DCG posted: " Fox News: In competitive job markets like Silicon Valley,
companies are doing everything they can to entice the best and brightest --
offering freebies that have become the stuff of legend. Employee perks like
free food at lavish cafeterias, laundr" Respond to this post by replying
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New post on *Fellowship of the Minds*
<http://fellowshipoftheminds.com/author/dcgere/> IRS considers taxing work
perks like food, gym
memberships<http://fellowshipoftheminds.com/2014/04/17/irs-considers-taxing-work-perks-like-food-gym-memberships/>
by
DCG <http://fellowshipoftheminds.com/author/dcgere/>
[image: irs] <http://fellowshipofminds.files.wordpress.com/2014/04/irs.jpg>
Fox
News<http://www.foxnews.com/politics/2014/04/16/irs-considers-taxing-work-perks-like-food-gym-memberships/>:
In competitive job markets like Silicon Valley, companies are doing
everything they can to entice the best and brightest -- *offering freebies
that have become the stuff of legend*.
Employee perks like free food at lavish cafeterias, laundry and even yoga
are not unheard of.
*But the taxman could soon crack down. *
*The IRS reportedly is looking at these perks and seeing if these companies
need to start paying up for the free stuff they offer employees. *
David Gamage, a tax expert and professor at the University of California,
Berkeley, said it would really boil down to who benefits from these perks.
"To what extent is this intended as a perk, a form of compensation, for the
benefit of the employee, or to what extent is this just another way the
employer gets the employee to work harder and longer and do things for the
benefit of the employer?" he said.
If it's the latter, then it's harder for the IRS to tax it.
The Wall Street Journal first reported that *the agency is considering
whether the freebies like food, shuttles, haircuts and more are really
fringe benefits on which workers should be taxed*. Some tax experts see the
perks as skirting the edges of the law, and warn the companies may be
violating it -- but also think it would be a very aggressive move for the
already-busy IRS to pursue this when they have much more on their plate *(like
prosecuting conservative tax-exempt
groups)*<http://weaselzippers.us/182991-foia-documents-show-lois-lerner-was-in-contact-with-doj-about-prosecuting-conservative-tax-exempt-groups/>
.
Silicon Valley-based Clari, which has several dozen staffers developing
cloud technology for smart phones, *is one such company that offers free
food -- to workers who rarely leave their desks*.
*CEO and co-founder Andy Byrne argues that providing good, healthy food is
a necessity, not a luxury, and that everyone benefits. *
"They win [because] they're happier, our customers win [because] they get a
higher quality product and then our shareholders win because they see our
momentum in the market. *For a small company like Clari, the idea of taxing
the perks would have a devastating effect, not only for the employers who
would have to cancel the perk, but also for the workers who would have
lower productivity,"* he said.
IRS officials declined to comment for this article.
According to Gamage, these perks have become a necessity in the workplace.
"Tech is a really competitive world at the high end, in terms of employers
recruiting the top talent, and employers have responded; not just by paying
high salaries, but by providing all sorts of perks," he said.
Even if the IRS does crack down on this perk, the high-tech lunch isn't
likely to completely disappear. Legal experts suspect most companies will
probably just report it as "taxable income" to employees and then pay them
more in salary to cover the cost.
DCG
*DCG <http://fellowshipoftheminds.com/author/dcgere/>* | April 17, 2014
at 3:45 am | Tags: IRS <http://fellowshipoftheminds.com/?tag=irs> |
Categories: Taxes <http://fellowshipoftheminds.com/?cat=7716108> | URL:
http://wp.me/pKuKY-qbH
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