Salary, wage, remuneration

In English there are several words denoting the money given in return for work or services. Look at the definitions given below to learn more about these words.

Salary refers to an annual amount that an employer pays to an employee for his/her professional or office work, as opposed to manual work. This amount is divided into equal parts and most often paid out monthly.

Wage is payment in return for work or service made to workmen on an hourly, daily, weekly or piecework basis.

Pay is a general word for any type of payment made by an employer to an employee.

Remuneration is also a general word for such payment, but it is more formal than the word pay.

The office responsible for all pay-related matters is called Payroll Office. Its staff manage the company’s payroll system, ensure employees are paid on time, administer tax issues and payments and provide payroll information. The word payroll is actually a list of employees receiving pay, with the amounts due to each. It can also mean the total sum of money to be paid out to employees at a given time.

A paycheck was traditionally a cheque issued by an employer to pay an employee for services rendered. Today, the physical paycheck is replaced by electronic deposit to the bank accounts. However, the word paycheck is still used among employees, but it commonly refers to a payslip or pay stub, which is a piece of paper given to an employee detailing the gross income and all taxes and other deductions such as pension contributions, insurance, etc.