aPHR HR Operations 3 — Questions and Answers
Question 1: Under the Fair Labor Standards Act (FLSA), payroll records must be retained for a minimum of:
- 1 year
- 2 years
- 3 years (Correct answer)
- 7 years
Correct answer: 3 years
The FLSA requires employers to keep payroll records for at least 3 years.
Question 2: A new employee does not submit their W-4 form. The employer should:
- Delay payroll until the form is received
- Withhold federal income tax at the single filer rate with no adjustments (Correct answer)
- Withhold at the highest possible tax rate
- Contact the IRS for withholding instructions
Correct answer: Withhold federal income tax at the single filer rate with no adjustments
IRS guidance requires employers to treat employees who don't submit a W-4 as single with no adjustments for withholding purposes.
Question 3: Which HR operational function is MOST directly responsible for ensuring consistent application of disciplinary procedures?
- Compensation administration
- Policy documentation and communication (Correct answer)
- Benefits enrollment processing
- Payroll reconciliation
Correct answer: Policy documentation and communication
Clear, written policies that are communicated to all employees ensure disciplinary procedures are applied consistently and defensibly.
Question 4: An employee reports that their paycheck is incorrect. The FIRST step HR should take is:
- Issue a corrected check immediately without investigation
- Verify the discrepancy by reviewing timekeeping and payroll records (Correct answer)
- Ask the employee to wait until the next pay period
- Escalate the issue directly to the company's CFO
Correct answer: Verify the discrepancy by reviewing timekeeping and payroll records
HR must first verify the error exists and identify the root cause before taking corrective action.
Question 5: What is the role of a service level agreement (SLA) in HR operations?
- To define the salary range for each HR position
- To establish response time and quality standards for HR service delivery (Correct answer)
- To outline the benefits available to HR department employees
- To document the chain of command within the HR team
Correct answer: To establish response time and quality standards for HR service delivery
SLAs set clear expectations for how quickly and accurately HR will respond to requests, improving accountability and customer satisfaction.
Question 6: When an employee is terminated, which of the following HR operational tasks must typically be completed on the LAST day of employment?
- Filing the employee's COBRA election form
- Revoking system access and collecting company property (Correct answer)
- Processing the final performance review
- Completing the EEO-1 reporting update
Correct answer: Revoking system access and collecting company property
Security protocols require immediate revocation of system access and retrieval of company assets upon termination to protect company data and property.
Question 7: Which of the following is an example of a leading HR operational indicator?
- Year-end voluntary turnover rate
- Number of open job requisitions currently being filled (Correct answer)
- Total cost of benefits paid last fiscal year
- Number of EEOC complaints resolved last quarter
Correct answer: Number of open job requisitions currently being filled
Open requisitions predict future hiring activity and workforce gaps, making them a forward-looking (leading) metric.
aPHR HR Operations 3
Under the Fair Labor Standards Act (FLSA), payroll records must be retained for a minimum of: