Wages that the company owes to employees but has not paid yet are referred to as

• A. Wages expense
• B. Wages payable
• C. Cash wages
• D. Accrued wages

Answer: (B)

Unpaid wages are a liability the company owes to employees. When wages are earned but not yet paid, the company records a liability called wages payable. This is why this term is the best fit: it specifically represents the amount the company currently owes.

Wages expense, by contrast, records the cost of labor for the period, regardless of whether payment has occurred. Cash wages would refer to actual cash paid, not the outstanding amount. Accrued wages can describe the same idea in some contexts, but the standard ledger label used is wages payable.