Employers Contribution to Social Security and Medicaid/Medicare

"Employers Must

Social Security Taxes. Withhold 6.2 percent of the employee's cash wages (including the initial $150) and add 6.2 percent as the employer's contribution (during 1997 the tax is limited to the first $65,400 of annual wages).

Medicare Taxes. Withhold 1.45 percent of the employee's cash wages (including the initial $150) and add 1.45 percent as the employer's contribution. The taxable wage base for Medicare is unlimited. The total annual combined employer-employee taxes for Social Security and Medicare are 15.3 percent of gross wages."