Field-based roles raise unique FLSA compliance questions, including whether an employer must pay for work tasks performed before or during the commute to the first job site. A recent DOL opinion letter addressed the issue. The question came from a…
Payroll
As employers plan 2027 pay budgets, modest pay increases can mask the tougher challenge ahead: determining where those dollars will have the greatest impact and ensuring the investment delivers value. In Payscale’s 11th annual Salary Budget Survey, nearly a third…
What happens when an employee works 50 hours per week, but payroll makes it look like 25 hours for each of two companies to avoid overtime premiums? That was the setup allegedly devised by the owner of two janitorial companies…
A federal court has approved a proposed $162 million class action settlement between Public Partnerships LLC (PPL) and personal assistants who provide care through New York's Consumer Directed Personal Assistance Program. The proposed settlement is believed to be the largest…
An investigation into a public works project in Lake County turned into a costly lesson on certified payroll compliance. The Illinois Department of Labor's (IDOL) Wage Transparency and Construction Compliance Division investigated Absolute Home Improvements & Cleaning Service over its…
Alaska employers may pay wages by payroll card under SB 79, effective July 1, 2026, subject to new compliance requirements. Employers may use a pay card only if the employee voluntarily authorizes it or has not authorized direct deposit under…
The Internal Revenue Service (IRS) has released the Affordable Care Act (ACA) affordability update for 2027, giving employers a new figure to consider when reviewing their health plans and preparing for open enrollment. The ACA affordability percentage sets the threshold…
A missed federal payroll tax deposit can trigger hefty penalties -- they just went up on July 1. But a new IRS program could provide automatic penalty relief for eligible employers with a strong compliance history. The IRS's Automatic Exemption…
Not every sign-on bonus belongs in the overtime calculation – and a recent federal case out of Virginia shows why. A fired employee filed a lawsuit against his former employer, claiming he was illegally terminated after complaining about a co-worker’s…
A San Diego deli will pay more than $500,000 in back wages after a federal investigation found it paid workers a flat daily rate that fell short of minimum wage and overtime requirements. Here's what happened, according to an investigation…
The IRS has increased 2026 mileage rates for the second half of the year due to rising fuel prices. Here are the changes that took effect on July 1. The business standard mileage rate is 76 cents per mile, up…
What's the maximum Social Security tax that Payroll could withhold from each employee in 2027? The taxable wage base estimate has been released. According to the intermediate projection in the June 2026 Trustees Report, the Social Security taxable wage base…
