I am a salary exempt employee at my my current employer (Oregon). They have recently notified us that they are syncing up their payperiods with our new owners. II normally get paid 26 times per year out of a specific salary. Because of this sync I have been told that the first pay period will not be a full 80 hours but my pay will be based off 40 hours.

For example; if my yearly Base Salary is $52,000. Divided by 26 pay-periods each paycheck is $2000 before taxes.

With this change I was told that the first paycheck they are changing me so that I only get paid half of my normal salary disbursement no matter what; so this first payperiod I will get $1000 and the remaining 25 payperiods I will get $2000 and for me I feel my salary is dropping for the year to $51,000. They claim they base salary off hours and that their books show them paying my full salary in the year even though I will not receive my agreed upon salary within the year and my taxes (books) will show that I only made 51,000 rather than 52,000.

Please help me figure out where find an answer to this.

Lets say you have been paid every other Friday. Your last pay was on 11/30. Now they pay you again on 12/7 then start a new bi-weekly cycle on 12/21. In that case you have not been shortchanged.

Are you positive that you will remain on 26 pay periods?
The only things I can think of is a shortened year so that they can close the books before Dec 31, or pay periods every 2 weeks instead of twice a month ( which could work out differently without that 1 week check). Bi-weekly is every 2 weeks; semi-monthly is twice a month.
I can't see a company short changing their exempt employees in a devious way. If you don't want to bother them to get a more thorough explanation, even just asking for a salary statement, then talk to other employees.
In the unusual event that they are reducing your pay you can quit and get unemployment. Lowered pay is one reason you can collect after quitting. But I doubt it's that.

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Originally Posted by joypulv

Are you positive that you will remain on 26 pay periods?

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It sounds to me like the parent company also pays bi-weekly but on the opposite schedule (i.e. the OP was paid on 11/30 and the parent's next check is on 12/7). So they just want all payroll on the same schedule. To accomplish that, they are paying a one week pay period to get in sync.

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Originally Posted by joypulv

Are you positive that you will remain on 26 pay periods?
The only things I can think of is a shortened year so that they can close the books before Dec 31, or pay periods every 2 weeks instead of twice a month ( which could work out differently without that 1 week check). Bi-weekly is every 2 weeks; semi-monthly is twice a month.

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Hi,

What has me so concerned is that within the calendar year of 2013 my income will have 26 paydays and one of those paydays will be 1/2 of what my normal salary amount is. In 2014 I will also have 26 pay days and all of them will be full paycheck amounts. The last pay period of 2012 ends on 12/22/2012. The first pay period of 2013 starts on 12/23/2012 and ends on 12.30/2012. The final (26th) pay period of 2013 ends on 12/15/2013, The first pay period of 2014 starts on 12/16/2013

I can see what they are doing in syncing with the parent company but I also see that my income within the year 2013 is less; the month of Jan 2013 the two paychecks only equal 2/3rds of what a normal month pay would be. Because they are only paying me based of 1 week of 40hrs (if I count the hours I will be paid for in 2013 it only equals 2040, 2014 will be a full 2080 hours pay). As a salary Exempt I expected that no matter what I would be given my normal salary every paycheck.

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Originally Posted by ScottGem

It sounds to me like the parent company also pays bi-weekly but on the opposite schedule (i.e. the OP was paid on 11/30 and the parent's next check is on 12/7). So they just want all payroll on the same schedule. To accomplish that, they are paying a one week pay period to get in sync.

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They are doing just that to get in sync; however, it seems to me that as a Salary Exempt I should get the same pay amount each payday regardless of hours worked so that my annual salary (income) is the $52,0000. The way they are paying me in pay period 01 my income within the tax year 2013 is is only $51,000.

This doesn't make sense. Essentially there should be a month where you get three paychecks. The one week check to bring you into sync then the 2 other checks for the new pay periods.

If the last period ended on 12/22/2013 with your current schedule, but on 12/15/2013 on the parent company's schedule, then you will get a check for the period ending 12/8/13. 12/22/13 and 12/30/13. That 12/30 period gets you into sync. You should also get checks for the period ending 1/12/14 and 1/26/14.

Essentially you will be getting 27 paychecks either for 2012 or 2013, one of them will be for 40 hours instead of 80.

Clearly they are changing from bi-weekly to semi-monthly, which is much easier bookkeeping and makes sense.
You say the one week (last week of Dec) is going into your 2013 pay? You say that 2013 ends on 12/15/13, and that you will be only getting 26 checks? I assume that the first paycheck of 2014, which includes the last half of Dec 2013, will be paid at the beginning of Jan.
So I have to agree with you that unless we are missing something, you are being shortchanged, or it's being passed down the years.

You may have been given wrong information. You may have misunderstood (I too think the 1-week check should be a 27th one). But payroll depts do make mistakes too.

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Originally Posted by joypulv

Clearly they are changing from bi-weekly to semi-monthly

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I'm still not reading that. I'm reading that the pay period are still bi-weekly, but arer being changed to a different cycle (I.E. 12/8-12/23 has been changed to 12/15 to 12/29 to be the same as the parent.

One clue that it's going to be semi-monthly is that the first pay period of 2014 starts 12/16/13.

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Originally Posted by joypulv

One clue that it's going to be semi-monthly is that the first pay period of 2014 starts 12/16/13.

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I think that's just coincidence because 12/15 falls out on a Saturday in 2012.

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Originally Posted by ScottGem

I think that's just coincidence because 12/15 falls out on a Saturday in 2012.

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Semi-monthly dates have no regard for day of week. The employer picks 2 end dates for all months, such as 15th and last day. Plus, he said 2013, not 2012. It doesn't matter - there's still 2 weeks after 12/15. So it has to be semi-monthly.

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Originally Posted by joypulv

Clearly they are changing from bi-weekly to semi-monthly, which is much easier bookkeeping and makes sense.
You say the one week (last week of Dec) is going into your 2013 pay? You say that 2013 ends on 12/15/13, and that you will be only getting 26 checks? I assume that the first paycheck of 2014, which includes the last half of Dec 2013, will be paid at the beginning of Jan.
So I have to agree with you that unless we are missing something, you are being shortchanged, or it's being passed down the years.

You may have been given wrong information. You may have misunderstood (I too think the 1-week check should be a 27th one). But payroll depts do make mistakes too.

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This doesn't make sense. Essentially there should be a month where you get three paychecks. The one week check to bring you into sync then the 2 other checks for the new pay periods.

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This is what I originally thought; that there were two 40 hour pay periods and 1 80hr in Jan to really sync up my Salary. It doesn't make sense that the I would get 27 paychecks in 2013 with 26 of them being full and the 27th being 40 because that would give me 40 more hours than it should.

Attached is the schedule I was given (PDF).

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Originally Posted by maamold

This is what I originally thought; that there were two 40 hour pay periods and 1 80hr in Jan to really sync up my Salary. It doesn't make sense that the I would get 27 paychecks in 2013 with 26 of them being full and the 27th being 40 because that would give me 40 more hours than it should.

Attached is the schedule I was given (PDF).

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OK its definitely bi-weekly. And you will have 26 paydays in 2013. In Dec 2012, The parent company's last period should have ended 12/31. Since your company's final pay period ended 12/22 then have to give you only 40 hours on the Jan 4 payday, which for the parent company Because you already received pay for half the 12/17-12/31 pay period that the parent company paid out.

Darn, I wanted to be right for some reason.

So maamold, are you still worried that you aren't getting your full salary?

Just to make it clearer you received two checks, for the periods ending 12/8 and 12/22 in December. If your old company schedule was being maintained you would have gotten a check after January 6th for the pay period ending Jan 6.

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Originally Posted by ScottGem

OK its definitely bi-weekly. And you will have 26 paydays in 2013. In Dec 2012, The parent company's last period should have ended 12/31. Since your company's final pay period ended 12/22 then have to give you only 40 hours on the Jan 4 payday, which for the parent company Because you already received pay for half the 12/17-12/31 pay period that the parent company paid out.

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This is where I am ultra confused ad bear with me. There are 26 pay periods in 2012, The last ends on 12/22/2012 and the pay date is 12/27/2012 this is the last disbursement and I get a full paycheck - so I can account for 2080 hours paid to me.

Then in 2013 my first paycheck is only 40 hours. The final payperiod in 2013 ends 12/15/2013 and I will get the 80 hours for PP 2-26. I'm not getting another 40hrs from anywhere or anyone within the 26 payperiods in 2013 - I only see 2040 hours paid to me in 2013.

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Originally Posted by ScottGem

Just to make it clearer you received two checks, for the periods ending 12/8 and 12/22 in December. If your old company schedule was being maintained you would have gotten a check after January 6th for the pay period ending Jan 6.

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Correct on the Jan 10th - however that would have been a full 80hr check (and in all 26 pay-periods in 2013 I would have received my full salary). Now they have changed to this new schedule the paydate that moved to the 4th will only be 40hr (and the remaining 25 will be 80hr). Then all 26 pay-dates in 2014 will also be full 80hrs checks.

I just can't wrap my head around why it is OK for me to make less salary in 2013 because the pay-dates are changing.

I can't wrap my head around it either.

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Originally Posted by maamold

Then in 2013 my first paycheck is only 40 hours. The final payperiod in 2013 ends 12/15/2013 and I will get the 80 hours for PP 2-26. I'm not getting another 40hrs from anywhere or anyone within the 26 payperiods in 2013 - I only see 2040 hours paid to me in 2013.

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But that's where I think you are wrong. Your final 2012 Pay period ends 12/22. That's how your company currently works. The final pay period for the NEW company is 12/15. Since you were already paid an extra week (12/15-12/22) under the OLD schedule, they can only pay you for 40 hours in the first pay period under the new schedule.