Going from Nine W-2's to Six W-2's

In 2010, I worked at seven jobs (8 W-2'a) and my spouse worked at one job (1 W-2).  Working for seven different companies surpassed the total number of companies that I had worked for up through my retirement (2 companies, including summer jobs) and through my second year of retirement (3 more companies).  While I enjoyed trying out numerous jobs, seven in one year was way too much.

Here were some of the challenges of multiple part time jobs:

Confirming correct pay.  All but one of my jobs were paid on an hourly basis.  Since my hours varied, I needed to verify that I was paid for all hours worked.  In most cases, there wasn't an issue.  One company paid me at a incorrect rate, which I caught, and the error was corrected after the first pay check.

Scheduling Although I didn't work all seven jobs at the same time, I sometimes had up to four jobs during a short time frame  I needed to make sure the hours from the different jobs didn't over lap. 

Taxes.  I needed to fill out withholding forms for seven companies.  Since I didn't want to over withhold, I kept the withholding low by employers and paid estimated taxes.  Due to varying income, I also needed to track my income on a quarterly basis to make the correct estimated tax.  

Record keeping.  I have 40+  paycheck stubs since most of my jobs pay on a biweekly basis.  This is after 27 years of having only 12 paycheck stubs per year.

2011 will likely be a six W-2 year: five for me and one for my spouse.  I kept three of my part time jobs from last year, but cut my hours (by choice) 30-50% in each job. The special event job is in the summer, and I will also reduce my hours by 30%.   My new W-2 will be from my temporary "unretirement" job,  However, this job is only temporary should be finished by the end of 2011.  My spouse will continue to doing the seasonal part time job she began in 2011.

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This is not financial advice. Please consult a professional advisor.

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