St. Petersburg, Fla. – Jan. 21, 2014 – Effective January 1, 2014, the Employer Services Assurance Corporation’s (ESAC) financial coverage program provided to the clients of accredited PEOs expanded from a total of $11 million to a total of $16 million. As a result, the bond coverage for clients of ESAC-accredited Engage PEO increased accordingly. Engage PEO is a leading professional employer organization providing HR outsourcing solutions to small and mid-sized businesses across the country.
ESAC, established in 1995, provides financial assurance and national standards of operation for the PEO industry. ESAC monitors its accredited PEOs for adherence to important financial, ethical, and operational standards and, through its Client Assurance Program, provides tangible assurance backed by surety bonds of the performance of specific employer responsibilities such as payment of wages, taxes, employee benefits and insurance premiums, in the unlikely event that a participating PEO defaults on its financial responsibilities. Notably, in the nearly two decades since ESAC’s inception, no participating PEO has ever so defaulted.
Of the over 1,000 PEOs that exist in the country, less than 50 have chosen to meet the exacting financial, professional and regulatory requirements for ESAC accreditation. Engage PEO was the first PEO to be accredited from the time of the PEO’s inception.
“From Engage’s inception, we have stressed to businesses across the United States that they should ‘expect more’ from the PEO industry and especially Engage. This includes ensuring that a PEO has achieved the gold standard for the PEO industry, ESAC accreditation, something that only a small fraction of all PEOs have achieved,” said Jay Starkman, Engage’s chief executive officer. “The increase in ESAC’s financial coverage program provided to clients of ESAC-accredited PEOs is a testament to ESAC’s commitment to its accredited firms. We are thrilled that our current and future clients will receive this increased financial assurance available as an accredited PEO of ESAC, as well as the independent verification of our service quality and financial stability.”
“The development of ESAC’s assurance program for PEOs parallels the development of similar programs for the banking, insurance and securities industries,” said Rex Eley, president/CEO of ESAC. “ESAC-accredited PEOs like Engage are demonstrating their commitment to protecting the public, insurers and regulators, just as the banking, securities and insurance industries have done for decades. The increase in the financial coverage afforded to ESAC-accredited PEOs is a clear statement of the strength of these PEOs and ESAC’s commitment for accreditation to continue to be the gold standard for the PEO industry. We want clients of accredited PEOs to sleep well at night knowing our independent experts are diligently monitoring the financial stability and operational integrity of accredited PEOs and that surety bonds held in trust at Regions Bank are in place to back their performance.”
About Engage PEO
Engage PEO delivers comprehensive HR solutions to small and mid-sized businesses, sharpening their competitive advantage. Comprised of the industry’s most respected veteran professional employer organization executives, certified HR professionals and attorneys, Engage PEO provides hands-on, expert HR services and counsel to help clients minimize cost and maximize efficiency for stronger business performance. The company’s superior service offering includes a full range of health and worker’s compensation insurance products, payroll and tax administration, risk management services and best-of-breed technology as part of an extensive suite of HR services.
For more information visit www.EngagePEO.com For additional information on ESAC (or confirmation of a PEO’s accreditation status), visit www.AccessESAC.org.