subject: The Importance Of Keeping Accurate Records Of Earnings When In Pursuit Of Workers Compensation Benef [print this page] Not all employee compensation is the same
Certain statistical terms which are used to describe the balance of payments, corporate accounts, or those used in national accounts, and relate to any money that is owed to an individual who performs a service, provides products, or works for another individual is oftentimes referred to as CE or the compensation of employees. It typically refers to wages that are an employers method for compensating their employees.
This compensation is called gross or pre-tax wages which the employer pays to an employee for work performed during a specified accounting period. It could occur weekly, every two weeks, bi-monthly, monthly, quarterly, or even annually. It oftentimes involves more than the gross wages mentioned here and can involve bonuses, commissions, or tips. Although these are all viewed as being compensation or wages for work performed, some are paid without any deductions occurring such as:
Federal and state withholding taxes; FICA or Social Security; SDI or State Disability Insurance
Another scenario to consider is that some individuals are classified as Independent Contractors. ICs are responsible for covering the above although they are referred to by different names such as self-employment taxes. In any case, it is imperative that the individual keeps accurate records of their compensation and reports this actually when it is time to file their federal and state income tax returns.
Accurate record keeping and workers compensation issues
Accounting and record keeping is not that difficult, regardless of how you are compensated. It is the accuracy of that record keeping that is critical. This is especially the case when you are filing a workers comp claim for an injury that you incurred while you were on the job. There are two sides to this issue. However, both are based on accuracy and can impact you negatively where your finances are concerned.
The key is that inaccurate accounting will ultimately lead to inaccurate reporting of earnings and can hurt you on your income tax returns as well as where the amount of workers compensation benefits you are entitled to is concerned. We have had cases in the past where inaccurate calculations of compensation have led to mis-calculations of benefits that are owed in workers comp cases.
Bartenders and waitresses who do not keep accurate records of their tip earnings seem to be the individuals that the above applies to more than other positions although the same holds true if you earn commissions or receive sizable bonuses during the year. If you would like more information regarding this issue or we can answer any questions for you, please contact us at our website.
