This glossary defines the most frequently used payroll terms in Salaris. It’s designed to help you interpret your paystubs, payroll settings, and reports with confidence.
Term | Definition |
941 | IRS Form 941, filed quarterly by employers to report wages paid, federal income tax withheld, and Social Security and Medicare taxes. |
Approval deadline | The latest date and time a payroll can be approved to ensure employees are paid on the scheduled payday. |
Base pay (Basis) | The payment structure for an employee’s regular earnings, such as hourly or salary. |
Benefit contributions | Employer and employee amounts set aside for benefits like health insurance or retirement plans. May include pre-tax deductions. |
Child support | Court-ordered deductions from an employee’s pay used to support a dependent child. |
Company | The employer’s registered business entity in Salaris. Company details appear on employee paystubs. |
Correction | A payroll adjustment made to fix an error in a previously processed pay period (for example, an overpayment). |
DBA (Doing Business As) | A trade name used by a business that differs from its legal entity name. |
Direct deposit | An electronic transfer of wages from the employer’s bank account directly to the employee’s bank account. |
Disposable income | Employee earnings after required deductions (used to determine garnishment limits). |
Earnings | Total compensation before deductions. May include regular pay, overtime, bonuses, or commissions. |
Earnings type | The category of pay that describes how the employee earned wages (e.g., hourly, salary, overtime, bonus). |
EIN | Employer Identification Number assigned by the IRS; used for tax filing and reporting. |
FICA | Federal Insurance Contributions Act taxes—Social Security and Medicare—withheld from employee wages and matched by employers. |
Fringe benefits | Non-wage compensation, such as allowances or non-cash perks, which may be taxable depending on IRS rules. |
FUTA (Federal Unemployment Tax Act) | Employer-paid federal unemployment tax based on each employee’s wages, up to an annual wage base limit. |
Gross pay | Total amount earned before any deductions or taxes. |
Net pay | The employee’s take-home pay after all deductions and taxes have been withheld. |
Pay period | The range of dates during which an employee’s work hours or salary are calculated for payment. |
Payday | The date wages are issued for a specific pay period. |
Payroll | A record of all pay items, taxes, deductions, and payments processed for employees in a pay run. |
Post-tax deductions | Amounts withheld from pay after taxes, such as union dues, wage garnishments, or loan repayments. |
Pre-tax deductions | Amounts withheld before taxes are calculated, reducing taxable income (e.g., health insurance premiums, retirement contributions). |
Reimbursement | Payment to an employee for approved business expenses (usually non-taxable). |
Social Security | Federal payroll tax collected under FICA to fund retirement and disability benefits. |
State unemployment (SUI) | Employer-paid state tax that funds unemployment benefits for eligible workers. Rates and wage limits vary by state. |
Taxable wages | The portion of an employee’s earnings subject to specific taxes after pre-tax deductions are applied. |
Wage base limit | The maximum amount of wages subject to a particular tax in a given year. Once reached, no additional tax is withheld for that type. |
Withholding | The process of deducting taxes from employee pay and sending them to the correct government agency. |
YTD (Year-to-Date) | The cumulative total of earnings, deductions, or taxes from the beginning of the calendar year through the current pay period. |
Need help?
If you have questions or need assistance, please contact Salaris Payroll Support. We’re here to help.