Right to YTD payroll info when leaving a job?

[haapai]

The last time that I left a job involuntarily, I was still receiving a paper paycheck with that information attached.  So I was given that information.  It came attached to the paycheck that arrived in the mail.

Then I lost, misplaced, or tossed that information, which made determining my income and withholding position quite difficult until my W-2s arrived.  (This was a long time ago, when I wasn't particularly good about depositing checks immediately and frequently took checks to a teller and asked for cash instead of depositing them.  This also occurred before I developed  many of my current nerd chops which would allow me to get a pretty good idea of what YTD income and withholding were from a combination of incomplete information and educated guesswork.) 

But back then, not having that YTD info hurt.  I was broke and in no position to pay the state or the IRS any tax that I might owe when I filed and the odds of me owing seemed high.  I had opted not to have anything withheld from my unemployment checks.  (I'm also didn't know how many unemployment checks I had received, because they were also getting taken to tellers and cashed. Damn, some of the stories of my younger self are embarrassing!)

Anyways, the point is that not having that info hurt and made planning difficult.  I now receive my pay via direct deposit and my payroll information via the computer system at work. 

If I am involuntarily terminated and my access to that payroll information is cut off prior to termination, do I have a method of getting it?  Specifically, do I have a right to demand it while being canned or to demand it from HR via phone after I have been escorted off the premises? 

I'm not expecting to get canned any time soon, but any insight that any of you have regarding how terminated employees can get this information, just might be good to know about. 

[Cheesy FL-Vol]

I have the ability to print my pay statement off from our employee website. I can either print to a .pdf or a hard copy. I would think you have the ability to do so as well.

[haapai]

I'm not sure that my password, which is the same one that I use to access every program at work, would still work. 

FWIW,, this might also be an issue if I was leaving on good terms.  That is, if my access to the records was curtailed on my last day of work, the information available to me on my last day of work might not include the last paycheck. 

[Cheesy FL-Vol]

Maybe be proactive and start getting in the habit of making a copy of your pay statements every pay period. This way, if worse comes to worse, you would have the most recent you obtained available to you.

ETA: When I had a job loss or left voluntarily, my last paycheck was always a live check that had all of the appropriate withholding and deductions, etc.

[Deleted]

I'd ask your payroll.  Lots of places stop direct deposit and give a paper check for the final check.  Even if not, I would think getting the paycheck stub for the final check would not be a big deal if you were terminated.

Ours can be accessed online or in the ADP app, so I have access even after I no longer work there. 

[Tiny]

I print out a 2 paycheck stubs every quarter (the deductions on my checks vary as some are 1st check and some are 2nd check (the 3rd check of the month are different too but there's only 2 of them.          So, I wouldn't necessarily have the most current - but I'd have a "base" to work with.    I do this because I'm nerdy and actually review my check stubs and I too find having YTD info handy.     I strongly suspect most of my coworkers (and probably most people) do not look at this info (and probably don't even know it exists if they get direct deposit).     I have stunned coworkers when I mention the "extra check" or 3rd check of the month... they had no idea we get paid 26 times a year (rather than 24 times). 

We have a separate user id and password to access  our paycheck info (as it's handled by an outside payroll company) which I can access from any pc (it's a webpage).    so I suspect I would have access atleast for a few days when I'm no longer an employee.    I suspect my FSA/HSA will also be available as that too is a separate company with a website (and I have another user id and password).

I think printing out a pay stub (or two) occasionally is the best way to go.   Otherwise you are relying on the HR dept once you've separated from the employer to get you the info when you ask (and they might do it if you ask right away - you might not be a 'high priority' once you've been gone for a couple of weeks.              

[haapai]

Apr 16, 2019 12:04:31 GMT -5 minnesotapaintlady said:

I'd ask your payroll.  Lots of places stop direct deposit and give a paper check for the final check.  Even if not, I would think getting the paycheck stub for the final check would not be a big deal if you were terminated.

Ours can be accessed online or in the ADP app, so I have access even after I no longer work there. 

Final paychecks can be highly irregular if they include unused vacation pay. 

Maybe I'll ask the coworker will soon be retiring with six weeks of unused vacation to ask HR this question. 

I was really hoping for answers that weren't "Be more proactive", "Be nerdier", or "Be braver".

ETA:  I really should store my payroll information more regularly.  I know that there are tons of tricks for reconstructing payroll information from combinations of bank records, retirement account deposit records and that Circular E is invaluable when doing so.  I know that I should just ask HR this question.   I get that I am a sloppy, lazy, chickenshit and that I should reform my ways. 

But it sure would be handy to know whether or not former employees have a right to this information after they have left an employer.  That way, if I ever had to deal with a distressed, broke, anxious and embarrassed person much like my younger self, I would have better suggestions than going back in time and doing things differently. 

[Deleted]

This question is timely for me.  I need to make a note on the calendar to print my last paycheck in August.  It doesn't really have all the numbers I would need, at least not in simple form.  But it would give me a place to start estimating.

[bean29]

I would go ask payroll. I work for a small company, and I print YTD payroll info for one of our Union workers who is retired.  I print them pretty much weekly when he is close to his max.  The Union sets a Max # of hours the retired guys can work each year without it affecting their pension benefits.  The reports have to be in their system already, so they don't have to recreate the wheel.

I also think you can request your W-2 upon termination, but I have never had to run one for an employee. I went to the IRS website. You can request your W-2 and they have to furnish it within 30 days.

www.irs.gov/pub/irs-pdf/iw2w3.pdf

If employment ends before December 31, 2019, you may furnish copies to the employee at any time after employment ends, but no later than January 31, 2020. If an employee asks for Form W-2, give him or her the completed copies within 30 days of the request or within 30 days of the final wage payment, whichever is later.

I don't think anyone would deny you payroll info even if you were fired.  Payroll reporting has all kinds of legal and ethical things involved. 

[haapai]

Hazzah! 

Do you remember what page that was on?  I busted my bifocals in December and am having trouble finding it. 

[souldoubt]

Thinking bean29 is referencing page #6 top right paragraph:


If employment ends before December 31, 2019, you

may furnish copies to the employee at any time after

employment ends, but no later than January 31, 2020. If

an employee asks for Form W-2, give him or her the

completed copies within 30 days of the request or within

30 days of the final wage payment, whichever is later.

However, if you terminate your business, see Terminating

a business.

[ners]

If a worker has a personal email I reset their payroll access to their personal email address.   

[Miss Tequila]

I left my job is January and asked payroll to send me the last paycheck Stub. We had online access but since I had access to payroll through the payroll system I never set it up. I had my statement / hours after my request. It was not a big deal

[alabamagal]

Well I just went through this.....and i am actually still getting severance pay.

I worked for a large company that used an external payroll processing site.  I had to get a new password to access the payroll site.  It took a few minutes to set up, i had to call central HR to reset my password.

And previous time I left a job, I really didn't think much about it, but they used the same payroll company, and when I got to the new job, it somehow linked to my previous pay stubs also.

[Anne_in_VA]

I just went through this when I retired.  My company sent me a copy of my last pay stub which showed all the information from January 1st through my retirement date.  If, for some reason you didn’t get a copy of your last pay stub, HR should be able to get a copy for you.