Taxing awards to employees is always a tricky business. Is it taxable or not? If I take taxes out will that diminish the award or the employee’s moral over receiving it? Unfortunately, we sometimes can’t take that into consideration. The IRS says it is taxable, so we tax. But sometimes the IRS says it is not taxable. Case in point, employee achievement awards. Given for length of service or safety, these awards can be given without adding it as income to the employee’s wages if done correctly. Of course, no cash or gift certificates. It must be tangible personal property like a pin for years of service or a plaque for safety. Our white paper this week deals with when to tax and when not to tax employee achievement awards. We hope you find the information useful. You can request your copy of our white paper on our website.