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Payroll

27 biweekly pay periods in 2015? Can that be correct?

02/26/2015
Q: I’m new to payroll. I just noticed that we will have 27 biweekly pay periods in 2015. How do we deal with this? How should we communicate this to employees?

What’s the current mileage reimbursement rate?

02/24/2015
Q. Some of my construction employees must drive their personal cars to and from various work sites during work hours. Am I required to reimburse these employees for the miles they drive during this travel? If so, what is the amount per mile?

What counts as compensable working time?

02/23/2015
Q: We’re a property management company. Nonexempt employees must remain on-call at night and during the weekend to handle emergencies. Usually all they have to do is call the plumber or another service provider. If an employee receives a text or call, is that time compensable? Does the length of the call have any impact on whether the time is compensable?

Can we make employees pay for new uniforms?

02/18/2015
Q. We had to provide an employee with a replacement uniform shirt after he lost the one we gave him when he was hired. Can we require him to pay for this replacement by taking it out of his pay?

Don’t do it! Agencies clarify stances on ACA coverage dodges

02/18/2015
There is such a thing as being too clever by half, when it comes to enforcing the group health mandates of the Affordable Care Act. The IRS and its sister agencies have been putting out fires caused by promoters who claim compliance with the law through a hyper-technical reading of its provisions. Here’s the latest.

Final IRS regs clarify ACA’s individual mandate

02/16/2015
The IRS has issued final regulations that cover how group plans’ design affects affordability.

Reissued W-2s: Round up the usual suspects

02/13/2015
Who are the usual suspects? Employees who call every year, saying they lost their W-2s and could you please give them new ones now, because April 15 is, really, just weeks away. Here are some tips for managing the reissued W-2 process.

Don’t overpay for first shift of daylight saving time

02/13/2015
Daylight saving time begins at 2:00 a.m., March 8, 2015. Graveyard-shift workers, therefore, will actually work only seven hours that day.

Can we delay paycheck until personnel file is done?

02/13/2015
Q. We allow employees to begin working without handing in the documentation we require, such as reference letters. (We always have legal documentation, such as I-9s and W-4s) Are we legally allowed to hold an employee’s paycheck until their personnel file is complete?

Form W-2c: The agony of errors

02/12/2015
The earlier you fix errors on your 2019 W-2s, the less likely it is you’ll be penalized by the IRS. Procrastinators don’t win: If you correct errors within 30 days, the penalty is $50 a form. If you wait until after Aug. 3, 2020, the penalty spikes to $270 a form.