Payroll Manager's - Kluwer Law International

Payroll News and Views
E-Verify. The U.S. Citizenship and
Immigration Services (USCIS) has announced
plans to conduct an Internet and telephone
survey on the federal government’s E-Verify
program [F.R. Doc. E9–31423, 1-5-10]. E-Verify is
the Web-based program operated by USCIS and
the Social Security Administration that allows
participating employers to electronically verify
the employment eligibility of their newly hired
employees. The survey will be used to “evaluate
how the E-Verify program is working nationally
and among a specific group of employers,
to determine whether employers are using the
program as intended and to evaluate positive and
negative impacts of the program in a mandatory
environment,” said USCIS.
Job outlook for 2010. While employers
continue to closely monitor the progress of recovery
for the U.S. economy, they are beginning to
consider hiring strategies designed to preserve
the health and growth of their businesses for the
future, according to CareerBuilder’s 2010 Job
Forecast. Twenty percent of employers plan to
increase their number of full-time, permanent
employees in 2010, up from 14% in 2009. Nine
percent say they plan to decrease headcount in
2010, down sharply from 16% in 2009. Sixty-one
percent don’t plan to change staff levels, while
10% say they are unsure. Comparing selected
industries, hiring is expected to increase in information
technology, manufacturing, financial
services, professional and business services, and
sales in the coming year.
Pay outlook for 2010. Having struggled with
cost-containment challenges during the past
18 months, which resulted in workforce reductions
and salary freezes, more organizations are
planning to grant pay increases in 2010 as the
economy begins to show signs of improvement,
according to Mercer’s 2009/2010 U.S. Compensation
Planning Survey Update. In fact, the HR
consulting and financing firm’s update revealed
that the number of organizations freezing salaries
has declined compared to last year. While
challenging economic conditions drove 30% of
employers to freeze salaries across the board
in 2009, just 14% are planning across-the-board
freezes in 2010. Of those employers granting base
pay increases, the average increase is expected to
be 2.7% in 2010.
White-collar exemption. An equipment rental
dispatcher fell within the administrative exemption
from overtime in the Fair Labor Standards
Act (FLSA), but not the executive exemption, a
federal district court in Florida has ruled. The
dispatcher’s primary duty was managerial, as
he was the only dispatcher, directed work, and
picked the type of equipment that would be used
to fill orders. He also regularly directed the work
of crane operators. But the court determined that
the dispatcher did not have hiring and firing
authority and, thus, was not an exempt employee
under the executive exemption. On the other
hand, the dispatcher’s maintenance of the schedule
put him in charge of one of the company’s
most important tasks. Thus, his primary duties
were directly related to the company’s general
business operations. Moreover, in performing
those duties, the dispatcher had to exercise discretion
and independent judgment. Thus, the
court found that he qualified for the administrative
exemption [Rock v. Sunbelt Cranes, 8:08-cv-
00838-T-17-EAK-EAJ (M.D. Fla., 10-26-09)].
Tax amnesties in New York and Pennsylvania.
A recently enacted law authorizes the Penalty and
Interest Discount (PAID) program in New York
[L. 2009, Ch. 501 (A.B. 21)]. The program began
on January 15, 2010, and requires all payments
to be made by the program’s expiration date on
March 15, 2010. Under the program, taxpayers
are liable for 80% of accrued penalty and interest
on unpaid bills that were issued on or before
December 31, 2003, or 50% of accrued penalty
and interest on unpaid bills that were issued after
December 31, 2003, and on or before December
31, 2006. Next door in Pennsylvania, the Department
of Revenue has issued guidelines for a
2010 tax amnesty program. The program period
will begin on April 26, 2010, and end on June 18,
2010. To participate, taxpayers will need to file
an online amnesty return, file all delinquent tax
returns, and make the required payment within
the Amnesty Period. All penalties and one half of
the interest due will be waived [2010 Tax Amnesty
Program Guidelines, Pennsylvania Department of
Revenue, 12-5-09].
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February 7, 2010/9900525344