them as independent contractors, but employment laws do not
quite work that way.
Regardless, you could be flirting with tax fraud and the misclassification of workers, both of which could lead to trouble with
the IRS and/or Department of Labor.
Ethics, Values, And Employee Perception
Of course, the problematic nature of the working interview isn’t
limited to the legal sphere.
A working interview is also an opportunity to convey your values and ethics as an employer. If you know all along that you
are not in the market for an additional employee, but you use
the working interview to fill a temporary staffing need, you
might not be violating any laws (assuming the work is paid), but
you have misrepresented the relationship, and wasted the candidate’s time.
Keep in mind, the interview period isn’t only for you — far from
it. It’s also a time for candidates to gauge their compatibility
with you, the employer, and how well they will integrate into
the work environment you provide.
In the end, the entire interview and onboarding process sends
a message to potential employees. Your decisions to use the
working interview process, how much you pay, and their treatment while working through the different stages you have set
up all tell candidates a lot about your values and how they can
expect to be treated in the future.
Regardless of the position, if you want candidates who are qualified, dedicated, and enthusiastic about their jobs, you’ll need
to communicate that through a hiring process and working
interview compensation that is fair and respectful of their time
and effort.
Better Alternatives
Thankfully there are ways to get results similar to working interviews without the pitfalls.
Skill testing. This process allows you to set up a scenario and
have the candidates respond as they best see fit. While it may
not seem as true-to-life as a working interview, you get a look
at the candidates’ abilities and personality without legal ramifications of their having direct patient contact.
Hire slow, fire fast. Another alternative approach is popular in
the startup culture but now holds some value for the dental
world. The practice of ‘hiring slow and firing fast’ means that
you take the necessary time to get to know a candidate through
interviews, skill tests, references, etc., This way, you won’t waste
the time and well-being of your hard-won team, patients, and
even of the candidate themselves by keeping people on to fester
in positions that don’t work for them. If they need to go, let
them go quickly.
Moving Forward
If you are using or considering using working interviews, it is
worth your time to take a step back and evaluate whether they
are meeting your goals.
Examine your overall hiring processes to determine if they’ve
worked for you: have you been satisfied with your choices or
have you had a string of employees who became problems or
eventually weighed down your practice? After you do, you may
or may not find that the working interview is a good fit.
If you decide to use working interviews, here are a few
tips to make sure you’re not running afoul of any laws
or regulations:
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Do not use the candidate as a replacement for
an absent employee.
Make sure that the candidate understands
that the working interview is not a guarantee
of employment. (It might be a good idea to get
this in writing).
Do not have the candidate work a full day.
Know your individual state laws and regulations around what constitutes an employment
relationship.
Keep in mind that the working interview
comes with pitfalls, so it is advisable not to
solely depend on it in your hiring process.
Using other methods such a skills testing may
only be just as effective and will not leave you
open to legal and tax liabilities.
As a partner at Goldin Peiser & Peiser,
Erick focuses on tax compliance and consulting work in the healthcare and real
estate industries, where he oversees the
preparation of all annual federal and state
compliance and regularly reviews the
client’s financial statements. He also consults his clients on the health of their practice or business — making sure they
understand the business and tax aspects
of their stra ѕ