Payroll

How can we recoup money we overpaid worker?

06/23/2011

Q. We pay most of our employees’ wages and salaries via direct deposit. Last week, two checks for the same pay period were deposited into an employee’s account. Can we legally have the bank withdraw the extra funds from the employee’s account?

This summer’s hot priority: midyear payroll maintenance

06/22/2011

With summer heat setting in, you may be tempted to run through the sprinklers. But before you slip off your sandals, consider tackling these general payroll maintenance tasks. Getting things in order now also makes for a smoother year-end process.

Taxing and reporting retiree group-term life insurance?

06/21/2011

Question: My company provides group-term life insurance with a value of more than $50,000 to some retirees. I know I have to report the uncollected employee FICA taxes on their W-2s in Box 12 with Codes M and N. Do we have to pay the employer share of these taxes? If so, when are they due? Also, how are the amounts reported on Form 941?

The rise of e-pay: Know your options & the law

06/21/2011

By now, you probably give workers the option of direct deposit in addition to paper checks. But more employers are beginning to offer a third option—payroll debit cards, or “pay cards.” But before you call your payroll provider or bank to set up a pay card option, understand the legal and practical risks.

2nd job: commuting or reimbursable expense?

06/20/2011

Q: An employee has taken a second job with our company on a part-time basis. Would our reimbursement of his travel expenses from his first job to our workplace be a tax-free reimbursement, or a taxable commuting expense?

Employee fired for filing Form SS-8 may sue

06/20/2011

A worker who was fired after admitting to his employer that he filed Form SS-8 with the IRS to determine his status as an independent contractor or employee can continue his lawsuit for unpaid overtime, a federal trial court has ruled.

8 tips for handling summer military-leave payroll issues

06/14/2011

Summer is usually when employees who belong to the National Guard and military Reserves give their two weeks of duty to Uncle Sam. Now is the time to prepare for their absence, by following these eight tips.

A perfect summer day? Doing payroll maintenance

06/10/2011

Round out your summer schedule by making time to perform these general payroll maintenance chores and early year-end tasks:

Don’t court lawsuit by allowing early clock-ins

06/10/2011

Beware if you allow employees to clock in early, but tell them not to start work before their scheduled start times. If early clock-ins are routinely unpaid, there may be a class-action lawsuit brewing.

Feds issue new tip-credit pooling rules

06/08/2011

Employers are now free under federal law to set the percentage of employee tips that can be placed in a tip pool. But Minnesota employers need to be aware of a crucial difference between federal and state laws.