Final answer:
Employees pay Social Security and Medicare taxes at rates of 6.2% and 1.45% respectively, which are split between the employer and employee, though the burden might effectively fall entirely on the employee.
Step-by-step explanation:
Employees are required to pay Social Security and Medicare taxes on their salary, wages, and other compensation. The rate for Social Security is 6.2% of an employee's paycheck, and for Medicare, it's 1.45%. Although these payroll taxes are nominally split between employer and employee, economists often argue that the employer's portion effectively reduces the employee's wages.
Therefore, it might be said that in reality, the employee bears the full cost of the payroll taxes. Independent contractors, such as those in the 'gig economy', must pay both the employee and employer sides of these taxes. In summary, the correct answer to the question, which asks which two taxes are employees paying a rate of 6.2% on, is 'c) Social Security, Medicare'.