A paycheck error checklist: trace the problem from hours to payment

First, confirm the dates and the hours

Read the covered period and pay date. A shift after the period close may belong to a later statement. Compare daily time entries with your own contemporaneous records, and identify the employer’s workweek when overtime is involved. Keep approved leave distinct from hours actually worked so the first comparison is made on the right basis.

If a shift is absent, name the date, start/end times, and any recorded unpaid interval. A two-week total is not enough to resolve a weekly overtime question. Do not rewrite the original time record to force it to match payroll. Preserve what each record originally showed and ask for the difference to be explained.

• Correct employer and employee reference
• Covered start/end dates and pay date
• Daily hours and weekly totals
• Leave hours identified separately
• Rate changes applied to the correct dates

Next, trace the earnings calculation

For a simple hourly line, multiply hours by its stated rate. Then add separate earnings such as overtime, a bonus, or a correction according to their documented treatment. If overtime is shown as a half-rate premium, check whether straight-time pay for those hours appears elsewhere before calling the line incorrect.

A fictional 38-hour regular line at $22 equals $836. If the statement shows $814, the $22 difference is a specific question: one hour appears missing from that line or another treatment needs explanation. Keep the calculation narrow. If several rates or bonuses affect overtime, ask for the regular-rate worksheet rather than applying a simplified formula that does not fit the facts.

Then compare employee deductions and cash adjustments

Use current employee deductions, not YTD figures or employer contributions. Compare benefit entries with the actual election and collection schedule. A new premium, catch-up amount, repayment, or withholding instruction may explain a change. Ask for the full name and basis of an unfamiliar code instead of assuming every deduction is tax.

For federal income tax, payroll uses pay and the employee’s withholding information. A correct entry can still be different from your expectation. If the concern is annual withholding planning rather than payroll processing, use the IRS estimator separately. If the gross-to-net arithmetic itself fails, identify the exact amount that does not bridge and ask payroll to reconcile it.

Check the issued payment and the accumulated record

Match net to the full payment distribution, including split deposits or a documented alternative payment method. A checking account may receive only part of the net. Preserve bank posting dates separately from the employer’s pay date. Ask for a payment reference if the transfer cannot be located; a printed statement is not proof that it reached the account.

Finally, test whether the prior YTD plus current amounts equals the new YTD for the categories you are reviewing. Identify reversals and correction runs. Do not add accumulated YTD figures together. If a replacement payment changes the register, retain the reversal and replacement relationship so the corrected total does not count both positive statements as separate earnings.

Report a specific variance and verify the correction

An original example: “The October 9 statement covers 38 regular hours at $22. The line shows $814, while 38 × $22 is $836. Please confirm whether an hour is excluded or the line should be corrected.” Attach the relevant record securely and leave unrelated account or taxpayer details out of routine correspondence.

Ask when you should expect a response or correction, then check the actual corrected payment and YTD effect. If the issue remains about unpaid wages, the DOL explains the complaint process for applicable federal wage protections; state agencies may address other requirements. A Formz-generated document cannot settle a wage dispute. Accurate records make it possible for the employer or appropriate agency to review the facts.