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Compensation & Benefits

Beware disciplining by withholding pay raises

06/01/2012
Any adverse employment action—including withholding an ex­­pected pay increase—can form the basis for a discrimination lawsuit. If you hold back raises to punish rule-breaking, make sure you can show you do so impartially.

IRS official clarifies tax issues at APA Congress

05/31/2012
Anita Bartels, the IRS’ senior program analyst for employment tax policy, appeared at the American Payroll Association’s 30th Annual Congress, held this year in Orlando, Fla., to report on some major initiatives and to clarify others. Here’s the rundown on three hot payroll issues.

Can we require employees to use direct deposit?

05/30/2012

Q. Can a Texas employer require employees to accept payment of wages through an electronic transfer of funds?

Cellphones: Can you hear me now?

05/25/2012
Q: We reimburse employees for the cost of their cellphones, as well as their wireless coverage. Is the reimbursement for the cost of the cellphone taxable?

DOL takes tough stance on enforcing tip rules

05/25/2012
The U.S. Department of Labor has issued final regulations that specify that employees’ tips are their sole property, regardless of whether employers take the tip credit.

To win wage case, worker must do more than contest records

05/25/2012
If you keep good records of the hours workers put in, chances are you’ll be able to beat an employee’s claim that he wasn’t paid for all hours worked. He’ll have to show some evidence that your records are wrong.

Is it OK for managers to adjust timecards?

05/24/2012

Q. Our employees punch a time clock and then go to job sites. Sometimes they don’t take a lunch break. But when they do, they’re unable to clock out and back in, so there’s no time record. Can a manager adjust the timecard by marking through the daily total and deducting the lunch time?

What recourse do we have if employee repeatedly misses work on Mondays?

05/24/2012
Q. How can we handle an employee who routinely uses vacation and sick time on Mondays?

What should we do if we suspect employee is engaged in workers’ comp fraud?

05/24/2012

Q. While on unpaid leave, one of our employees applied for and was granted workers’ compensation. This person has not expressed any interest in returning to work. We think she may even be working somewhere else. Can we terminate her?

Health care reporting: What’s reportable?

05/24/2012
Q: Are amounts paid for wellness programs and on-site medical clinics reportable in Box 12 of employees’ W-2s? Also, can you explain when dental and vision plan costs are reportable on Form W-2? What qualifies these benefits as “separate” plans?