends or nights is a matter of agreement between the employer and the employee

Social Security Costs

The Areas Covered

Social Security covers old age, survivors and disability insurance (OASDI) and hospital insurance (Medicare). Employers must also pay state and federal unemployment taxes. In general, employers and employees bear the tax equally. OASDI taxes are levied on the first USD 118,500 of wages at a combined rate of 12.4%. Medicare taxes are levied on total wages at a combined rate of 2.9% (plus 0.9% for wages above USD 200,000 annually).

Employers must also pay State and Federal Unemployment Taxes (SUTA and FUTA). FUTA is 6% on the first USD 7,000. SUTA varies aross the states. Employers receive tax credit up to 5.4% against federal tax for amounts paid as SUTA.

Contributions

Contributions Paid By the Employer: OASDI (handicap, disability, old age; 6.2%, imposed on the first USD 147,000 of wages) + Medicare (1.45%) + FUTA (unemployment at the federal level; 6% on first USD 7,000 and applicable for tax credit) + SUTA (unemployment at each state level; varies across states)
Contributions Paid By the Employee: OASDI (6.2%, imposed on the first USD 147,000 of wages) + Medicare (1.45% + 0.9% if total wages above USD 200,000 annually)

Competent Organization

Social Security

Recruitment

Recruitment Agencies

There are three types: employment agency, executive recruitment, temporary staffing firm.

Recruitment Websites

American Staffing Association
Monster
Career Builder
LinkedIn

The Contract

Dispute Settlement

Social Partners

Employer Associations

ASE - American Society of Employers
SBA - U.S. Small Business Administration
NAM - National Association of Manufacturers

Social Dialogue and Involvement of Social Partners

Today most labour unions in the United States are members of one of two larger umbrella organisations: the American Federation of Labour-Congress of Industrial Organisations (AFL-CIO) or the Change to Win Federation, which split from the AFL-CIO in 2005.

Unionisation Rate

Union Membership had been steadily declining in the U.S. since 1983. In 2007, the Department of Labour reported the first increase in union memberships in 25 years and the largest increase since 1979. Most of the recent gains in union membership have been in the service sector, while the number of unionised employees in the manufacturing sector has declined. Most of the gains in the service sector have come in West Coast states, such as California, where union membership is now at 16.7% compared with a national average of about 12.1%.

Labour Unions

Unions.org

Regulation Bodies

Department of Labour
U.S. Bureau of Labour Statistics