The Social Security Administration and the IRS have issued a joint publication that offers valuable pointers for employers who want to clean up their old payroll files. In most (but not all) cases, that means following a four-year retention rule. The publication cautions that failure to meet record retention requirements can result in sizable penalties [...]
If you have an employee who has unfulfilled child support obligations, you might be contacted by authorities. In these cases, a local court or government agency may send you an order to withhold a portion of wages from the employee, to collect back child support. Complying with these orders is only required with workers who [...]
The U.S. Department of Labor's Wage and Hour Division (WHD) recently finished several investigations aimed at employers. The agency announced that seven different employers had violated federal laws involving minimum wages, overtime calculations, family and medical leave, the tip credit and work visas. Here are brief descriptions of the cases. 1. Minimum wage violations. A [...]
If your organization wants to claim the new family and medical leave credit, take note: The IRS has issued Form 8994, Employer Credit for Paid Family and Medical Leave, for use in 2018 and 2019 tax year filings. In addition, the IRS has posted new information about the credit on its website. Here's what you [...]
Today (and since 2004) salaried employees who earn at least $455 per week aren't eligible for overtime pay under the Fair Labor Standards Act, if their job duties are executive, administrative or professional (EAP) in nature. That's true no matter how many hours these employees work in a week. Under proposed regulations, the limit would [...]
Increasing numbers of National Guard and Reserve personnel have been sent to far-flung places around the globe in recent years. If your staff includes reservists and National Guard members who must interrupt their employment to fulfill their military service, you probably know that the law requires you to reinstate them once they returned from service (with [...]
The Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) and Civil Rights Acts have brought many changes into the workplace. One of the biggest changes for employers is with pre-employment physicals. Employers covered by civil rights laws and the ADA. are prohibited from having job applicants take pre-employment physicals. The employer can, however, make a conditional job offer, [...]
New Year's is traditionally a time to make resolutions for the upcoming months. Once you set your personal goals, it's time to get serious about your business goals. Here are ten resolutions you might consider making — and sticking to — to put you on track to prosper in 2019. 1. Compare 2018 financial performance [...]
The following table provides some important federal tax information for 2019, as compared with 2018. Many of the dollar amounts are unchanged and some changed only slightly due to inflation. Social Security/ Medicare 2019 2018 Social Security Tax Wage Base $132,900 $128,400 Medicare Tax Wage Base No limit No limit Employee portion of Social Security [...]
A whopping 75% of all child support is collected through employer-based income withholding orders (IWOs), according to the federal Office of Child Support Enforcement (OCSE). In the most recent year for which figures are available, that amounted to $32 billion. The latest information from the Census Bureau indicates that nearly half of the country's 13.4 [...]
