Payroll

Courts weigh in: How to handle meal breaks not taken

06/26/2012

With workforces lean, it’s important to squeeze every bit of productivity out of employees. But squeeze too hard by not providing employees with state-mandated meal or rest breaks, and you’re likely to face a lawsuit. Two recent cases illustrate.

When computing employee pay, are we allowed to round off employee working hours?

06/20/2012

Q. My company uses a time clock to track the hours of nonexempt employees. When we determine the wages to be paid to employees, can we round up or down to the nearest five-minute increment?

Who’s responsible for withholding mistakes?

06/19/2012

Q: If an employer underwithheld income taxes by not using an employee’s W-4 form properly, and the employee is assessed interest and penalties when he files his 1040, can he hold the employer responsible for the interest and penalties, or even the underwithholding?

Payroll on the hook for medical loss ratio rebates

06/15/2012

Group health insurers that don’t spend between 80 and 85 cents of every premium dollar on medical care and health care quality improvement must make so-called medical loss ratio (MLR) rebates to employees, beginning Aug. 1, 2012.

IRS announces 2013 HSA inflation adjustments

06/12/2012

The IRS has announced the 2013 inflation-adjusted figures for health savings accounts (HSAs) and high-deductible health plans.

How to respond when employees’ creditors come calling

06/11/2012

Record numbers of bankruptcies and foreclosures have been making a big splash in the news recently. However, a quieter phenomenon—one fraught with traps for unwary employers—is a concurrent and growing trend of court-ordered or government-issued wage garnishments. Here’s some practical advice on what to do when someone wants a piece of your employee’s paycheck.

State laws on mandatory employee breaks

06/11/2012

The Fair Labor Standards Act doesn’t require you to provide employees with meal breaks. It does require you to pay employees whose meal breaks last for fewer than 30 minutes and those who work through their meal breaks. However, 40 states do have laws covering meal and rest breaks. This chart summarizes those laws.

Self-insured plans must pony up fees for research

06/04/2012

The Affordable Care Act health care reform law requires plan sponsors of self-insured plans, including self-insured plans that cover retirees, to pay fees to support medical research for seven years, beginning with plan years ending on or after Oct. 1, 2012. Sponsors of insured plans who offer employees HRAs and certain health FSAs must also pay the fees.

More IRS regs on local lodging, Employer Identification Numbers

06/04/2012

The IRS has been busy adding to its regulatory agenda. Here’s the latest news from the regulations front.

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.