The Maryland Northern Virginia Floor Covering Association (MDNVAFCA) has published an open letter to the industry in regards to a Compliance Packet it has put together following amendments to Maryland's Workplace Fraud Act. The letter is reprinted below:
Dear Floor Covering Industry Professional,
Hopefully by now you are aware of Maryland's Workplace Fraud Act of 2009 and the devastating effects it could have had on our industry. It was estimated that if this law remained unchanged, as many as one third of all the flooring companies in Maryland would have gone out of business.
The Maryland Northern Virginia Floor Covering Association took up the challenge. A Legislative Committee was formed; a Legal Fund was established; a top lobbyist was hired; and the members of the Legislative Committee made 8 trips to Annapolis to do battle with the DLLR, the unions, and legislators. Bottom line...we were successful! While we would have preferred for the law to just go away, we knew that was not going to happen. What we did was to affect changes to make the law something we can live with. The Amendments to the Workplace Fraud Act of 2009 were passed by both the House and Senate and signed into law by the Governor on May 2nd. These Amendments will become effective on July 1st, 2012.
Now we are sure that DLLR is going to say to the flooring industry doing business in Maryland, "Okay, you got your changes. Let's see if you are going to live up to them." If you don't become compliant, you and your company could be in for a great deal of grief. The Association has spent thousands of dollars and countless man hours creating and publishing a Compliance Guideline Package. This 82-page packet explains in detail where we started with the Workplace Fraud Act of 2009, and where we are today with the 2012 Amendments. It also contains legal forms, frequently asked questions concerning doing business in the state of Maryland, and sample contracts in addition to much more invaluable information. We cannot stress enough the importance and quality of work contained in this publication.
Due to the cost of producing this Compliance Guidelines Package and its limited distribution, MDNVAFCA is offering it to non-members at the cost of $999.00. Members of MDNVAFCA have an opportunity to receive the publication with a minimum donation of $250.00 to the Legal Fund. If you have contributed to the Legal Fund in the past, the publication is being mailed out this week.
Our industry was blindsided by the Workplace Fraud Act. We do not want that to happen again. We are committed to having a voice for the industry! We are keeping our lobbyist, Bruce Bereano, on retainer so that he can continue to represent our industry and keep up informed of anything that might affect the floor covering industry. The Legal Fund will be used to pay that retainer.
MDNVAFCA also feels an obligation to our members and non-members to get the word out of on compliance. To do this, we will be holding Road Meetings in different parts of the area over the next 30 days. We are currently looking at Baltimore, Eastern Shore, Western Maryland and Beltsville Area. Dates and times will be distributed as soon as they are available. We are enlisted our Wholesaler partners to help us get the word out to the industry. You don't have to be a member to attend these meetings. We are also looking to our members to spread the word! Please forward this e-mail to as many industry people as you can. This not only affects Maryland dealers, but any dealer doing business in the state of Maryland.
If you wish to join MDNVAFCA today, please contact Michelle Goshorn at 1-877-896-3605 or mdnvafa@msn.com. We will e-mail you the membership packet. This will also give you joint membership with WFCA.
Together, we will continue to make a difference for the flooring industry!
Sincerely,
Charlie Vogel
MDNVAFCA Legislative Committee Member
Hopefully by now you are aware of Maryland's Workplace Fraud Act of 2009 and the devastating effects it could have had on our industry. It was estimated that if this law remained unchanged, as many as one third of all the flooring companies in Maryland would have gone out of business.
The Maryland Northern Virginia Floor Covering Association took up the challenge. A Legislative Committee was formed; a Legal Fund was established; a top lobbyist was hired; and the members of the Legislative Committee made 8 trips to Annapolis to do battle with the DLLR, the unions, and legislators. Bottom line...we were successful! While we would have preferred for the law to just go away, we knew that was not going to happen. What we did was to affect changes to make the law something we can live with. The Amendments to the Workplace Fraud Act of 2009 were passed by both the House and Senate and signed into law by the Governor on May 2nd. These Amendments will become effective on July 1st, 2012.
Now we are sure that DLLR is going to say to the flooring industry doing business in Maryland, "Okay, you got your changes. Let's see if you are going to live up to them." If you don't become compliant, you and your company could be in for a great deal of grief. The Association has spent thousands of dollars and countless man hours creating and publishing a Compliance Guideline Package. This 82-page packet explains in detail where we started with the Workplace Fraud Act of 2009, and where we are today with the 2012 Amendments. It also contains legal forms, frequently asked questions concerning doing business in the state of Maryland, and sample contracts in addition to much more invaluable information. We cannot stress enough the importance and quality of work contained in this publication.
Due to the cost of producing this Compliance Guidelines Package and its limited distribution, MDNVAFCA is offering it to non-members at the cost of $999.00. Members of MDNVAFCA have an opportunity to receive the publication with a minimum donation of $250.00 to the Legal Fund. If you have contributed to the Legal Fund in the past, the publication is being mailed out this week.
Our industry was blindsided by the Workplace Fraud Act. We do not want that to happen again. We are committed to having a voice for the industry! We are keeping our lobbyist, Bruce Bereano, on retainer so that he can continue to represent our industry and keep up informed of anything that might affect the floor covering industry. The Legal Fund will be used to pay that retainer.
MDNVAFCA also feels an obligation to our members and non-members to get the word out of on compliance. To do this, we will be holding Road Meetings in different parts of the area over the next 30 days. We are currently looking at Baltimore, Eastern Shore, Western Maryland and Beltsville Area. Dates and times will be distributed as soon as they are available. We are enlisted our Wholesaler partners to help us get the word out to the industry. You don't have to be a member to attend these meetings. We are also looking to our members to spread the word! Please forward this e-mail to as many industry people as you can. This not only affects Maryland dealers, but any dealer doing business in the state of Maryland.
If you wish to join MDNVAFCA today, please contact Michelle Goshorn at 1-877-896-3605 or mdnvafa@msn.com. We will e-mail you the membership packet. This will also give you joint membership with WFCA.
Together, we will continue to make a difference for the flooring industry!
Sincerely,
Charlie Vogel
MDNVAFCA Legislative Committee Member
