Supplemental Income

On returning from my vacation (riding my bicycle from Pittsburgh to DC) I found a check from my employers to the tune of $400. Apparently, the Site Manager was finally able to make good on the promise to get our "bonus" to reflect four weeks instead of just two (as he said it should have been last month). On the other hand, it shows that he still hasn't been able to get the "market rated adjustments" to our salaries that he has been making noise about for three months now.

Old news, really.

But what receiving this check separately from my paycheck really points out is the difference in tax rates. Of the $400 itemized as "commission", I only received $237 in cash. Typically, the Fed takes about 10% of my pay in their taxes but because this commission is considered "supplemental income", the Feds are claiming 23%. So, even though it's supposed to represent the salary increase I never received, I'm still being ripped off because the way the books have to be cooked to get me any money at all means the government is taking twice as much of it.

In spite of the rhetoric, these "commissions" are not comparable to a salary increase.