Vision Payroll

The Division of Labor & Worker Safety of the Ohio Department of Commerce announced recently that, effective January 1, 2009, the minimum wage for the state of Ohio will increase to $7.30 per hour for non-tipped employees and $3.50 for tipped employees. The minimum wage will apply to employers who gross more than $267,000 per year. As a result of a constitutional amendment that passed in 2006 an adjustment to the minimum wage must be applied on January 1 of each year. The adjustment is tied to the Consumer Price Index (CPI) for urban wage earners and clerical workers for the 12-month period prior to September. The 4.6% increase in the CPI will result in an increase of $0.30 for 2009. Contact Vision Payroll if you have any questions on the Ohio minimum wage increase or visit our Minimum Wage Chart.

This week’s question comes from Joe, a payroll administrator. I’m always busy at year-end. Is there anything I can do now to make 2008 year-end easier? Answer: There are several things that can be done to ease the year-end crunch.

• Review each employee’s basic information including name, address, and social security number and update for changes or mistakes.
• Be sure contractor W-9 forms are on file for preparation of any Forms 1099.
• Review company paid time off policy and remind employees of any use it or lose it feature.
• Accumulate data for special pay transactions including items that must be added for W-2 purposes. Examples include fringe benefits, including personal use of a company car, value of group-term life insurance in excess of $50,000, and medical premiums for certain S corporation shareholders. These items should be included with a live payroll run in order to collect the employee’s share of any taxes due.
• Confirm with your pension plan administrator which employees should have pension indicator box checked on Form W-2.
• Determine which employees will require an additional Form W-2 to report third-party sick pay.
• Plan and schedule any additional pay runs, including holiday and performance bonuses and directors pay.

Vision Payroll can work with you to prepare now for a smooth year-end. Contact us now with any questions or concerns.

According to the US Department of Labor, in the week ending October 4, the advance figure for seasonally adjusted initial claims was 478,000, a decrease of 20,000 from the previous week’s revised figure of 498,000. It is estimated that the effects of Hurricane Gustav in Louisiana and the effects of Hurricane Ike in Texas added approximately 17,000 claims to the total. The 4-week moving average was 482,500, an increase of 8,250 from the previous week’s revised average of 474,250.

Can you ask a job applicant disability-related questions? Does it matter if you’ve made a conditional job offer? Can you ask a current employee disability-related questions? The federal Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) defines when a covered employer may ask such questions. The Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC) provides guidance regarding these ADA provisions. To learn more, sign into MyHRSupportCenter and read this month’s featured article. If you’re not yet signed up or would like a free trial of MyHRSupportCenter, contact Vision Payroll today.

Governor Arnold Schwarzenegger signed AB 10 into law recently. The new law, signed as an urgency statute, took effect immediately upon the signing by the governor. Under the law, certain computer software professionals who make $36 or more per hour, if paid hourly or $75,000 per year (paid at least monthly) if paid a salary, are exempt from the overtime provisions of California state law. Both amounts are scheduled to be adjusted annually in proportion to changes in the California Consumer Price Index. Trainees and other categories of employees are exempted from the overtime law. Contact Vision Payroll if you have questions on the change in California overtime law.

The IRS recently issued Notice 2008-82 which provides guidance on the recently enacted §114 of the Heroes Earnings Assistance and Relief Tax Act of 2008 (the HEART Act). The HEART Act amended §125 of the Internal Revenue Code of 1986 (IRC) to allow distributions of unused amounts in a Health Flexible Spending Arrangement (Health FSA, also called a 125 or cafeteria plan) to reservists ordered or called to active duty. In addition to providing guidance on “qualified reservist distributions” or QRDs, the Notice provides a transition rule allowing plans to be retroactively amended for QRDs made before January 1, 2010. Contact Vision Payroll if you have any questions on Notice 2008-82.

Nonfarm payroll employment declined by 159,000 in September, and the unemployment rate held at 6.1 percent, the Bureau of Labor Statistics of the U.S. Department of Labor reported recently. Employment continued to fall in construction, manufacturing, and retail trade, while mining and health care continued to add jobs.

The unemployment rate (6.1 percent) was unchanged in September, following a 0.4 percentage point rise in August. The number of unemployed persons was little changed at 9.5 million. Over the past 12 months, the number of unemployed persons has increased by 2.2 million and the unemployment rate has risen by 1.4 percentage points.

The unemployment rates for adult men (6.1 percent) and blacks (11.4 percent) rose in September. The jobless rates for teenagers (19.1 percent), whites (5.4 percent), and Hispanics (7.8 percent) were essentially unchanged. The unemployment rate for adult women declined to 4.9 percent, partly offsetting an increase in August. The unemployment rate for Asians in September was 3.8 percent, not seasonally adjusted.

Among the unemployed, the number of persons who lost a job rose by 347,000 to 5.2 million in September, with increases occurring both for those on temporary layoff and for those who do not expect to be recalled to work.

In September, the number of long-term unemployed (those jobless for 27 weeks or more) rose by 167,000 to 2.0 million, an increase of 728,000 over the past 12 months. The long-term unemployed accounted for 21.1 percent of total unemployment in September.

Following an investigation, the US Department of Labor has filed a lawsuit seeking more than $5 million in underpaid overtime. The suit was filed against CEMEX, Inc., a Houston-based provider of cement and concrete products. Employees in Arizona, California, Florida, Georgia, New Mexico, North Carolina, South Carolina, and Texas were allegedly underpaid overtime hours for piece rate and incentive bonus pay. The Fair Labor Standards Act (FLSA) requires that employees eligible for overtime be paid at one and one-half times their regular rate of pay, which should include most commissions, bonuses, and incentive pay. Vision Payroll provides a continuing series on the FLSA, but you should contact your labor attorney with specific questions on overtime hours and pay rates.

This week’s question comes from Mel, a small-business owner. I’ve heard that the Massachusetts HIRD report must now be filed on a quarterly basis. Is the report due November 15 for the third quarter? Answer:  The Health Insurance Responsibility Disclosure (HIRD) Report due November 15 and for the year ended September 30, 2008 must still be filed on an annual basis. Under 430 CMR 15.00, starting October 1, 2008 the base periods will be quarterly. Therefore, to determine the amount of any Fair Share Employer Contribution your company must pay, a quarterly calculation and filing will be required. Periods will end December 31, March 31, June 30, and September 30 and the filing and payments will be due on or before February 15, May 15, August 15, and November 15. Contact Vision Payroll if you have questions on your Fair Share Employer Contribution or HIRD Report.

According to the US Department of Labor, in the week ending September 27, the advance figure for seasonally adjusted initial claims was 497,000, an increase of 1,000 from the previous week’s revised figure of 496,000. It is estimated that the effects of Hurricane Gustav in Louisiana and the effects of Hurricane Ike in Texas added approximately 45,000 claims to the total. The 4-week moving average was 474,000, an increase of 11,500 from the previous week’s unrevised average of 462,500.