Payroll

23-cent bonus adds up to one big payroll headache

09/24/2012

If an employer retains complete control over whether to pay a bonus and the amount of the bonus, then it can be excluded from an employee’s regular rate as a discretionary bonus. But both parts of this test count equally. Recently, a federal trial court ruled that bonuses that always equaled $50 failed the second part of the test.

Regs detail the 50% deduction limit for leased employees

09/21/2012

There’s more to leasing employees than clients remitting their pay to the leasing company. While employees can be reimbursed 100% for their substantiated meal expenses, business deductions are limited to 50%. Normally, the employer is stuck with this deduction disallowance. But the involvement of the leasing company complicates matters.

FMLA damages are payroll taxable, court rules

09/20/2012

For a long time, damages employees received under the FMLA weren’t considered payroll taxable because courts read the FMLA’s unique damages provision—which mandates damages equal to lost pay—as not being the same as taxable back pay. A federal trial court has now turned this reasoning on its head.

Any improvements planned for the W-2 Online website?

09/07/2012

Question: Does the Social Security Administration plan to improve the Business Services Online suite of services within W-2 Online?

Behind-the-scenes: DOL investigator pulls back curtain

09/06/2012

Whatever you do, don’t call a U.S. Department of Labor investigator an auditor. Auditors look for nickels and dimes. DOL investigators look for compliance with the Fair Labor Standards Act.

Employers’ child support collection efforts pay off

09/04/2012

According to recent statistics, 70% of child support is collected through wage withholding. Even so, some deadbeat parents slip through the cracks. To catch them, the Office of Child Support Enforcement has formed an alliance with employers to implement its newest program—the Passport Denial Program.

Payroll’s high stakes: What margin for error?

09/03/2012

Payroll has no margin for error. Get employees’ pay wrong and you’ll hear from them. Get your tax deposits wrong and you’ll hear from the IRS. Get it right and what do you hear? Silence. But don’t think you toil in anonymity.

Two 401(k) plans, two Section 415 limitations?

09/01/2012

Question: Several employees want to participate in two multi-employer 401(k) plans, but their combined contributions would exceed the Section 415 limitations on overall contributions. Can the employees legally participate in both plans during the same year?

Payback’s a b&+%#! How to handle 401(k) plan loans

08/31/2012

401(k) plans don’t have to allow employees to borrow from their vested account balances. But if they do, the news is grim. According to a recent survey, about 10% of employees who borrow from their 401(k) plans default. The default percentage skyrockets to 80% if employees terminate with outstanding loans.

Are payments excludable from our nurses’ incomes?

08/30/2012

Question: We run a rural health clinic. We know that payments made under certain programs that encourage health care professionals to work in underserved areas are tax-free. Do these payments fall into that category?