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Compensation & Benefits

401(k) plan loans: Figuring the payback is a @#$%&!

08/24/2017
The IRS generally frowns on 401(k) plans that allow employees to take out loans. And it has come down like a hammer when employees whose accounts hold more than $100,000 in vested benefits take out multiple loans during the same year.

In the Payroll Mailbag …

08/24/2017
Employee name/SSN mismatch problems … Can a bonus be withheld for child support? … I-9s for temps and distance workers

California on track for FUTA credit reduction

08/24/2017
California is the last state standing from the 2008 economic downturn to be liable for a FUTA reduction, since it has yet to repay loans it took out to shore up its unemployment trust fund.

Swindled payroll clients come up short in the end

08/24/2017
The IRS does not have to return to a bankruptcy estate a bankrupt payroll service bureau’s tax deposits that were collected from clients, but that were embezzled, a federal appeals court has ruled.

Slam the door on scammers this year-end season

08/24/2017
There’s one overriding concern you need to worry about as year-end approaches—stopping scammers from getting into your payroll records. And scammers have become increasingly sophisticated, as last summer’s ransomware attacks have shown.

Salaries steady in ’18; variable pay rising

08/24/2017
Even as the economy strengthens and the job market remains tight, U.S. employers are holding the lid on salary increases—and they plan to do the same in 2018.

Consumer-driven health plans gain participants

08/22/2017
So-called “consumer-driven” health plans with high deductibles are continuing to gain market share in the United States, and are having the intended effect of making people more involved in their own health care.

Can I turn down a vacation request?

08/21/2017
Q. As an employer, am I required to agree to all vacation requests my staff members submit?

Consider paying a little extra on termination

08/21/2017
Do you think you may have slightly underpaid an employee who is being terminated? Paying her a little extra as she heads out the door may fix that problem without penalty, based on California wage payment rules.

Workers all over agree: 9-to-5 is a thing of the past

08/15/2017
The traditional eight-hour workday may soon be the exception rather than the rule, and Washington, D.C. is paving the way for change.