Payroll Efficiency is a Must Today
Payroll costs and the management of employee working times have come into focus with the legislative changes in the Australian Secure Jobs Better Pay Act.
https://www.fwc.gov.au/about-us/secure-jobs-better-pay-act-whats-changing
The requirements of the Act and general wage cost increases are impacting business.
We need to minimise the costs of these changes whilst improving our compliance with them.
Payroll productivity efficiency, together with freeing up time for support and managing staff scheduling in line with the business’s demands, is key to achieving these combined outcomes.
The Processes From Onboarding to Payroll
The process begins with an efficient link between each of the steps: employee Contract, Rostering, Timekeeping, Timesheet, Award Interpretation, and Payroll.
For accuracy and efficiency, these are best used as part of a total single system to create the most efficient pathway between each component from a single database.
If you must establish data uploads or transfers from separate systems, errors can occur as each configuration is managed separately.
Leave Management
Managing leave within the same system as the roster will ensure accurate leave accrual and balances, not to mention remove the risk of scheduling employees to shifts when they are planned to be on leave. Most leave management is undertaken as a separate function just in the payroll, not linked to the roster and timesheet. With the leave in the rostering, the off-system work normally required for LSL calculations for employees that work variable days and times over the 7-to-10 years is not required with Inzenius.
The Better-Off-Overall-Test (BOOT) for salaried employees requires their time worked records to be critical for calculating and defending their payroll. The test requires the employee’s salary to be compared to what they would have received if paid under the appropriate award level for their role.
Conversion of Casuals to Permeant Employees
The potential for casual employees to request to be paid as full—or Part-Time employees requires careful management to reduce the potential for additional wage costs or payroll errors, which is best achieved with an All-In-One system like Inzenius.
“A casual employee can change to full-time or part-time employment at any time if the employer and employee both agree to it. Under the NES, casual employees have the right to access a pathway to become a permanent full-time or part-time employee, in some circumstances.”
The system adopted needs to keep the following records
- Employee contracted days and hours
- Rostered days and hours with employee agreement of any change to their contracted days and times.
- Employer and Employee Timesheet acceptance of the times to be paid
https://www.fairwork.gov.au/starting-employment/types-of-employees/part-time-employees
Extracts From the Fairwork Website
“When an employee starts, the employer and employee have to agree on the employee’s hours and availability in writing. The agreement has to include:
- The number of hours the employee has to be given each week (or each roster cycle). These are called the guaranteed hours.
- The days and the times the employee is available to work. This is the employee’s availability”.
“Employers can roster the employee for their guaranteed hours and any additional hours during their availability.”
“The guaranteed hours can only be changed if the employer and employee agree in writing. The employer and employee should keep a copy of the change.”
Documentation of any agreed-upon changes to rosters and timesheets requires both employer and employee acceptance of the changes to avoid the need for additional payments, as provided within the Inzenius manager and employee portals. The portals are provided seamlessly, with data presented to each employee on their device for acceptance at each stage.
These records are required under law and may be needed if a wage amount is disputed in the Fairwork Commission.
https://www.fairwork.gov.au/pay-and-wages/paying-wages/record-keeping#time-and-wages-records
“If employment records aren’t made or kept or are incorrect, FWIs can give employers a fine, called an infringement notice.
It is unlawful for employers to make or keep employment records that they know are false or misleading. Employers can also be penalised if we choose to take a matter to court.
In some cases, employers who haven’t kept records or made records available for inspection may have to prove to a court they didn’t underpay an employee”. Fairwork Web Site
Timsheets are desirable for all employees for the undertaking of investigations and BOOT testing of employee pays against the award conditions including salaried employees.
The most crucial factor is the capability of the system Award Interpreter to accurately interpret the pay from these approved timesheets without the need for manual calculations and data uploads into the payroll and leave management system. Inzenius is the most comprehensive and configurable system for the Australian and New Zealand markets.
Staff time and cost savings can be achieved by adopting an all-in-one rostering system for the payroll system.
- Time-saving in payroll production allows time to focus on auditing and team staff scheduling support to lower overall wage costs.
- Reduced back pays with accurate payroll interpretation directly from the timesheets.
- Automated leave management removing manual off-system calculations
- Easily accessed data if required for payroll audits, reducing deep investigations by agencies
- Reduce time in responding to audits
The overall benefits of an All-In-One system are substantial and improve employee satisfaction.
