Browse earnings, overtime and pay adjustment codes.
Gross pay is the total earnings figure before employee taxes and deductions. It can include regular wages, overtime, bonuses and taxable noncash benefits. Gross cash earnings and the taxable wage bases shown elsewhere need not be identical.
How to read this entry
Use the meaning Gross pay before deductions alongside the column heading. An earnings amount, an employee deduction and an employer-cost memo can have different effects even when their labels look similar.
Example on a pay statement
Regular pay of $1,600 plus $120 overtime and a $200 bonus totals $1,920 gross cash earnings. A separately reported noncash benefit may change taxable wages without adding bank cash.
Examples illustrate the checking method. They are not a personal tax calculation or a promise of a particular benefit.
What to check with payroll
Add the earnings rows, then compare federal, Social Security and Medicare wage bases separately. Do not subtract employer contributions from gross pay.
Compare related entries
Read the earnings, overtime and pay adjustment codes guide to compare the entries in this part of your statement. Use the full pay stub code directory when a second abbreviation is unfamiliar.
Reference and scope
Official guidance on earnings, overtime and pay adjustment codes provides background on the underlying rules. The actual plan, tax year, jurisdiction and payroll record determine how the rules apply.