Live demo: employee pay stub misprint vs. corrected version
From Schedule to Pay Stub: No More Guessing
After Lesson 05, Sarah can forecast hours and gross pay. Lesson 06 turns those numbers into a legally compliant pay stub. One error on a stub is enough to lose trust with employees, banks, and the IRS. Let’s look at what happens when taxable income is wrong—and how a selector-based stub fixes it.
- Gross pay entered manually, no link to roster or schedule.
- Taxable income column missing standard deduction and pre-tax benefits.
- FIT cell empty because the lookup range was wrong.
Pay Statement
Employee: Sierra Lopez
Position: Bakery Beverage Lead
Status: full-time with health benefits
Deposit Date: March 14, 2025
| Earnings / Deductions | Amount | Notes |
|---|---|---|
| Gross Pay | $1,480.00 | Hours Ă— rate after overtime adjustments |
| FIT | -$123.40 | Based on single filer bi-weekly table with standard deduction. |
| Social Security (6.2%) | -$91.76 | 6.2% of taxable wages up to the wage base. |
| Medicare (1.45%) | -$21.46 | 1.45% of every taxable dollar. |
| California Income Tax | -$38.48 | 4.5% starter withholding until the full table is loaded. |
| Health Premium | -$65.00 | Pre-tax deduction for TechStart’s plan. |
| Total Deductions | -$340.10 | Federal + state taxes, FICA, benefits |
| Net Pay | $1,082.67 | Direct deposit amount |
Employer payroll taxes
$113.24
Sarah must hold this cash in addition to Alex's deposit.
Expectation: Sierra expected FIT to match the IRS table and her childcare tax credit to show.
Reality: The pay stub she received showed $0 FIT and no state tax, which looked suspicious and scared her.
After fixed expenses, Alex keeps $320.45 this period.
- Employee ID selector pulls name, filing status, and standard deduction.
- Taxable income calculated as Gross – Pre-tax benefits – Standard Deduction/number of pay periods.
- FIT, Social Security, Medicare, and state withholding display with explanations.
1. Why did Sierra panic when her pay stub showed $0 federal income tax?
2. Which formula guarantees Social Security is correct for every pay stub?
3. Why do we build a printable pay stub with an Employee ID selector?
Discuss with a partner:
- What’s the worst thing that can happen if a pay stub is wrong?
- Which inputs must always come from a trusted table (name, filing status, deduction)?
- How will Sarah prove to Alex that his taxes were calculated correctly?