Key Employee
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Definition of 'Key Employee'An employee with a major ownership and/or decision-making role in the business. Key employees are usually highly compensated. They may also receive special benefits as an incentive both to join the company and to stay with the company. |
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Investopedia explains 'Key Employee'"Key employee" is also a term used by the Internal Revenue Service in regard to company-sponsored defined contribution retirement plans to refer to an employee who owns more than 5% of the business, owns more than 1% of the business and has annual compensation greater than a certain amount or is an officer with compensation greater than a certain amount. There are other IRS and government rules that have different definitions of "key employee" for different purposes. |
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