Anyone look at their upcoming paystub yet? The way they calculated their fuzzy math on 27 pay periods is they reduced the wage Rate. Is this legal? It’s like we all got a demotion. Unless you survive to 2027 to get the catch up payment. I’ve never seen a company handle things like this before. Usually, they catch you up in the same year and do it in a month that has five Fridays. I’m sorry there is zero way you could make it make sense except that this is a way to leverage our money for their pockets. Completely demotivated to ever go that extra mile again at this company,
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@19z sybau. It's our money. That we earn.
@2dc You can cut back if you want to but try not to give up the max they will match. If you want to stick it to the man make sure you get the max match, it's free money they have to give you.
I think they’re starting to get creative/desperate for ways to save two pennies here and there.
With this 27 paycheck thing, most of us are missing a large amount of money for our pay. So other than maybe picking up a side hustle what did many of us do? Cut back or stop our 401k completely for the entire year to offset the cost. That’s matching contributions they don’t have to pay out on top of all the people they’re going to shaft before the end of the year so they won’t be entitled to that final “make up check”
Unitedhealth sc--ws just about every which way possible, but they didn't on this 27 paycheck bs.
@21t we didn't adjust paychecks 11 years ago so we were in the 80% then just not this time.
If you earned your whole annual salary in 2025, weren’t you already paid for those last 2 weeks? By the logic of most on this chat, did we all get overpaid for them in 2025 before we worked those last 2 weeks?
All I’m trying to say is, there is no trickery here. You really are actually ahead in % of annual pay you’ve brought home almost every day in 2026 as compared to any 26 paycheck year. Take comfort in that. They are not sc--wing you.
There are many things to be annoyed about these days. This 27 paycheck year thing isn’t one of them. And to the person (@1es) who says over 80% of companies are just giving their employees an extra few grand in 2026 because of this anomaly, I’d love to see ANY actual proof that even one large company is doing that. I do not believe any large employer would be so generous in this world.
@a5 but the first check should be the full check since it covers 2025…No?
@13z it may be legal but as MANY have pointed out 10 years ago they gave it to YOU. Considering there was no real AIP they could have just done the same. It feels horrible when competitors aren’t doing the same. That’s all.
Working here for a long time, well over the 10 or 11 years that this happens where there are 27 pay periods and they have not ever "reduced" paychecks for this issue.
It's obvious what they are doing. The C suite is still getting paid astronomically in stocks and salaries but the plebians have to have reduced checks?
Wake Up! Anyone still defending anything with this company or for-profit healthcare/Health insurance needs their heads examined. I guess some think if they continue to drink the Kool-Aid and be good little plebians, that they somehow will survive the RIFs. They don't care how loyal you are. It's a club and you aren't in it.
They want people to quit or retire early so they do not have to pay you in a RIF. Which they fight you on anyways and use sub unemployment in any state that they can get away with it and also not pay out your PTO.
As long as it keeps my dividends up.
I understand the issue … it all makes logical sense … but it just su-ks to enter the new year (during a tough economy) with a fairly significant pay cut. Seems like any Finance team from a Fortune 20 company could come up with a better solution that doesn’t make the entire employee population feel like they got a demotion. I mean, it’s just math. And math problems can be solved.
While most employers (over 80% in some surveys) stick to their normal pay rate, meaning salaried workers get an "extra" paycheck in a 27-pay period year, some adjust paychecks down so employees don't exceed their annual salary, though this is less common; the majority of companies (around 43%) use bi-weekly pay, which causes the 27th check anomaly every 11-12 years, affecting only those paid bi-weekly or weekly.
How Companies Handle the 27th Paycheck (for Bi-Weekly Pay)
"Pay-as-Usual" (Most Common): The standard paycheck amount (annual salary/26) is paid for all 27 periods, resulting in more money for the year.
Adjusted Paychecks (Less Common): The annual salary is divided by 27, resulting in smaller checks and ensuring employees don't earn more than their stated salary for the year.
Why It Happens
A standard year has 52 weeks (26 bi-weekly pay periods) plus one or two extra days.
These extra days accumulate over about 11 years, creating a 27th pay period.
Which Companies Are Affected?
Bi-weekly Pay: About 43% of U.S. businesses pay bi-weekly, making them the most affected by this phenomenon.
Weekly Pay: Companies paying weekly also experience extra paychecks in these years.
Key Takeaway: The majority of employers don't adjust checks down, but it's essential for payroll departments to plan for these years to manage budgets and employee expectations.
@OP this has "Completely demotivated to ever go that extra mile again at this company,"
This is the straw that broke your back? Not the toxic culture, decreased merit increases, doing the work of 2 people or a low then lower AIP?
Nothing absolutely nothing will be done to address this paycheck issue - it's pointless
@19z Amen to that!!
Wow!!! So many complaints on how we are getting paid in 2026. Be grateful you have a job with good pay, benefits and perks.
@16z well, maybe we should have!
@13z I agree with you. There doesn’t seem to be foul play here but I think so many are disillusioned with leaders at this company for feeling sc* over for so long, they don’t trust anything.
@13z we didn't do this 11 years ago. It's a money grab and you know it.
This really isn’t complicated math.
If you pay every two weeks, there are 26 pay periods most years (52 weeks ÷ 2).
But a calendar year isn’t exactly 52 weeks — it’s 365 days, which means every year you “pick up” an extra day (two in leap years). Those extra days accumulate.
About every 10–11 years, those extra days add up to a full additional two-week cycle, which is why you get a 27th pay period.
This is normal, legal, and fully expected in biweekly payroll systems. Nothing is being “taken,” nothing is “missing,” and nothing magical is happening. It’s just how calendars work.
If this feels surprising, it’s not a payroll issue — it’s a basic arithmetic and calendar issue.
I left the company late November for a new role with another similar competitor on the exact same pay calendar. The new employer did not reduce the paychecks from December to January.
Bottom line is that you’re making less money. Due to accounting weirdness, it’s something some employers do and can get away with (not just elevance). But each company has to choose whether or not they want to reduce pay for employees. Some do, some don’t. But should tell you a lot about the priorities and values of the ones who choose the reduction.
As a hourly employee my wage is the same. I do not see any changes.
They’ve never done this before, and it’s so dirty. I don’t know about you, but it’s over $150 difference for me.
@a5 no that first paycheck is 2025 pay period, though. So it's not really 'over 10% of your annual salary.'
The fact is the paycheck we just got, as noted earlier is for work performed in 2025. This is robbery plain and simple. One more way for EH sc--w us. Anyone claiming differently is a shill for the company.
@ah It's going to really pay off for them when they RIF thousands of people and never make whole on the effective pay cut.
I am out of here and should have been long before this. It should have been 4 years ago. Only a short time to go yet but feel the weight lifting each day that goes by. Best of luck to you all that are left struggling here. I am praying for you.I worry about my co-workers that are trapped in this. Stay strong!!!
@ak I am going to call HR on Friday and ask about this. When I look at my paystub, at first glance it appears they are not annualizing our deductions and dividing by 27 weeks, like they are doing with our salary.
But at a closer look, I wonder if they are indeed annualizing and dividing by 27 for the deductions, but the benefits are so more expensive in 2026 that it seems like they are dividing by 26 and going so charge us an extra weeks. But really what we are seeing is the annualized deduction divided by 27 and that number is higher than 2025 for most benefits so it was throwing me off.
Forget this small stuff. The real prize is hitting the RIF.
This is the straw that broke the camel's back. I am DONE.
And don't forget that even though they're spreading the PAY out across 27 pay periods, they conveniently aren't spreading out payroll DEDUCTIONS.
They must be proud of themselves for this one.
@a7 It all evens out -- IF you avoid the RIFs of 2026 and plan to still be employed here in 2027. If not, then not so much.
And I'm yet to see a reasonable explanation for why this first paycheck is being reduced since it's pay for work that was performed entirely in 2025 - pay period ending 12/28/25. Cutting just one paycheck by 3.7% for tens of thousands of employees is millions of dollars in earned wages being withheld for a full calendar year
Note that Anthem never did this 11-12 years ago. Just another way to dock the pay. Checked with colleagues that left company to other companies and they are getting their normal checks.
Sadly, this happens in a lot of companies because a year is 52.14 weeks, so every 10-11 years the calendar lines up so there is an "extra " payday. It simply changes Timing...not Total Compensation.
Your paycheck is simply split into 27 smaller payments instead of 26.
Is it legal? Yes. The government only really requires a guaranteed annual salary that's paid on a regular schedule...it doesn't require a fixed amount or exactly 26 paychecks. As long as your annual salary doesn't decrease, an employer is compliant.
Long story short...it kind of su-ks because of the timing but it all evens out.
I’ve thought about this a lot and here’s what I’ve realized… 27 paychecks instead of 26 means there are 3 months this year where we get 3 paychecks instead of 2. The first of those 3 months is January. By the end of January you will have received over 10% of your annual salary this year, as opposed to less than 8% if you only got 2 paychecks. This early acquiring of an extra paycheck actually means you’ll be ahead in the amount of your salary you’ve received for most of the year. I hope this brings some of you some comfort.
@OP I left in September and my new company is doing the same thing. When I asked I was told this is standard. Checked with a friend who also had similar thing at their company as well. My company isn’t in healthcare while my friends is.
I'm super p!!sed! Check is so much smaller and the deductions for the health benefits are the same too. I foresee a mass exodus after bonus payout.