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Compensation & Benefits

An all-states chart on child support for payroll pros

06/16/2015
States’ electronic mandates for child support are all over the map. Some states, for example, mandate that withheld child support be remitted electronically; others don’t. This chart helps you get a handle on the electronic child support landscape.

Payroll odds and ends from the IRS

06/15/2015
The IRS is a prodigious publisher. Here are digests of two recently released Information Letters.

Top 5 employee recognition awards

06/15/2015
We present the top five awards employees receive, according to a WorldatWork study. If it’s all the same, we’ll take the cash.

Swapping benefits for pay: Is it legal?

06/12/2015
Q. Is it acceptable for a company to negotiate with employees (on a case-by-case basis) to provide higher salary in exchange for the employee not taking certain benefits that the company pays 100% for (such as life insurance, AD&D, STD and LTD)? — Ed, Virginia

The things we do for love: Help newlyweds keep pay in order

06/11/2015
June brides who take their husbands’ names and newly married couples who hyphenate their names must get new Social Security cards reflecting their new names. Reminder: Don’t change your payroll records until newlyweds show you their new Social Security cards.

Employers must be vigilant on 401(k) options

06/09/2015
A new decision by the U.S. Supreme Court has upped the fiduciary ante for employers that offer defined contribution retirement plans.

After exempt employee uses up paid leave, what do we do when he misses work again?

06/09/2015
Q. I have a salaried employee who used all his vacation and sick time. He is allowed a total of 21 days and has used 22. He wants to take more vacation in Novem­­ber and is always sick (so he’ll probably be out more). Can I deduct from his pay if he’s out more? Or can I take days from next year? This may be an ongoing thing every year.

Email meant for wife goes to boss, costs unemployment

06/09/2015
Sometimes it’s the little things that sway court decisions. A former em­­ployee of the Montgomery County Department of Behavioral Health and Developmental Disabilities was denied unemployment compensation benefits after department managers demonstrated that he had repeatedly used work computers for personal business.

EBSA finds serious deficiencies in 39% of benefit plan audits

06/08/2015
The U.S. Department of Labor’s Employee Benefits Security Administration has uncovered “serious issues” with the quality of employee benefit plan audits performed by certified public accountants.

Special analysis: Take steps against identity theft

06/08/2015
What do banks, health insurers, major retail chains and movie studios have in common? Massive cyberattacks that have led to stolen identifying information, including employees’ sensitive personal data. You can thwart any identity thief by taking some simple steps and modifying some ­procedures.