34 THE QUEENS COURIER • MAY 19, 2016 FOR BREAKING NEWS VISIT www.qns.com business Employment Matters – Safety First Q: We recently had a slip and fall accident at our offi ce. How do I ensure that my employees know our safety procedures and make sure they report unsafe conditions? Concerned A: Dear Concerned: Knowing, understanding and following safety procedures in your workplace is necessary to protect yourself, fellow employees, visitors and customers. Make sure that your employees know how to report unsafe conditions as soon as they become apparent and make safety the fi rst consideration in every situation. Here are some general guidelines: 1. Create written safety policies Safety policies should be documented in your Employee Handbook and reviewed with staff annually. Written protocols will help employees to stay safe and know how to report unsafe conditions before they cause accidents. 2. Prevent slips, trips and falls Slips, trips and falls are a leading cause of injuries involving days away from work, according to data from the Bureau of Labor Statistics. To help prevent slip, trip and fall incidents: • Never leave an unsafe condition unguarded or unmarked, even temporarily. • Keep your work area clean and free of loose objects, including wires or slipping hazards. • Be aware of walking surfaces and their condition. Extra care may be required to prevent an accident especially in wet or damp conditions. • Report and clean up spills and leaks. • Keep aisles and exits clear of items. • Replace worn, ripped or damage fl ooring. • Keep aisles, stairways, emergency exits, electrical panels and doors clear of clutter. • Safely dispose of materials, papers and products that are no longer needed. 3. Eliminate fi re hazards • Know location of fi re extinguishers and know how to use them. • Store quick-burning, fl ammable materials in designated locations. • Keep passageways and fi re doors free of obstructions. • Do not store items in stairwells and keep stairwell doors closed. 4. Know correct lifting and carrying techniques • Do not reach too high for something that may fall on you. Use a small set of steps, a ladder, or ask for help. • When it is necessary to climb---use a ladder, not a chair, stool, desk or box. Be sure the ladder is secured. • When picking up a heavy object, evaluate whether or not you need help or special equipment. • Do not lift a heavy load alone if you have any doubt of your ability to lift it. Use proper lifting techniques to prevent injury. Supervisors should encourage employees to be safety conscious and employees must accept responsibility for their own safety. When your staff is knowledgeable about safety protocols they will be able to avoid accidents and help everyone to stay safe. Mindy Stern, SPHR, SHRM-SCP, ACC is a trusted HR advisor, career coach, author, speaker and president of AIM Resource Group Inc. Visit the website at www.aimresourcegroup. com or call 718-217-1074 if you would like to be sure that you are properly communicating your safety procedures to your employees. Do you want your questions answered in this column? Send requests to: www.askmindynow.com The Elder Law Minute TM Misconceptions About Irrevocable Medicaid Trusts BY RONALD A. FATOULLAH, ESQ. AND YAN LIAN KUANG-MAOGA, ESQ. Elder care attorneys use trusts for a variety of reasons, and the type of trust that is chosen depends upon the goal of the particular client. Irrevocable trusts, in particular, are excellent vehicles for preserving an individual’s assets in anticipation of long-term care, such as Medicaid. However, many people have developed a wariness of irrevocable trusts based on two common misconceptions. First, many believe that an individual will lose total control over the assets transferred into an irrevocable trust. Second, it is often thought that a transfer of one’s assets to an irrevocable trust will be considered a gift, thereby requiring the fi ling of a gift tax return and the payment of gift taxes. A transfer of assets is considered a “gift” for gift tax purposes when the transfer is a completed gift. A completed gift occurs when a transferor parts with “total dominion and control” over the transferred property. This defi nition often leads people to believe that a transfer of assets to an irrevocable trust is a completed gift, and that, as a result, the transferor loses all control over the transferred property. Irrevocable, after all, typically means incapable of change. However, it is possible to transfer assets to an irrevocable trust while still retaining power with respect to the transferred property. For instance, the creator of an irrevocable trust may retain the right to receive the income produced by the assets transferred into the trust. Additionally, the creator of an irrevocable trust may change the benefi ciaries of the trust by a later instrument, such as a will. Where the creator of an irrevocable trust retains at least one of these rights or powers, or one of the many others that are available with respect to the transferred property, the gift is rendered “incomplete,” and, therefore, not a gift for gift tax purposes. Another frequent misconception is that every gift, including a transfer of assets to an irrevocable trust, automatically requires the fi ling of a gift tax return and the payment of gift taxes by the person who made the gift. As outlined above, if the creator of an irrevocable trust retains certain rights and powers with respect to the transferred property, the transfer is not considered a completed gift and will not be taxed as such. However, even in the event that the creator of an irrevocable trust waives all of his or her rights with respect to the transferred assets (which makes the transfer a completed gift, and as such, a taxable gift), the creator of the trust often will avoid gift taxes if the gifts are under a certain amount. Under the gift tax rules, each individual may make gifts of up to $14,000 ($28,000 for married couples) per gift recipient per year without incurring any gift tax or having to fi le a gift tax return. Gifts in excess of these amounts, while requiring the fi ling of a gift tax return will not, in all likelihood, require the payment of taxes. This is because each person is entitled to a tax credit, called the Unifi ed Credit, of up to $5,450,000, meaning that one may gift up to this amount without the payment of taxes. However, the Unifi ed Credit is not limited to gift taxes. Rather, this credit is called the Unifi ed Credit because it can be used for both gift taxes and estate taxes. As a result, individuals can give away—either during lifetime or upon their death—up to $5,450,000 without incurring any gift or estate taxes. Irrevocable trusts are instrumental in a variety of situations, including preservation of assets in anticipation of long-term care such as Medicaid. However, many people worry that transferring their assets to an irrevocable trust will require the payment of gift taxes and cause them to lose control over the transferred assets. In reality, a properly drafted irrevocable trust can help the creator of the trust avoid gift taxes while allowing him or her to retain control over certain aspects of the property transferred into the trust, including the ultimate disposition of the transferred property. It is therefore advisable to have each trust reviewed by an experienced elder care attorney. Ronald A. Fatoullah, Esq. is the principal of Ronald Fatoullah & Associates, a law fi rm that concentrates in elder law, estate planning, Medicaid planning, guardianships, estate administration, trusts, wills, and real estate. Yan Lian Kuang-Maoga is an elder law attorney with the fi rm.. The law fi rm can be reached at 718-261- 1700, 516-466-4422, or toll free at 1-877-ELDERLAW or 1-877-ESTATES. Mr. Fatoullah is also the co-founder of JR Wealth Advisors, LLC. The wealth management fi rm can be reached at 516- 466-3300 or 800-353-3775. ELDER LAW RONALD FATOULLAH ESQ, CELA*
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