Minimum wage updates, effective July 1, 2018

  • Emeryville, CA—$15.69 per hour for large businesses; $15.00 per hour for small businesses;
  • Los Angeles City and County, CA—$13.25 per hour for businesses with more than 25 employees; $12.00 per hour for businesses with 25 or fewer employees; $15.66 per hour for hotel workers;
  • Malibu, CA—$13.25 per hour for businesses with 26 or more employees; $12.00 per hour for businesses with 25 or fewer employees;
  • Milpitas, CA—$13.50 per hour;
  • Pasadena, CA—$13.25 per hour for businesses with 26 or more employees; $12.00 per hour for businesses with 25 or fewer employees;
  • San Francisco, CA—$15.00 per hour;
  • San Leandro, CA—$13.00 per hour;
  • Chicago, IL—$12.00 per hour;
  • Cook County, IL—$11.00 per hour;
  • Maryland—$10.10 per hour;
  • Las Cruces, NM—$9.20 per hour;
  • Santa Fe and Santa Fe County, NM—$11.40 per hour;
  • Oregon—Portland metro area—$12.00 per hour; urban counties—$10.75 per hour; rural counties—$10.50 per hour;
  • Washington, D.C.—$13.25 per hour.

 

 

AlphaStaff E-Verify

Various states (9) have required the use of electronic verification system operated by the USCIS and Department of Homeland Security. Alphastaff will act as co-employer for clients that elect to utilize Alphastaff to verify employment status with E-Verify.

The client must fill out an E-verify Request Form to start the process of compiling a Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) Contract – Below is the information needed to create the account in E-verify website:

  1. Contractor/General Employer
  2. Name & DBA (if applicable)
  3. EIN Number
  4. Address (No PO Box)
  5. Number of Employees
  6. Sector of Service
  7. Location(s)
  8. Contact(s) Information

Once entered the client will receive the MOU contract to sign and send back to AlphaStaff. After that any and all new hires must be verified, NO Exceptions.  A valid I-9 is needed from the client in order for Alphastaff to complete the E-Verify Process. Contact your HRAM or Payroll Specialist for more information.

 

 

New tax law brings changes to tax withholding for 2018

Major tax reform was approved by Congress in the Tax Cuts and Jobs Act on Dec. 22, 2017. One change directly affected the rate at which taxes are withheld from paychecks. Our federal income tax is a pay-as-you-go tax system and there are two ways to pay as you go, either through withholding or estimated tax payments.

If you are an employee, your employer may withhold income tax from your pay. Your pay includes your regular pay, bonuses, commissions, and vacation pay and other amounts. Tax may also be withheld from certain other income — including pensions, bonuses, commissions, and gambling winnings. In each case, the amount withheld is paid to the IRS in your name. When the withholding rates change, it changes the amounts that are paid to the IRS on your behalf.

To ensure that enough withholding is paid to avoid owing a balance due and possible penalties, it is recommended that everyone do a “paycheck checkup” now.

Generally, it is recommended that people check the amount withheld each year; particularly when the rates you pay change or your family situation changes. It’s especially important for people with more complicated financial situations verify they are having the correct amount withheld as the law also changed the standard deduction, removed personal exemptions, increased the child tax credit, limited or discontinued certain deductions and changed the tax rates and brackets.

Use the IRS Withholding Calculator on IRS.gov. This tool is designed to help you determine the right amount of tax withheld from your paycheck.

The amount of income tax your employer withholds from your regular pay depends on two things.

If your employer isn’t withholding the proper amount to cover your taxes under the new rates provided to them by the IRS, you may need to complete a new Form W–4 to change the amount withheld.

Another change enacted during this major tax reform was the lowering of the flat federal tax rate for Supplemental wages from 25% to 21%