Some of you know I recently went back to work. Many of my co-workers' payroll checks are bouncing. Sometimes twice. We get checks that look more like personal checks with absolutely no withholding info. I don't understand when the time goes in ten days prior to the checks being handed out.

Anyway, is it legal to pass out a check knowing there is not enough funds to cover all the employee's checks?

Where you at state wise. Might want to call the States Atty, or whatever they are called there, and ask them, because something like this could change from state to state. Attorney General of the state might be best as they might handle that kind of criminal stuff. Those does sound like passing and uttering, to me, there might be an "exception" for a company who "thinks" the money will be there. Would need to "show" that they knew there wasn't.

Fraudulent checks are fraudulent checks - illegal in every jurisdiction.

Not a Lawyer!

If taxes or anything else are withheld from your check you must be given an accounting of the gross, withholding amounts and net amount.

Thanks for the responses. What happens if the company is not paying the employee taxes?

JMHO, but if your employer does not manage their money well enough to make payroll, then you should find a new employer and pronto. If they are not paying their withholding taxes or other taxes the government will shut them down soon enough.

I was retired when this company called me. The only reason I took the job is because God's Word says, "To whom much is given much is required." As far as I know I am the only guy in Grants Pass who can free hand grind carbide and highspeed steel knives, drill bits and tooling for automatic wood working machines. I don't want to go against my opinion of God.

One of the guys who came from a metal working background called me "Merlin" the other day and told me he was going to get me a tall pointed hat.

We pay our payroll deductions as part of the payroll process.
While the checks are printing one of us pays the Feds online.

1. get your money.
2. run, run,run

If that company bounces payroll they have no business, in business.

I bet the owners/ management checks don't bounce.

All you have to do is call the department of labor in your city. They will handle it from there. You do not have to do any more. They will not give your name unless you request that they collect the money for you. I have owner businesses in several states and know this service is available to all employees. Oh, you can count on the Feds and State getting their money.

I worked for a guy in high school at a machine shop that my paychecks bounced for about 5 weeks. Couldn't quit or i would have lost my high school credits for the co-op job. He basically told us we could keep working and fill the machine order to get paid or we could walk and nobody would get paid. We were building a highly complex nutfeeder for GM at the time.

Not a lawyer either, but I do know that if they're withholding money from employees and not sending it to the IRS, they'll have the wrath of the government down on their heads.

If his payroll checks are bouncing the guy is nothing more than a thief.

If they are withholding anything - if the amounts of your checks are less than the gross pay you should have earned - then you absolutely must get a written explanation of the difference - of what was withheld and how much.

If you do not have that in writing it is very likely that a financially distressed employer will give you a 1099 for the amount of the net checks that did clear, and you will be stuck with no tax paid in and self-employment tax on top of it!

If you do have written explanation of the withholding (such as on a pay-stub) then not paying in the taxes is the employers problem. But you must be prepared to show what was paid and what was withheld. Keep all evidence of your pay and withholding!