News in Brief

CRA issues tax updates for Saskatchewan, P.E.I.

› OTTAWA — The Canada Revenue Agency (CRA) has published updated payroll deduction tables and computer formulas that incorporate July 1 tax changes in Saskatchewan and Prince Edward Island.

In this year’s Saskatchewan budget, the provincial government announced that it would lower the rates for all three of its personal income tax brackets by a half point on July 1 to 10.5 per cent, 12.5 per cent, and 14.5 per cent, respectively. The rates will go down by another half point on July 1, 2019, to 10 per cent, 12 per cent, and 14 per cent.

Additionally, the P.E.I. government has increased the basic personal amount that employees claim on a provincial Personal Tax Credits Return (TD1PE). In this year’s provincial budget, the government announced that the amount would rise from $8,000 to $8,160 for 2017.

With the CRA implementing the change on July 1, it has prorated the basic personal amount to $8,320 for the remainder of the year for all employers except those who use its Option 2 for tax calculations.

The P.E.I. government has also increased the spouse and equivalent-to-spouse amounts from $6,795 to $6,931. The CRA has updated the TD1PE form to incorporate the changes.

Marketing, ad execs against open salary policies: Survey

› TORONTO — A majority of advertising and marketing executives say they do not think professionals’ pay should be made public, new research finds.

A survey by staffing firm The Creative Group found that 82 per cent of those polled said their organization refrains from publicizing employees’ compensation. Moreover, 61 per cent said pay transparency would decrease staff morale.

The survey polled approximately 200 marketing executives randomly selected from companies with 100 or more employees, and 200 advertising executives randomly selected from agencies with 20 or more employees.

When asked about the benefits of an open salary policy, where every employee knows what other employees earn, respondents cited increased productivity (18 per cent), boosting recruitment and retention (17 per cent), helping to close the wage gap (16 per cent) and creating an atmosphere of trust (15 per cent).

However, more than one-quarter of executives (27 per cent) said there were no benefits, with potential risks outweighing any rewards.

The survey found open salary policies most common at companies with 500 to 999 employees, and least common at large advertising agencies with 100 or more employees.

Special tax measures to aid Quebec flood victims

› QUEBEC CITY — Revenu Québec has announced special measures to help individuals and businesses in the province affected by recent flooding.

It will cancel all interest or penalties charged to taxpayers who are unable to meet their tax obligations by the regular deadlines due to the flooding. This includes filing an income tax, consumption tax or source deductions return, paying the balance due on a return or making an instalment payment.

Revenu Québec says the measures will remain in effect for as long as the flooding prevents taxpayers from meeting their tax obligations.

Feds invest more money in Phoenix system

› OTTAWA — The federal government recently announced spending of $142 million to help address lingering problems with its Phoenix payroll system.

Steven MacKinnon, parliamentary secretary to the Minister of Public Services and Procurement, said the money will go toward hiring about 200 additional employees to process pay transactions and implement collective agreements, as well as to new technology to improve efficiency.

He also announced that the government would keep open for the rest of the fiscal year temporary pay centre satellite offices to help speed up the length of time it takes to pay employees.

Last year, the government opened offices in Gatineau, Que., Montreal, Shawinigan, Que., and Winnipeg, as well as a national call centre in Toronto to help staff at the pay centre in Miramichi, N.B.

MacKinnon said the money for new technology would be used to implement a new case management tool that will allow compensation advisors to better track pay transactions and respond to employees’ questions with current and accurate information.

“No one should have to tolerate missing or incorrect pay,” said MacKinnon. “We are putting public service pay on sustainable footing by investing in the people, technology and services needed to run a reliable, modern pay system for all public servants.”

The federal government has been struggling with its new payroll system since it began rolling it out last year. Thousands of workers have been overpaid, underpaid, or not paid at all. It has also had difficulty processing pay requests on time.

Revoking of payroll card regulations appealed

› NEW YORK — The New York State Department of Labor is appealing a ruling that revoked its new payroll card regulations, which were slated to come into effect in March.

In a ruling in February, the state’s Industrial Board of Appeals said the regulations were invalid because they exceeded the department’s authority under the state’s labour law by putting restrictions on fees charged by financial institutions.

Global Cash Card, a payroll card provider, had petitioned the appeals board to overturn the regulations, arguing that they exceeded the department’s authority to make, had vague and unreasonable provisions, and that they were pre-empted by federal banking laws.

In filing an appeal with the state’s Supreme Court, the Department of Labor took issue with the ruling, arguing that it does have the legislative authority to regulate payroll cards and that Global Cash Card should not have been allowed to bring the issue to the board since it was not coming before the board as an employer regulated by the state’s labour laws.

Payroll cards, like direct deposit, are a way for employers to pay employees. Employers load an employee’s pay onto a card instead of depositing it in the employee’s bank account or giving the employee a cheque.

The employee can use the card like a debit card to make purchases or withdraw amounts using an ATM.

While the cards offer a number of benefits, workers’ rights advocates in the United States have complained that fees often associated with them hurt low-wage workers.

Last year, Governor Andrew Cuomo announced that in March 2017, the department would implement the “most comprehensive payroll card protections” in the United States.

They would not only regulate how employers used payroll cards to pay employees, they would also prohibit employers and card providers from charging workers a number of different types of fees for the cards.

When New York first announced the regulations, payroll card providers expressed concerns that the fee restrictions would drive card providers out of the New York market.

— Compiled by Sheila Brawn