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Wages & Hours

Must we pay workers’ weekend travel time to new location?

04/07/2009

Q. We are closing one facility and laying off a large number of workers. In lieu of immediate layoffs, however, we want to temporarily transfer some maintenance employees from another facility 800 miles away. They have agreed to perform this work, which will take about three months. Do we have to pay them for the time spent traveling to the new work location, which will occur over a weekend?

Ledbetter’s lesson: Revamp salary guidelines to make pay as fair as possible

03/31/2009

Now that the Lilly Ledbetter Fair Pay Act is the law of the land, it may be time to revisit how you set starting and incumbent salaries. If you currently allow managers and supervisors flexibility on pay issues, consider reducing that discretion.

To do this week: Confirm new tax withhholding, begin using new I-9s

03/31/2009

HR pros have two important items to add to their to-do lists this week:

  • Ensure that this week’s payroll reflects more generous federal income tax withholding levels mandated by the economic stimulus law enacted in February.
  • Start using the new Form I-9 on Friday, April 3.

May we supplement unemployment comp benefits for temporarily laid-off workers?

03/30/2009

Q. We need to temporarily lay off some employees. It will be hard for them to make it on the amount of unemployment benefits. Can we supplement their unemployment benefits without interfering with the unemployment benefits?

If we supplement unemployment comp benefits, must we pay FICA/FUTA on it?

03/30/2009

Q. If we have a Supplemental Unemployment Pay Plan to supplement unemployment benefits, do the company and the employee have to pay FICA and FUTA taxes on the supplemental pay?

School district pulls salary scale bait-and-switch

03/26/2009

A hearing examiner for the Pennsylvania Labor Relations Board has ruled the Loyalsock Township School District engaged in an unfair labor practice when it failed to release the salary scale the district and teachers’ union agreed upon in the final contract.

Can we deduct partial days off from salaried employees’ accrued leave?

03/26/2009

Q. If a company tracks employees’ vacation, sick and personal time off, can we make deductions from accumulated time for everyone who takes time off, including salaried employees? I’m talking about deducting it from the accrual, not the pay. I’ve heard that I can’t deduct vacation, sick leave or personal time if the salaried employee worked at least four hours during that day.

Pay smarter: 4 comp trends for an awful economy

03/26/2009

The global financial crisis has stuck a pin in those rosy salary predictions from last summer. The trend in pay raises is down—but not out. About 75% of U.S. workers will see raises this year, but those raises will be the smallest in three decades, says a new WorldatWork survey. Some emerging strategies:

AIG isn’t the only employer with bonus problems!

03/24/2009

If, like many employers, you rely on a bonus plan to help retain valued employees and motivate them to work hard, don’t get caught in this common trap: Employees who worked overtime during the bonus-earning period will be entitled to additional overtime pay after they get their bonuses.

Switching payroll vendors? Have a Plan B

03/24/2009

Here’s a cautionary tale to consider if you’re planning to upgrade your time card to a high-tech electronic system.