ESL Podcast 760 - Paycheck Deductions
It's about time - an expression used when one is pleased that something has finally happened after waiting for it for a long time and believing that it should have happened long ago
It's about time we received a thank you email from Jameel! We gave him that gift more than two months ago.
paycheck - payment of the money one has earned by working, usually received twice a month or every week
I won't be able to pay you until I receive my paycheck on the 15th .
eye-opener - a surprising experience that teaches something new in an unexpected way
Volunteering at the homeless shelter was an eye-opener.
pay stub - a document given to an employee that explains how the amount of his or her paycheck was calculated, showing how much money was deducted (subtracted) for different purposes
Save your pay stubs so that at the end of the year, you can see how much money you've contributed to your retirement funds.
deduction - something that is subtracted from something else, especially money taken away from what one has earned through working
Many charities allow you to contribute through an automatic deduction from your paycheck each month.
income tax - money collected by the government as a percentage of the amount of money each worker makes
Do you think people who make a lot of money should pay higher income taxes than people who don't make very much money?
FICA - Federal Insurance Contributions Act; the law that requires employers to hold part of the money their employees make for national benefit programs for retirement, disability, and healthcare
The money taken out of your paycheck for FICA probably won't be enough for a comfortable retirement, so it's a good idea to save money for retirement in private accounts, too.
Social Security - a federal insurance program that gives money to Americans who have retired, lost their job, or become disabled
When Harvey died in his 30s, his wife and two children began receiving his Social Security benefits each month.
Medicare - a federal health insurance program for older people and people who become disabled and cannot work
Medicare pays for only part of Grandpa's medical visits and prescriptions, and he has to pay for the rest of it with his own money.
retirement contribution - money taken out of one's paycheck and put in a special account to save for retirement (the period of time toward the end of one's life when one no longer works)
The company matches 20% of its employees' retirement contributions.
to account for - to explain; to offer a reason
Janeen is upset about her cat's death, but that doesn't account for her angry behavior.
wages - money paid to an employee every day, week, or month, especially for unskilled labor paid by the hour
Her wages barely cover rent and food. She needs to find a higher-paying job.
to garnish - to hold part of the amount of an employee's paychecks so that the money can be used to meet some financial obligation that the employee has not paid freely in the past
If you don't start paying alimony to your ex-husband, the court might decide to garnish your wages.
child support - money paid to cover the cost of having someone else raise one's child, such as food, housing, and tuition
After the divorce, the kids went to live with their mother and their father had to pay $750 in child support each month.