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 | FAQ's
Who verifies employment for LSU employees?
What is the deadline for having forms in Payroll for supplemental, academic, and salary payrolls?
What is the difference between an academic, fiscal, and biweekly (hourly) employee. How and when do these employees get paid?
What is the “substantial presence” test?
Why do I need a Social Security Number?
What if it takes a long time to receive a Social Security Number?
Who verifies employment for LSU employees?
The Office of Human Resource Management verifies employment for the Louisiana State University main campus in Baton Rouge. To verify employment, call the Employment Verification Line at (225) 578-6655 or fax the request to (225) 578-9499. Please provide your name, company name, phone number and extension, time zone and name and social security number of the LSU employee you are looking to verify. For any salary information and/or student worker or graduate assistant employment information, please fax a written request and signed release form to (225) 578-9499. Verifications will be completed usually within two business days. Please note we are only able to verify employment for the LSU main campus in Baton Rouge. If you are interested in verifying employment for any other LSU System campus such as the LSU Health Science Center, please see the LSU System website at www.lsusystem.lsu.edu for contact information.
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What is the deadline for having forms in Payroll for supplemental, academic, and salary payrolls?
Payroll must receive these forms no later than 4:30 PM two (2) working days before the Payroll Office runs the associated supplemental, academic, or salary payroll (e.g. for the salary payroll run on Monday, February 25, personnel forms must be in Payroll no later than Thursday, February 21 at 4:30 PM).
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What is the difference between an academic, fiscal, and biweekly (hourly) employee? How and when do these employees get paid?
- Academic - Academic employees have an academic year (9 month) contract. Ordinarily, an academic employee’s appointment follows the academic year. The academic year begins with orientation and ends with graduation. Pay for academic employees is based on the number of actual work days in the academic year, which excludes holidays, weekends and days between semesters. If an academic employee begins his or her appointment after the start of the academic year, his/her total annual salary will be determined by using the University academic completion tables.
Academic employees working for the entire academic year receive nine equal checks from September through May – four checks in the first semester and five checks in the second semester. Please realize that the January check is made up of half of the monthly rate of pay for the first semester and half of the monthly rate of pay for the second semester. Therefore, if an employee only works one semester, he/she will earn 50% of their annual salary. For employees who work the fall semester only, payment is received in four equal checks from September through December. The pay date for academic employees is the 21st of each month from September through May. If the 21st falls on a weekend or holiday, payday is the last working day prior to the 21st.
- Academic Withheld – Can only be done at the beginning of the Fall Semester. Academic employees who have elected to have their salary paid to them over 12 months instead of nine months. The pay for academic withheld employees is determined in the same manner as regular academic employees. The salary for an academic withheld employee is paid over nine months with approximately 25% of the net check withheld as a payroll deduction. During the summer months – June, July, and August – the accumulated deduction is refunded in three equal payments. The pay date for academic withheld employees is the last working day of the month – the same as fiscal, unclassified employees.
If it becomes necessary to go on leave without pay, it is understood that you must switch back to an Academic pay basis.
- Fiscal – Fiscal employees have a fiscal (12 month) contract. Pay for fiscal employees is calculated based on the number of calendar days in the month. The pay date for fiscal employees is the last working day of the month.
- Wage or Student Biweekly-Paid – Wage employees are paid on the Friday that is one week after the pay period end date. Each week runs from Saturday through Friday and overtime (where applicable) is calculated for all work hours over forty work hours in each week. Please refer to the Payroll Schedule on Payroll’s Website for exact dates.
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What is the “substantial presence” test?
The “substantial presence” test is the Internal Revenue Service’s measure of whether an individual has been present in the U.S. long enough to qualify as a resident alien for tax purposes; therefore, making him or her subject to tax on his or her worldwide income. The substantial presence test is not used for immigration purposes but to determine the federal tax status. An individual will be treated as a U.S. resident for tax purposes in the current year if he or she is physically present in the U.S. for at least 31 days during the current calendar year and a total of 183 days during a three-year period. The three-year period includes the current year and two years preceding the current year. In calculating the 183 days, the individual counts:
- The number of days in the U.S. during the current year and
- 1/3 of the number of days present in the U.S. during the first year preceding the current calendar year and
- 1/6 of the number of days present in the U.S. during the second year preceding the calendar year.
If the result is 183 days or greater, then the individual is considered a resident tax alien for tax purposes. The IRS requires that this test be performed each calendar year in order that an individual’s Federal tax status can be adjusted from either a nonresident alien to a resident alien or vice versa.
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Why do I need a Social Security Number?
The resident or nonresident alien employed by the University must obtain a Social Security Number (SSN). The SSN is required on individual tax returns filed with tax authorities by the employee.
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What if it takes a long time to receive a Social Security Number?
An employee can receive a temporary SSN to proceed with new hire paperwork until their original SSN is received from the IRS. An employee with a temporary number will not be paid until the permanent SSN is received.
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