Advice needed Employer has NOT paid in SS

[GoofyGolferGirl]

My DH was just laid off from his job and we found out that his employer has not paid his social security. It has been deducted from his check but not sent to unemployment office. What would you do? It is NOT because he doesn't have the money, I am mad right now and want him to pay!

 

[finz2left]

My DH was just laid off from his job and we found out that his employer has not paid his social security. It has been deducted from his check but not sent to unemployment office. What would you do? It is NOT because he doesn't have the money, I am mad right now and want him to pay!

Wow -- if you have check stubs I'd take them to the SS or local IRS office and let them launch an investigation. That is a federal offense.

 

[hffmnheidi]

I would contact a tax attorney and ask what your options are. If it was deducted from the check and you have proof, I believe the responsibilty is with his employer and you need to get this handled before Dec. 31st! Sounds like the employer is not on the up and up.

 

[tarheel618]

Wow -- if you have check stubs I'd take them to the SS or local IRS office and let them launch an investigation. That is a federal offense.

This, if you have proof that it was deducted, then I would have them handle it.

Is there a chance he will be recalled to this job?

 

[The LK 4]

What does his SS deduction have to do with his unemployment?

 

[ancestry]

What does his SS deduction have to do with his unemployment?

Ditto. What does social security have to do with unemployment? Do you perhaps mean that his employer didn't pay into the employment fund/unemployment tax like he was supposed to?

 

[southcarolinagirl]

My DH was just laid off from his job and we found out that his employer has not paid his social security. It has been deducted from his check but not sent to unemployment office. What would you do? It is NOT because he doesn't have the money, I am mad right now and want him to pay!

why would they send his ss to the UI office?

 

[msmayor]

I remit payroll withholdings every month for the consulting firm I work for.

I'm curious as to how it is you know the payments have never been made. Its not easy for the general public to determine whether those funds were actually remitted; only that they were deducted.

Social Security payments have nothing to do with unemployment. SS is a federal remittance; unemployment would be to the state.

 

[Cindy B]

Social Security is a totally different thing than UI fund. As a FORMER Social Security employee, I can say that some industries were exempt for withdrawing Soc. Sec. and did not take out FICA or OASDI . These industries are few and far between but they are still out there.

If your employer did not take out FICA or OASDI taxes and you wanted to collect Social Security you may not be eligible on YOUR OWN earnings records since no taxes were ever taken out.

If you had UI taken out of check that is a different story than Social Security.

 

[marius97]

What does his SS deduction have to do with his unemployment?

Maybe they meant that if there was a chance of being recalled and they really want/need the job, then they may not want to piss off the old boss by going to the IRS. Though if this situation is correct, I'd think that going to the IRS or whomever is more important.

 

[The LK 4]

Maybe they meant that if there was a chance of being recalled and they really want/need the job, then they may not want to piss off the old boss by going to the IRS. Though if this situation is correct, I'd think that going to the IRS or whomever is more important.

But the SS deductions have nothing to do with unemployment.

 

[sameyeyam]

I handle accounting & payroll, so I think what you are referring to is that the Unemployment office has not yet received the quarterly payment and report for UI taxes yet. So they are not able to reconcile your husbands account and figure out how much in unemployment he should get.

Federal & State unemployment insurance taxes are paid entirely by the employer and have nothing to do with Social Security, Medicare, Federal or state taxes that are taken out of your husband's paycheck.

What generally happens is the unemployment office will have to send a request to your husband's former employer. They will have to fill in how many hours and the wages he worked and then the unemployment office will make an estimate based on what the employer provided. Now if your husband has every single paycheck stub from the last quarter, that would help them out also.

It's most likely not anything that your husband's former employer has done wrong. Most employers only have to pay the taxes in quarterly, so if you quit or get laid off before the end of a quarter...well then they don't have that information at the unemployment office yet.

We get notices all the time and generally have about 10 days to respond with the information.

NOW...let's say worst case scenario...your hubby's former employer did not pay their UI taxes. Most states have a fund set up that everybody pays into, and it will kick in and your husband will get his unemployment check. It should not affect him at all.

It may just take a little longer to get the absolute correct amount that they will pay him figured out. In the meantime, they should be able to make an estimate based on prior pay or on the information your husband's employer provides to their letter.

My guess is the quarter your husband worked was October 1 - December 31. That report and payment are most likely not due to the state until January 31, 2011. Kind like your income taxes (payment & report) are not due until April 15th.

 

[JustCallMeMommy]

How long has it been since the last time it was sent? I haven't submitted social security taxes, but I would imagine it is done on a schedule that doesn't necessarily correlate with each pay period. Quarterly wouldn't surprise me at all.

 

[BBandDisney]

I would not get tax advise from a disney discussion board.

 

[mtblujeans]

I would not get tax advise from a disney discussion board.

But you WOULD get involved in this thread with only 5 posts???

 

[disneychrista]

I have to agree with the others not sure what SSI has to do with UI.

 

[GoofyGolferGirl]

Sorry I did not post the whole story! He has not paid Unemployment or SS for every quarter that my DH has worked there, My dh has worked there for 3 year and he has only paid in 5 quarters that we know of, I have contacted the SS office to get a copy of their records. We found this out because he had not paid in the unemployment when we went to file, which then made me question everything else. We do have copies of checks to prove it was deducted from DH check, and we believe he has done this to the other employees also. My DH will not be going back to work for him, he is a sleeze ball! I mentioned the SS because to me that is more important than the unemployment insurance. How do people get away with stuff like this??? We would have never know if he had not been let go/ laid off!

 

[GoofyGolferGirl]

Oh and he offered Dh a severance package of one month pay but he could not file any claims against him, that was a big clue too! Of course we did not take the one month pay over unemployment.

 

[Cindy B]

Sorry I did not post the whole story! He has not paid Unemployment or SS for every quarter that my DH has worked there, My dh has worked there for 3 year and he has only paid in 5 quarters that we know of, I have contacted the SS office to get a copy of their records. We found this out because he had not paid in the unemployment when we went to file, which then made me question everything else. We do have copies of checks to prove it was deducted from DH check, and we believe he has done this to the other employees also. My DH will not be going back to work for him, he is a sleeze ball! I mentioned the SS because to me that is more important than the unemployment insurance. How do people get away with stuff like this??? We would have never know if he had not been let go/ laid off!

As for Social Secuirity there is a term called quarter of coverage (or QC).
Just because you worked in that quarter does not mean that you will get Social Security credit-- there is a specific wage amount involved.

http://www.ssa.gov/oact/cola/QC.html

If there is wage evidence that he indeed worked that quarter (with the correct money amount), the QC's and wage creditss can be adjusted to show benefit credit. In some cases, the QC's may not even matter. In most cases, if you have over 40 QC's total, you are eligible for benefits. To adjust for the wages, that is a very easy fix that just involves a few keystrokes and a report. Of course you do need proof such as a pay stub.

Make an appointment at your local Social Security office and it can get squared away.

 

[Cheshire Figment]

In addition to checking pay stubs, look at his W-2's for each year. They should indicate Social Security and Medicare withheld and should agree with the final year-to-date figures on the pay stubs.

If you find that the Social Security may not have been paid in, there is a possibility that the Federal Withholding was not actually paid.

Do not worry about this. The Government (both IRS and SSA) will not come after you but will give you credit for the amounts withheld. They will then go after not only the company for the back taxes plus interest, but they will also go after each "responsible person" for a penalty equal to 100% of the unpaid taxes plus interest. And this can be the owner as well as any people responsible for making the payments, so it is possible for multiple 100% penalties.

Mike (CPA Retired)