Charlette Beasley

A shift differential, or shift pay, is a premium employers pay to employees who work outside of normal business hours. For example, if a restaurant is open past midnight, employees working the night shift may receive an extra $2 an hour. Legally, employers must include this premium in any overtime calculations, or they’ll face penalties….

When processing payroll for yourself vs employees, choosing the right business structure is key to minimizing taxes. Determining how much and how often to pay helps with managing profitability and cash flow, which is why setting up a payroll system is important. Good payroll services make it easy and support employers with tax law compliance….

A payroll card (pay card) is a prepaid debit card employers used to pay employees who don’t have bank accounts. Although regulated by state law, they’re similar to direct deposits in that money is sent electronically and setup is sometimes free. Pay cards are available from dedicated providers (FlexWage or VISA), banks, or payroll companies….

Learning payroll terminology helps prepare employers for the intricacies of running payroll. It’s full of terms fraught with legal implications and mathematical calculations. By definition, payroll is a business’ employees and how much they should be paid; taxes and government agencies are also significant components. Here is a look at the top 20 payroll terms…

The way you choose how to calculate bonuses for employees can affect company morale. Performance bonuses encourage personnel to work toward achieving individual and company goals, and nonperformance bonuses can make everyone feel appreciated. You can multiply an employee’s total sales earned by a fixed bonus percentage or pay a flat rate to everyone. Gusto…

A pay stub is a document that serves as a record of an employee’s paid wages in addition to taxes and deductions withheld. We provide more than 50 free pay stub templates to help you comply with laws in the 41 states that require employers provide them—even if paying with cash or direct deposit. Downloadable…

The best training for payroll is relative to what you’re trying to accomplish. If you’re a business owner needing to run payroll for employees, you can spend little to no money learning with online resources. If you’re a payroll clerk who wants to be promoted, a $2,000 advanced payroll program might be more appropriate. If…

Tip pooling is combining all or a portion of all of your employees’ tips and redistributing among eligible front-of-house employees. Often confused with tip sharing, which traditionally includes employees who don’t directly receive tips, tip pooling can increase morale. However, there are laws, like forbidden management participation, that must be followed to avoid being fined….

Retroactive pay (retro pay) is a payment made to an employee to make up the difference between what was paid and what should’ve been paid. It can occur when salary is increased in the middle of a pay cycle or a bonus that was earned in a prior pay period is paid. Disclaimer: Fit Small…

For employers, paying independent contractors is simpler and often cheaper than paying employees because they don’t have to withhold or pay taxes. Although year-end reports are required to show amounts paid, labor laws—like minimum wage—that cover employees don’t apply. Even better, some payroll services charge $5 a month per contractor. If you’re looking for an…