A salary is a form of periodic payment from an employer to an employee, which may be specified in an employment contract. It is contrasted with piece wages, where each job, hour or other unit is paid separately, rather than on a periodic basis.

What does it mean to be a salaried employee?

A salaried employee (considered an exempt* employee) is someone who receives a fixed amount of pay (salary) regardless of how many hours they work each week. This means a salaried employee is paid for 40 hours a week, even if they work fewer hours.

Is it better to be salaried or hourly?

There is no right or wrong answer when determining whether your employees should be salaried or hourly. The main difference is that you'll offer salaried workers an annual pay that will be consistently paid throughout the year. Conversely, an hourly worker is only paid for the hours they work.