Record-keeping & pay slips

There may come a time for every business when the only way to grow your business is to hire more employees and build a team. If  you employ people, you must follow various commonwealth workplace laws and are subject to certain record-keeping and payslip obligations.  Failing to do so can lead to non-compliance, and the business risks hefty costs arising thereof. Non-compliance does not get rewarded favorably and may have dire consequences for companies ranging from high financial penalties, reputational damage, and litigation risk.

Employment records

Every employer must keep up-to-date and accurate records about their staff and keep them as private and confidential.  You’re legally required to keep some employment records for seven years, such as: 

• employee details, including information about pay, leave, hours of work, termination, and transfer of business.
• reimbursements of work-related expenses
• workers compensation insurance
• superannuation contribution

You must also keep all the records for  your employees for five years relating to

• Tax
• Superannuation amount calculations and payment

Payslips

In addition to paying employees correctly on time, the employer has a legal obligation to provide payslips to their employees. Payslips help the employees to ensure that they are receiving correct pay and entitlements. It also allows employers to keep accurate and complete records.

Legal requirements of payslips

The employer should provide a payslip to an employee within one business day of payday in either electronic form or hard copy. The following information must be included on all payslips issued to each employee as prescribed by the Fair Work Act 2009 and the Fair Work Regulations 2009.

• employer’s and employee’s name
• employer’s Australian Business Number
• pay period
• date of payment
• gross and net pay amount.
• If the employee is paid an hourly rate, the ordinary hourly rate, the number of hours worked at that rate and the total dollar amount of pay.
• Any loadings, allowances, bonuses, incentive-based payments, penalty rates, or other paid entitlements.
• the pay rate that applied on the last day of employment.
• any deductions from the employee’s pay, including the amount and details of each deduction and the name or number of the fund/account.
• any superannuation contributions paid for the employee’s benefit, including amount, name, and/or the number of the superannuation fund.

Consequences of not Meeting record-keeping and payslip obligations

In the case of non-compliance with your obligations, Fair Work Inspectors can issue an infringement notice and fine you.  If the non-compliance is serious, willful, or repetitive,  fair work inspectors can take you to the court and onus is on you to prove that you have not underpaid your staff.

If you have any queries relating to record-keeping and payslips compliance requirements for your payroll, please contact our office.

The Money Edge | Bundaberg