<p>We live in a state that requires birth certificates, to prove that one is not an illegal alien. With teens, permissible work hours vary depending on age, so the employer wants to protect himself.</p>
<p>I have to issue 1099s for independent contractors who earn more than $600 annually. If your daughter has earned more than that and you want to scare the bejeebers out of the unethical employer, call him if you haven’t received one by Jan. 31. Or have your daughter ask him at the end of the summer if she’ll be receiving one.</p>
<p>Indentiy theft is so common!
Did you read about the cocktail waitress yesterday who was given her OWN ID when she checked for ID?</p>
<p>I have been trying to prove I haven’t had about 20 different addresses in CA in the last 10 years, when I haven’t even been in CA for 35 years ( it twas a trip to Disney land).
Try proving a negative.
THe frustrating part about this is, that I have been really good about keeping tabs on my credit history, but recently Experian merged my account with someone else ( even a totatly different social security number- from the numbers I think it is someone who is quite elderly) and now that I am trying to look for work- whenthey check my records I look pretty shady. It is very frustrating- because apparently several different people have worked on my file, and they don’t always correct their notes
<a href=“Annual Credit Report.com - Home Page”>Annual Credit Report.com - Home Page; for free credit reports*</p>
<p>( to harp on this a little more- always double check your bankstatements.
I have had purchases deducted from my checking account several times this year that I did not authorize - I have a debit card. With one purchase I still had the card in my possession. However, I just notified my bank and they reimbursed me)</p>
<p>I know lots of kids work under table- mowing grass- babysitting, & lots of kids don’t make enough to pay taxes but have taxes taken out anyway, so filing is only way to get it back.</p>
<p>BUt generally the reason why they want to see your SS card, is to double check that you have one & so they can note it correctly, if they are not going to handle that stuff- I am surprised they asked for it.
Many of my first jobs-just wanted recommendations.</p>
<p>I also wanted to add however- GOOD FOR YOUR DAUGHTER!
My oldest was still mainly volunteering when she was 16, although that was developing good work skills, she still wasn’t really earning anything.
Same with my youngest who just turned 16. Frankly at her age, I had a job, because otherwise I wouldnt have had any money for school clothes.
( she does babysit- and she did some house/pet sitting this summer which earned her a little money- I also just took her to a residential camp session this morning for a junior counselor session- and that will be great training for summer work)
but I actually know few kids who are working this summer-16 is a good age to get started though, because then you get experience to get better stuff when you are home from college * if they come home* sigh</p>
<p>We live in a state that requires birth certificates, to prove that one is not an illegal alien. With teens, permissible work hours vary depending on age, so the employer wants to protect himself.
Iwondered if it was something like that- regulations are much different than in the 70s when I was a teen.
But still, if they aren’t going to file, anything & if she isn’t officially on the books? I don’t know really anything about small businesses, are they not required to have on the books if they work below certain number of hours?</p>
<p>Here is a question, is the employer taking ANYTHING off her check…or is she getting ALL her money</p>
<p>There can be a couple of things going on here, and not knowing the type of work, it is hard to tell- I ask this because of all the paper work, if it was just for show, why bother? </p>
<p>I DO know that some people get $$ for hiring youth, or at least presenting that they have interviewed, etc minorities, to get certain contracts, it may not be relelvant at all, but there could be some strange reporting going on that doesn’t really affect your D, its the employers thing</p>
<p>I am pretty sure you can check the social security # with feds or get a report to see what the account holds</p>
<p>At this point, with a bit of dogdyness going on, maybe have Ds credit checked, no harm and the first checks are usually free</p>
<p>Emeraldkitty, thanks so much for the good advice, the kind words and the link! The posters here can be such an incredible resource. </p>
<p>I have to give my daughter a lot of credit. She’s a good student, although average on SATs, but boy is she a hard worker. She has a job, is a year-round athlete, and volunteers umpteen hours from her heart all year long.</p>
<p>I hope that colleges will recognize her value and factor in other things besides the SAT.</p>
<p>This bothers me a lot … the employer is really not operating ethically or legally. The workman’s comp issue is a problem – if your D gets hurt on the job she won’t have workman’s comp coverage and your insurance company won’t be happy about paying for an injury that should have WC coverage.</p>
<p>If she is just clerking in an office or retail situation, I would let her keep the job (unless there’s a better one down the line) but if she is in a situation where she might get hurt (operating machinery for example) – she needs to be outta there.</p>
<p>I agree with the other posters – report the income as an independent contractor. Pay the taxes. Next time, ask the questions first about taxes and withholding. (Now if he’s withholding taxes and not sending the money to Uncle Sam … that is a REALLY bad thing!)</p>
<p>I have a small business with 4-8 employees. I use a payroll service and withhold taxes. Sometimes prospective employees want to be off the books. Not here!</p>
<p>Actually, as an employer we are supposed to check for citizenship or a green card for every new employee. That means birth certificate, passport, or green card. It’s a new rule – nothing I ever had to do back when I was an employee!</p>
<p>I have to confess that I’ve been totally remiss in checking exactly what is what to this point. We’ve known this business owner for years and were convinced that he was completely ethical and as a result I’ve been less diligent than I should.</p>
<p>It is my understanding that any thing over $600 a year is taxable and must be reported. The higher threshold that digmedia quoted is for filing a tax return - not paying taxes. The irs assumes you already had those taxes withheld and would be filing for a refund basically ( which would not include the FICA you paid), therefore if you don’t file it’s no harm to them. Above the income level and you may owe tax , therefore you must file. At least that is my understanding. I would definitely check the IRS website for latest information. </p>
<p>My concern is that no matter what your intentions were, you are now playing his game and it could come back to bite you in the butt. Personally, I would help my daughter find a new job. I know it seems harsh, but you would be helping her learn a good lesson as well as protect her.</p>
<p>Something else that ought to be mentioned … it’s a tad OT.</p>
<p>Teens entering the workforce do need to know that FICA and taxes come off the top of what they earn – that a job that pays $8/hr will net out less, but costs the employer more than the $8. But also, that the employer probably has to withhold income taxes, but she can file to get them back. For my son, it looks like he will get the equivalent of another weekly paycheck as an income tax refund.</p>
<p>I really don’t want to hear one more darling complain about how they are making under minimum wage … because they are looking at the bottom line and not at the gross wages paid!</p>
<p>“My concern is that no matter what your intentions were, you are now playing his game and it could come back to bite you in the butt. Personally, I would help my daughter find a new job. I know it seems harsh, but you would be helping her learn a good lesson as well as protect her.”</p>
<p>PA Mom, I’m sorry you think that and it couldn’t be further from the truth. As I said, we found this out at the end of last week (Saturday) and haven’t yet figured out how to approach the business owner. The job is seasonal, so it’s just about finished, but we still do have to address it in some way beyond just having her quit. I do not want her to pay consequences for the fact that hubby and I were too trusting of someone we’ve known, and quitting alone won’t fix the tax issues.</p>
<p>I’m sorry - I guess my post did not come across as I intended ( not uncommon on this type of forum). I wasn’t suggesting that you did anything wrong - actually the opposite. Just that you got caught in his game - he chooses to pay off the books and you are now a party to something you did not agree to. I would be afraid of any repercussions to my daughter and would therefore want to protect her by getting her out of that situation. That’s all I meant. And yes, I see your point about the job almost being over anyway. If you have a personal relationship with the employer I can see how it would be even more complicated for you. No flame intended - honest.</p>
<p>I would suggest your D just ask the owner what he is doing. He might think he is doing your D a favor by paying her under the table. Saving her the trouble of filing taxes. Since he asked for documentation for hiring her it might be possible that he had good intention’s but is not a great businessman and did not get around to setting her up in his payroll.
My D’s first real job was at a local retail business. We were surprised that he didn’t ask for her tax information right away. The first pay period she got a envelope with cash. She then asked him about taxes. He said that he had not had a chance to set her up with the payroll and didn’t think she would mind getting cash. He got her all the paperwork and then for the next 2 years she was paid legally.
When my D got her present job she also was required to present her birth certificate.</p>
<p>yes, taxes suck. stop complaining, she gets to keep 20 percent of her paycheck while doing work she loves. </p>
<p>Also, it doesn’t matter if she isn’t on the payroll, she can still list her experience on her resume. All she has to do is ask her employer for a recommendation.</p>
<p>She doesn’t need to ask for a recommendation to list her experience on her resume or college app. She only would need to use her employer as a reference if she’s applying for another job and the prospective employers wish to contact former employers.</p>
<p>As for what mom60 says, that kind of “favor” is illegal, and I would not encourage my kid to ask for that kind of favor since that would be encouraging my kid to be unethical. Based, too, on the info the OP has provided, it doesn’t sound at all like the supervisor was attempting to do a favor.</p>
<p>If, though, the boss is trying to do a favor, your D still should file tax forms and the employer still would need to send her next Jan. a form related to this.</p>
<p>“I would suggest your D just ask the owner what he is doing. He might think he is doing your D a favor by paying her under the table. Saving her the trouble of filing taxes. Since he asked for documentation for hiring her it might be possible that he had good intention’s but is not a great businessman and did not get around to setting her up in his payroll.”</p>
<p>This is what hubby and I are hoping. This is a good man who we’ve known for years. It’s a very small ice cream parlor and for the last month they’ve had nightmarish problems with power outages (they make their own ice cream, so temperature continuity is really, really important), so my husband thinks we should give him the benefit of the doubt and talk to him. Obviously, my daughter is the employee, but this is important enough that my husband wants to speak with the owner himself.</p>
<p>I trust your instincts. It could be that this is the procedure he has always followed, and just is juggling too many balls.
If it is a * really* small business, he may not have had employees outside the family before, and so never really had the pressure to have “payroll” and his books in order.
I know i would find it pretty overwhelming- and when there are day to day hassles just keeping the business open, I can see that paperwork, isn’t exactly going to be on the front burner.</p>
<p>I don’t think she’d have to pay any taxes if she earned less than $2600. S did work last summer and had all the appropriate taxes withheld, but received a refund for total state and federal amounts. I’m back to suggesting you check with your accountant, and then beyond a quiet chat with the owner, let it go.</p>
<p>“I’m back to suggesting you check with your accountant, and then beyond a quiet chat with the owner, let it go.”</p>
<p>I think that’s a good plan. My initial worry was that the admissions committee members would gather with pitchforks and burning torches to descend upon our home for the discrepance between the FAFSA and the application if we couldn’t find some way to fix this.</p>