
Introducing the newest sheet mask ingredients: dust bunnies, human hair and insects. According to recent investigations into the packaging practices of K-beauty sheet masks, your favorite beauty ritual might be made in some seriously unhygienic conditions. Don’t shoot the messenger, y’all.
The revelation has been swirling in Korea for some time now, but it became international news after a user who goes by the alias dvaonline22 shared the findings on the popular subreddit thread Asain Beauty. She writes, “I just wanted to share that, recently, in Korea it’s revealed that sheet masks are made in conditions that are far from hygienic. I’m not sure if this issue has made international or not, but I thought I’d share it since international consumers have a right to know as well. I hope, by making this an international issue, some companies will change how they manage production processes.” She then links to a handful of articles written up on the issue. All of which are in Korean.
https://t.co/u0VBbadKyF
상위에서 맨손으로…상처난 손으로….위생관념은 찾아볼 수 없는 수준 pic.twitter.com/yDpDk7znQx— 화장품 오따꾸 (@dotorucom) June 9, 2016
Videos and photos have been revealed of beauty brand workers assembling the masks not in a factory but in their homes, often without gloves. In some photos, the masks are folded on coffee tables. Another shows a recycled piece of cardboard being used repeatedly as a folding guide.
In an in-depth piece on the issue, Racked writes, “Making cosmetics in a private home without a manufacturing license is illegal in Korea, but because there are so many small cosmetic brands it is fairly common.” They go on to explain the process works like this: Sheet masks and envelopes are dropped off to folder’s homes. They fold the masks using a guide and insert them into an envelope. The envelopes are then picked up and taken to the factory. From there they are supposedly sterilized, filled with scents and sealed. However, numerous reports claim that this process does not actually eliminate all germs it was exposed to while being assembled in a person’s home.
@wlalsgur1129 이거 어떻게 된거죠ㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋ…그냥 자타입 팩 써야겠어요ㅋㅋㅋ큐ㅠ pic.twitter.com/ojPl7DFL6l
— 화장품 오따꾸 (@dotorucom) June 11, 2016
The practice is common among small brands for which factory assembly is expensive, but a handful of bigger companies like Mediheal, SNP and Forencos have been linked to the shady practice as well. Since these findings are new, it’s difficult to tell which germs we could be exposed to, but some beauty buffs have reported finding hair, unusual black spots and even insects in the masks. I mean, we’re down with trying the snail mask but this is a whole other level.
Have you found anything concerning in your sheet mask? Share with us on Twitter @BritandCo.
Welcome to Selfmade Finance School, our new money series with Block Advisors to help small business owners with their tax, bookkeeping, and payroll needs year-round. This week, we explore the tax implications of bringing family members into your business.
The question for today is this: Does hiring your family members make sense for your business? Let me be clear. This is not a piece about whether hiring your family members makes sense for your relationships with those family members. As someone who is part of a family business, I could fill up a lot more than 600 words on my opinions about that. For today's purposes, we focus on whether it makes sense from an overall "good business and tax implication" perspective. As it turns out, there is a decent amount of tax nuance when it comes to employing your family. Let's break it down based on relationship to the employee:
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Spouses Who Are In Business Together
Personally, if I had to be in business with my husband, it would not go well. However, many couples build viable, strong businesses together and I say, good for them! Depending on how you have your business entity structured, it will make a big difference on the tax treatment of you and your spouse working as partners. Because a business jointly owned and operated by a married couple is generally treated as a partnership for Federal tax purposes, the spouses must comply with filing and record keeping requirements imposed on partnerships and their partners. The election to file two Schedule C (Form 1040) forms, (one for each spouse) permits certain married co-owners to avoid filing partnership returns, provided that each spouse separately reports a share of all the businesses' items of income, gain, loss, deduction, and credit. Under the election, both spouses will be subject to self-employment tax and on net earnings from self-employment and receive credit for Social Security earnings.
One Spouse Employs Another
If you have a dynamic where your spouse is an employee of your business, then your spouse's wages are subject to income tax withholding, Social Security and Medicare taxes. If you are self-employed (not a corporation or a partnership), your spouse's pay does not have to be included in your federal unemployment tax account (FUTA) contributions and payments. However, if your business is a corporation or a partnership you must include that spouse's pay in your unemployment tax contribution calculation.
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You Employ Your Child
First, let's be clear. I work in my family business, but I am an adult, so I am treated just like a normal employee. However, if you, for example, run a family restaurant and want to hire your children under 18 to work for you, there are some tax benefits. But first, you should check with your state for rules on how many hours minors can work (in non-agricultural jobs) and reference the Fair Labor Standards Act for information on limitations on the kinds of work children can perform.
"This is an often overlooked or under-utilized strategy. Paying your children for true services they provide in your business can be a powerful tax-saving tool," says Cathi Reed, Block Advisors Regional Director. "If you are a sole-proprietorship or single member LLC, and the child is less than 18 years of age, the business is not required to withhold FICA or payroll taxes. The child can use his or her standard deduction against income you pay."
You Hire Your Parent
Oh dear. If you are brave enough to do this, know that you will need to pay Social Security and Medicare taxes on your parent's wages and make the appropriate withholdings, but you don't have to pay unemployment taxes. Now all you have to do is convince your parent that you are the boss. Have fun with that!
Is Hiring Family Members Worth It For The Tax Benefits?
"There are some positive tax advantages to hiring family members. It's important to treat a family member like any other employee. Hiring your children can result in substantial savings for businesses. Make sure your child has real, age-appropriate work to do and a reasonable pay rate, comparable to other employees. Consult with a Block Advisors small business certified tax pro to ensure that you are complying with all requirements," advises Reed. "Block Advisors, a team within H&R Block, is dedicated to meeting the tax, bookkeeping and payroll needs of small business owners year-round. To start working with the tax experts at Block Advisors, visit blockadvisors.com."
In my opinion, you should not hire a family member solely because of the tax benefits. You should always hire based on whether that person is right for the job and keep in mind how this hire could materially impact your relationship with that person and others in your family. Finally, as I mentioned, make sure you have a tax professional on your team when making these determinations. As you can see, things can get a little tricky!
*All details were sourced from IRS.gov and blockadvisors.com
The opinions expressed in this commentary are those of the author and may not necessarily reflect those held by Kestra Investment Services, LLC or Kestra Advisory Services, LLC. This is for general information only and is not intended to provide specific investment advice or recommendations for any individual. It is suggested that you consult your financial professional, attorney, or tax advisor with regards to your individual situation. Comments concerning the past performance are not intended to be forward looking and should not be viewed as an indication of future results. Securities offered through Kestra Investment Services, LLC (Kestra IS), member FINRA/SIPC. Investment advisory services offered through Kestra Advisory Services, LLC (Kestra AS), an affiliate of Kestra IS. O'Keeffe Financial Partners and any other entity listed herein is not affiliated with Kestra IS or Kestra AS Investor Disclosures: https://bit.ly/KF-Disclosures