Utah Contractor Practice Exam

If an employee is late by 20 minutes, what may the employer deduct from the employee's wages?

1. Deduct a half hour's wage

2. Deduct an hour's wage

3. Deduct for 20 minutes only

4. Not deduct from wages

The correct answer is: Deduct a half hour's wage

In the context of employee lateness and wage deductions, the employer has the ability to deduct time as a form of disciplinary action or for compensation adjustments. In this specific scenario, if an employee is late by 20 minutes, deducting a half-hour's wage is acceptable because it aligns with common payroll practices. Employers often round to the nearest increment for the sake of simplicity and consistency in payroll processing. The rationale behind deducting a half hour instead of precisely the 20 minutes reflects typical policies where timeframes for payroll are standardized, generally in increments of quarters or half-hour blocks. This approach helps to maintain clarity in wage calculations and avoid any confusion regarding billing periods or pay rates. Deductions for an hour's wage would exceed the period of tardiness, which would not align with the principle of fairness, while not deducting at all could undermine the enforcement of workplace punctuality policies. Thus, rounding up to a half hour is a common and permissible practice in many workplaces.