Arkansas Code of 1987 (2023) › Title 11 - LABOR AND INDUSTRIAL RELATIONS (§§ 11-1-201 — 11-15-105) › Chapter 10 - DEPARTMENT OF WORKFORCE SERVICES LAW (§§ 11-10-101 — 11-10-1018) › Subchapter 2 - DEFINITIONS (§§ 11-10-201 — 11-10-227) › Section 11-10-215 - Wages

(a)
(1)
As used in this chapter, "wages" means all remuneration paid for personal services, including without limitation, commissions, bonuses, cash value of all remuneration paid in any medium other than cash, the value of which shall be estimated and determined in accordance with rules prescribed by the Director of the Division of Workforce Services, and tips received while performing services which constitute employment and which are included in a written statement furnished to the employer pursuant to
26 U.S.C. § 6053(a)
.
(2)
"Wages" does not include:
(A)
(i)
For the purposes of §§
11-10-701
-
11-10-715
:
(a)
That part of remuneration paid to an individual by an employer with respect to employment during any calendar year beginning after December 31, 2003, and ending December 31, 2009, which exceeds ten thousand dollars ($10,000);
(b)
For any calendar year beginning after December 31, 2009, that part of remuneration which exceeds twelve thousand dollars ($12,000);
(c)
For a calendar year beginning after December 31, 2017, that part of remuneration that exceeds ten thousand dollars ($10,000);
(d)
For a calendar year beginning after December 31, 2019:
(1)
Except as provided under subdivisions (a)(2)(A)(i)
(d)(2)
and
(3)
of this section, if the average seasonal unadjusted insured unemployment rate, as reported by the United States Department of Labor, for completed weeks during the period of July 1 through June 30 of the most recently completed state fiscal year is:
(A)
Zero percent (0%) to one percent (1%), then that part of remuneration that exceeds seven thousand dollars ($7,000), unless that part of the remuneration is subject to a tax under a federal law imposing the tax and against which credit may be taken for contributions required to be paid into a state unemployment fund is increased, then the new federal taxable wage base shall be the new minimum amount under this subdivision (a)(2)(A)(i)
(d)(1)(A)
;
(B)
One and one hundredths of a percent (1.01%) to one and forty-nine hundredths of a percent (1.49%), then that part of remuneration that exceeds eight thousand dollars ($8,000), unless under a federal law imposing the tax and against which credit may be taken for contributions required to be paid into a state unemployment fund is increased, then that part of remuneration that is one thousand dollars ($1,000) greater than the minimum amount under subdivision (a)(2)(A)(i)
(d)(1)(A)
of this section;
(C)
One and one-half percent (1.5%) to two and nineteen hundredths of a percent (2.19%), then that part of remuneration that exceeds nine thousand dollars ($9,000), unless under a federal law imposing the tax and against which credit may be taken for contributions required to be paid into a state unemployment fund is increased, then that part of remuneration that is two thousand dollars ($2,000) greater than the minimum amount under subdivision (a)(2)(A)(i)
(d)(1)(A)
of this section; or
(D)
Two and twenty hundredths of a percent (2.20%) or greater, then that part of remuneration that exceeds ten thousand dollars ($10,000), unless under a federal law imposing the tax and against which credit may be taken for contributions required to be paid into a state unemployment fund is increased, then that part of remuneration that is three thousand dollars ($3,000) greater than the minimum amount under subdivision (a)(2)(A)(i)
(d)(1)(A)
of this section;
(2)
If, during the period of July 1 through June 30 of the most recently completed state fiscal year, disbursements from the unemployment insurance trust fund exceed two hundred million dollars ($200,000,000) and the balance of the unemployment insurance trust fund is less than six hundred million dollars ($600,000,000), then that part of remuneration that exceeds eleven thousand dollars ($11,000); or
(3)
If, during the period of July 1 through June 30 of the most recently completed state fiscal year, disbursements from the unemployment insurance trust fund exceed two hundred fifty million dollars ($250,000,000) and the balance of the unemployment insurance trust fund is less than four hundred million dollars ($400,000,000), then that part of remuneration that exceeds twelve thousand dollars ($12,000);
(e)
For the rate year beginning January 1, 2022, and ending December 31, 2022, "wages" shall not include the amount of remuneration that exceeds the lesser of:
(1)
The amount calculated under subdivisions (a)(2)(A)(i)
(d)(1)
-
(3)
of this section; or
(2)
Ten thousand dollars ($10,000);
(f)
For a calendar year beginning on or after January 1, 2024, "wages" shall not include remuneration that exceeds the lesser of:
(1)
Seven thousand dollars ($7,000) but only if as of June 30 of the most recently completed state fiscal year the balance of the unemployment insurance trust fund is in excess of six hundred million dollars ($600,000,000); or
(2)
The amount calculated under subdivisions (a)(2)(A)(i)
(d)(1)-(3)
of this section; and
(g)
For any calendar year beginning after December 31, 2023, when calculating the amount to determine remuneration constituting wages, then the amount that is included as wages shall not exceed the sum of two thousand dollars ($2,000) and the amount applicable to the immediately preceding calendar year.
(ii)
For the purposes of this subsection:
(a)
Wages paid within a calendar year by a predecessor employer may be counted as though paid by a successor as defined in §§
11-10-701
-
11-10-715
; and
(b)
The term "employment" includes services constituting employment under any unemployment insurance law of another state;
(B)
The amount of any payment, with respect to services made to, or on behalf of, an individual in its employ under a plan or system established by an employing unit which makes provision for its employees, or for its employees and their dependents, including any amount paid by an employing unit for insurance or annuities, or into a fund, to provide for any payment, on account of:
(i)
Retirement;
(ii)
(a)
Sickness or accident disability, except payments made directly to the employee or his or her dependents.
(b)
However, payments made directly to an employee or his or her dependents under a workers' compensation law shall not be considered to be "wages";
(iii)
Medical and hospitalization expenses in connection with sickness or accident disability; or
(iv)
Death, provided the individual in its employ does not have the:
(a)
Option to receive, instead of provision for the death benefit, any part of the payment, or, if the death benefit is insured, any part of the premiums or contributions to premiums paid by his or her employing unit; and
(b)
Right, under the provisions of the plan or system or policy of insurance providing for the death benefit, to assign the benefit or to receive cash consideration in lieu of the benefit either upon his or her withdrawal from the plan or system providing for the benefit or upon termination of the plan or system or policy of insurance or of his or her services with the employing unit;
(C)
The payment by an employing unit, without deduction from the remuneration of the individual in its employ, of the tax imposed by the Federal Insurance Contributions Act upon an individual in its employ with respect to services performed;
(D)
Payments made by an employer under a cafeteria plan, within the meaning of
26 U.S.C. § 125
, if the payment would not be treated as wages without regard to the plan and it is reasonable to believe that, if
26 U.S.C. § 125
applied for purposes of this section,
26 U.S.C. § 125
would not treat any wages as constructively received; or
(E)
Fees paid to corporate directors.
(b)
Except as otherwise provided in rules prescribed by the Director of the Division of Workforce Services, any third party which makes a sickness or accident disability payment which is defined in this section as wages shall be treated for purposes of this section and §§
11-10-701
-
11-10-715
as the employer with respect to the wages.
(c)
Nothing in this section, except subdivision (a)(1) of this section, shall exclude from the term "wages":
(1)
Any employer contribution under a qualified cash or deferred arrangement, as defined in section 401(k) of the Internal Revenue Code; or
(2)
Any amount treated as an employer contribution under section 414(h)(2) of the Internal Revenue Code.
(d)
Any amount deferred under a deferred compensation plan shall be treated as wages when the services for which compensation is deferred are performed.
Amended by Act 2023, No. 196,§ 1, eff. 3/6/2023.
Amended by Act 2021, No. 368,§ 1, eff. 7/28/2021.
Amended by Act 2019, No. 315,§ 806, eff. 7/24/2019.
Amended by Act 2019, No. 315,§ 805, eff. 7/24/2019.
Amended by Act 2019, No. 512,§ 1, eff. 7/24/2019.
Amended by Act 2019, No. 910,§ 185, eff. 7/1/2019.
Amended by Act 2017, No. 734,§ 2, eff. 8/1/2017.
Acts 1941, No. 391, § 2; 1943, No. 138, §§ 24, 25; 1947, No. 398, § 1; 1949, No. 155, § 2; 1955, No. 395, § 4; 1971, No. 35, § 5; 1975 (Extended Sess., 1976), No. 1083, § 4; 1977, No. 366, § 4; 1981, No. 43, § 1; 1983, No. 482, § 5; 1985, No. 8, § 2; 1985, No. 9, § 2; A.S.A. 1947, § 81-1103; reen. Acts 1987, No. 672, § 3; Acts 1987, No. 753, §§ 3, 4; 1989, No. 420, §§ 1, 2; 1993, No. 6, § 2; 1995, No. 519, § 1; 2003, No. 353, § 1; 2009, No. 802, § 2.