There was a time when getting paid was much simpler than it is today. You would work for day, or a certain number of hours, and receive your wages for your time. In today's world, there is a lot more that goes into calculating your pay. There are many different kinds of deductions such as taxes, 401(k) savings, insurance premiums, or any other deduction that is tied to a benefit, charity, or something else that your company offers.
With all the myriad of additions and subtractions from your paycheck, it can be daunting trying to figure out how a change to one or more of the components of your final paycheck can affect the overall check. Most employees probably just figure that the accounting department know what they are doing, and don't question the results of their paycheck, or the results of adjustments when they occur. But believe it or not, mistakes do happen, even from the payroll department. Employees naturally assume that some magical software accounting and payroll package just takes care of it all without too much thought on the part of the payroll accountant. Any employee can do the calculations in the same manner as the accountant, and double check the results of their work. Most paycheck statements are quite straight forward. They list, (or should list), all the different components that are added and subtracted to calculate your net pay.
"How to figure out how payroll adjustments affect your pay" »