W-2 employee
A W-2 employee is a US worker treated as an employee for tax purposes, with wages reported on Form W-2. The employer withholds tax and payroll contributions rather than paying the person as a contractor.
A W-2 employee is a US worker treated as an employee for tax purposes, with wages reported on Form W-2.
The employer runs payroll, withholds income tax and payroll contributions, and typically controls when and how the work is done. That is the opposite of a 1099 contractor, who is paid outside payroll as a self-employed worker. The form name is a tax label. The real classification still depends on the working relationship, not on what the contract calls the person.
This split is US-specific. The UK analogue is a PAYE employee, Canada a T4 employee, Australia a PAYG employee. Those are not identical legal tests. Do not export W-2 into another country’s staffing copy.
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