5 Payroll Pitfalls to Avoid at All Cost!

1. Calculating and withholding payroll taxes: Employers are required to withhold and remit various taxes from employee paychecks, including federal and state income tax, Social Security tax, and Medicare tax. These calculations can be complex and must be accurate to avoid penalties and fines.
2. Complying with wage and hour laws: Employers must ensure that their payroll practices comply with federal, state, and local wage and hour laws, which can vary widely depending on the jurisdiction. This includes tracking employee hours worked, overtime calculations, and ensuring that employees are paid at least the minimum wage.
3. Managing employee benefits: Payroll administrators must ensure that employee benefits, such as health insurance, retirement plans, and other perks, are accurately tracked and administered. This can include calculating employee contributions, coordinating with benefits providers, and ensuring that benefits are correctly reflected in employee paychecks.
4. Processing payroll for remote and international employees: If a company has remote employees or operates in multiple jurisdictions, payroll can become much more complex. This may involve navigating different tax laws and regulations, converting currencies, and ensuring that remote employees receive their paychecks on time.
5. Handling payroll errors and disputes: Despite everyone’s best efforts, errors can occur in payroll processing. When they do, payroll administrators must work quickly to identify and correct the problem to ensure that employees are paid accurately and on time. Additionally, if a dispute arises, payroll administrators may need to work with legal counsel and other parties to resolve the issue.

Payroll is not rocket science, but it is time consuming and mind numbing if you have to go back and correct errors with government agencies. This can all be avoided by have your Certified Payroll team help you with these tasks and allowing you to focus on more important issues with your valuable time.