Minimum-Wage-Image

National Minimum Wage rise effective 1 July

The Fair Work Commission has announced this year’s Annual Wage Review Decision

National Minimum Wage Increase 

Effective from 1 July 2024, the National Minimum Wage will increase by 3.75%.

This means that full-time or part-time employees in receipt of the minimum wage will receive the following rates before tax:

  • $24.10 per hour, and
  • $915.90 per week (based on a 38-hour week for a full-time employee).

This increase will see an extra $33.10 ‘in the pocket’ each week for full-time employees.

This will be effective from the first full pay period on or after 1 July 2024.  For example if your pay period starts on Wednesday, the new rates will apply from Wednesday 3 July 2024.

National Minimum Wage Increase 

Similar to the National Minium Wage increase, all Modern Award minimum rates of pay will also increase by 3.75% on 1 July 2024. 

Most employees are covered by an award, which outlines the minimum pay rates and conditions in various industries and occupations.

If you need assistance determining which award applies to your employees, or the applicable minimum pay rates, please do not hesitate to Contact us.

Changes to Superannuation from 1 July 2024

As a reminder, the super guarantee rate will again rise from 1 July 2024. This will rise by another half percent, taking the minimum super guarantee from 11% to 11.5%.

The super guarantee rate will continue to rise by an additional 0.5% at the start of each financial year, until it reaches 12% in 2025.

Contact Us

At Allan Hall HR, we have a team of experienced HR consultants. To learn more about our services, please click here. Alternatively, please feel free to call us on 1300 916 764 or contact us here to discuss any questions you may have with us in regard to the National Minimum Wage Increase.

national minimum wage review

Workplace Gender Equality Agency Reporting

WGEA Reporting or Pay Secrecy

Workplace Gender Equality Agency (WGEA) has published the 2022-2023 median gender pay gaps for private sector businesses with 100 or more employees, encompassing both base salary and total remuneration.

Some notable findings include:

  • 30% of employers have a median gender pay gap between the target range of -5% and +5%
  • 62% of median employer gender pay gaps are over 5% and in favour of men
  • The remaining (8%) are less than -5% and in favour of women
  • Across all employers, 50% have a gender pay gap of over 9.1%. 

The above findings suggest that there is still a large gap between gender pay equality with only 30% of businesses within the target range. This is largely demonstrated by the statistic that 62% of employers are currently paying men over 5% more than women across the business. 

Who needs to complete an annual WGEA report?

All private sector businesses with 100 or more employees are required to complete their WGEA report between 1 April and 31 May of each year. The report must provide data from the previous year for the date ranges of 1 April through to 31 March. 

For more information about who needs to report and how to complete the WGEA report, please click:

Even if your company has fewer than 100 employees, it is important to be proactive in identifying potential inequalities within the workplace. Conducting a payroll audit and internal salary benchmarking are important steps to take. 

How does pay secrecy impact gender pay inequality? 

Pay secrecy can play a big part when it comes to gender inequality in the workplace. Pay secrecy, where employees are prohibited from discussing their pay, hampers transparency and can conceal gender-based pay disparities. For this reason, changes have been made from 7 December 2022 to remove the permittance of pay secrecy clauses within contractual agreements. This change aims to advocate for transparency in pay practices to ensure that all employees, regardless of gender, are fairly compensated for their work. 

Need HR Assistance?

At Allan Hall HR, we have a team of experienced HR consultants. To learn more about our services, please click here. Alternatively, please feel free to call us on 1300 916 764 or contact us to discuss any questions you may have in regard to WGEA Reporting or Pay Secrecy.

businesswoman

Considering Redundancies in your business?

Recent research has found that almost a third of employers intended to make staff redundancies.

Australian HR Institute’s quarterly Australian Work Outlook survey indicated that redundancy intentions have risen sharply to 31% in the December 2023 quarter, up from 17% in the September 2023 quarter.

In correlation with this research, our consultants at Allan Hall HR have recently been experiencing daily calls from clients requesting support and advice on employee redundancies. 

If you are one of these employers considering redundancies in your business, we have outlined below the key components for you to consider. We also highly encourage you to seek professional guidance to help navigate a smooth and legally compliant redundancy process.

Regardless of whether your employees are award covered or not, redundancy terminations are highly complex, and the specific circumstances of each case must always be considered. There are several rules that apply and steps you should take when managing a redundancy to ensure compliance and reduce your risk of receiving a claim (such as an unfair dismissal claim). 

Redundancy Considerations

If you are planning to make an employee redundant, it is important for you to ensure that:  

  • You have taken steps to ensure you no longer require the person’s role to be performed by anyone 
  • All reasonable attempts have been made to find suitable alternative employment within the business for the employee
  • You have considered and complied with any applicable modern award obligations
  • You have undergone a consultation process which is best practice and a requirement under some awards  
  • You have prepared for, documented and communicated the redundancy process thoroughly
  • You pay the employee correctly according to their redundancy entitlements under the National Employment Standards, calculated with reference to their period of continuous service

Allan Hall HR’s Redundancy and Advice Package

At Allan Hall HR we have developed a Redundancy and Advice package which provides employers with an assortment of tools and resources to assist with undertaking a legally compliant redundancy process. The pack includes: 

  • Letter of Notice to the Employee (regarding proposed workplace changes and an invitation to a consulting meeting)
  • Guidance on Consultation Steps and Meeting Discussion Points
  • Redundancy Checklist and Consultation Record
  • Communication Strategies
  • Termination Letter due to Genuine Redundancy. 

If you wish to purchase our Redundancy and Advice Package, please click here We are also able to manage all or part of the redundancy process for you, according to your preference. 

Need Assistance?

Before you consider terminating an employee on the basis of redundancy, we encourage you to call us on 1300 675 393 or contact us here.  To learn more about our HR services, please click here.

Compliance cogs

Steps to Prepare for New Fixed Term Contract Rules

From 6 December 2023 there have been substantial changes in the usage of fixed term contracts.

What are the New Rules?

There are new rules for fixed term contracts that are designed to regulate employment duration and extensions. These changes will bring about a significant shift in how employers engage workers on a fixed term contractual basis.

The main changes encompass three key areas:

  1. Time Limitations: Fixed term contracts cannot exceed a duration of 2 years.
  2. Renewal Limitations: Contracts cannot have an option to extend or renew to lengthen the employment period beyond the stipulated 2-year period. Additionally, extensions or renewals cannot occur more than once.
  3. Consecutive Contract Limitations: Employees cannot be offered a new fixed term contract if specific conditions apply. These include if:
    • their previous contract was fixed term, and
    • their previous and new contracts are mainly for the same work; and
    • there is continuity in the employment relationship between contracts. 

Additional considerations include whether:

  1. the employee’s previous contract contained an option to extend and was used;
  2. the total period of employment is greater than 2 years;
  3. the new contract has a clause to extend; and
  4. the previous contract was fixed term, similar work and there was substantial continuity of the employment relationship.

These new rules do not cover casual employees and contain exceptions for certain types of fixed term contracts. 

Contracts made before 6 December 2023 won’t fall under these new limitations, but the rules will apply to fixed term contracts entered into on or after this date.

Employers are mandated to provide a Fixed Term Contract Information Statement (FTCIS) to new employees engaged under these contracts after 6 December 2023. This statement outlines the regulations and entitlements related to fixed term employment.

Download the Fixed Term Contract Information Statement (FTCIS) here »

Steps to Ensure Compliance

In order to ensure compliance with the new changes, we recommend that businesses take the following steps:  

  • Familiarise yourself with the new rules as per the Fixed Term Contract Information Statement (FTCIS) above
  • Conduct an audit of any current employees on Fixed Term Contracts within the business to assess if contracts will be compliant moving forward
  • Identify whether the business or individual employee may be exempt from the new changes 
  • Revise Fixed Term Contract templates terms and conditions to ensure you are compliant.  

These changes aim to protect employees and ensure fair employment practices, while simultaneously providing clarity and guidelines for employers navigating the realm of fixed term contracts.  

Need Assistance?

At Allan Hall HR, we have a team of experienced consultants to assist with all your employment contractual arrangements and ensure your business is compliant with current legislation. If you are uncertain about how the new legislation applies to your business, please feel free to call us on 1300 675 393 or contact us here. To learn more about our HR services, please click here.

family paper chain

Parental Leave Changes — Effective 1 July 2023

Unpaid Parental Leave

From 1 July 2023, employees will have access to changed unpaid parental leave entitlements as part of the Federal government’s recent initiatives which aim to provide families with greater flexibility.

A summary of the recent changes can be found in the table below:

Parental Leave Changes — Effective 1 July 2023 1

Impact on Employers

It is important for you to be aware of these changes to be able to adjust your policies or employee handbook and to respond to new requests and extensions to unpaid parental leave accordingly.

Please note, that if an employee wishes to extend their original unpaid parental leave, they must give at least 4 weeks’ notice in writing, before the end date of their original leave period, and the request must include the new leave end date.

As an employer, you must respond within 21 days, either agreeing; agreeing to a variation after discussion with the employee; or refusing the request. Please be mindful however, that you can only refuse a request if you have discussed a variation to the extension period with the employee but haven’t been able to reach an agreement AND if your refusal is on reasonable business grounds.

As part of the new legislation, employees have the right to lodge a dispute regarding a request for extended leave with the Fair Work Commission if:

  • the employer refuses an employee’s request;
  • the employer doesn’t provide a written response to a request within 21 days; or
  • the employee and employer have been unsuccessful in trying to resolve the dispute at the workplace level.

We therefore highly recommend that you discuss the matter with one of our consultants at Allan Hall HR before refusing any request for an extension to unpaid parental leave.

Paid Parental Leave changes

Further changes have also been made from 1 July 2023 to the Government’s Paid Parental Leave (PPL) scheme, which provides eligible individuals with financial support for the birth or adoption of a child.

Under the previous PPL scheme, parents would need to apply separately (i.e. the primary caregiver could access up 18 weeks of financial support, and the partner or ‘secondary carer’ could access up to 2 weeks of support under what was referred to as ‘Dad and Partner Pay.’)

From 1 July, parents will be able to apply to this scheme together and may access up to 20 weeks of paid parental leave to use between them. The Government has indicated that the payment will continue to increase by 2 weeks each year until 1 July 2026 when it will reach 26 weeks.

Please note, it is up to the individual to apply for a PPL payment directly through Services Australia. You will not be able to apply for this benefit on the employee’s behalf.  When an employee applies, their eligibility is determined by Services Australia. Eligibility is not determined by the employer.

Allan Hall HR has a team of experienced consultants to help answer any questions you may have regarding the Unpaid and Paid Parental Leave changes and how they should be applied to your unique business and employee circumstances.

We encourage you to reach out to us for further guidance by calling 1300 675 393 or emailing [email protected].

CONTACT ALLAN HALL HUMAN RESOURCES

gavel

Recent IR changes requiring employer action

8 Industrial relations changes requiring actions by employers

There have been a number of recent significant changes in the area of industrial relations as a result of the Fair Work Legislation Amendment (Secure Jobs, Better Pay) Act 2022, and the Fair Work Amendment (Paid Family and Domestic Violence Leave) Act 2022. 

Some of the main changes which will affect all businesses and require action include: 

1. Proactive Duty on Employers to eliminate discriminatory conduct in workplaces 

Employers, regardless of size or industry, now have a positive duty to take reasonable and proportionate measures to prevent, as far as possible, certain discriminatory conduct occurring in their workplaces, including: 

  • discrimination on the ground of a person’s sex; 
  • harassment (including sexual harassment); 
  • hostile workplace environments; and 
  • acts of victimisation that relate to complaints, proceedings or allegations of the above.  

The positive duty was a key recommendation of the Australian Human Rights Commission (AHRC)  landmark Respect@Work Report, led by Sex Discrimination Commissioner Kate Jenkins, published in March 2020, which found that there were still high levels of discrimination and underreporting of incidents in the workplace.  

The AHRC will have the right to initiate an inquiry into an employer’s compliance and enter into enforceable undertakings if they find an employer remains non-compliant.  

Businesses will have 12 months to understand their new obligations and implement any necessary changes before compliance and enforcement commences in December 2023. 

2. Additional protection against Sexual Harassment  

There has been an amendment to the Fair Work Act to protect workers, prospective workers and persons conducting or undertaking a business by prohibiting sexual harassment, effective from 6 March 2023. 

This amendment established a new dispute resolution process, allowing the Fair Work Commission (the Commission) to deal with disputes and if not resolved by conciliation or mediation, and the parties agree, the Commission can settle the dispute and make orders, including for compensation.  

Workers now have several avenues to pursue disputes in relation to sexual harassment: the Fair Work Commission, the Australian Human Rights Commission and Anti-Discrimination Board in their State or Territory. 

We recommend implementing an action plan to address points 1 and 2 above to ensure your business is meeting its new legal obligations. Our team at Allan Hall HR is across the legislation and can effectively and efficiently guide you in creating an action plan for your business. Please contact our team on 1300 675 393 or at [email protected] if you would like our assistance. 

3. Family and Domestic Violence Leave 

From 1 February 2023, all employees (including part-time and casuals) will be able to access 10 days’ paid family and domestic violence leave in each 12-month period.  

To access this paid leave, employees will need to show evidence that they require the leave to do something to deal with the impact of family and domestic violence and it’s not practical for them to do so during their work hours. 

There are also important implications for payroll to consider, including the recording of leave on payslips, attendance platforms, email and text trails.  

If you would like more information on this leave and its payroll implementation please refer to our Family and Domestic Violence Leave article or contact us on 1300 675 393 or at [email protected]

4. Limiting the use of fixed term contracts for employees 

There has been an amendment to the Fair Work Act to limit the use of Fixed term contracts beyond two years (including renewals) or two consecutive contracts – whichever is shorter. Employers will also be required to provide a Fixed Term Contract Information Statement to all employees entering a fixed term contract. This amendment takes effect as of 6 December 2023.  

Exceptions to this rule include; performing a discrete task for a fixed period, apprentices and trainees, temporarily replacing others on long leave e.g. workers compensation and where earnings are above the high income threshold.  

Where a fixed term contract is made in breach of the new provision, the contract will remain valid, but the employee will be considered a permanent employee. This means they will be entitled to: 

  • notice of termination and redundancy payments calculated from the start of the employment relationship, and 
  • access to unfair dismissal proceedings.  

Employers who breach the contract limitation or do not provide a Fixed Term Information Statement may be subject to civil penalties.  

If you have employees who will, as at 6 December 2023, have been on a fixed term contract of more than 2 years’ duration or more than one fixed term contract which would add up, to or allows for an extension to, more than 2 years, you will need to review the arrangements. Allan Hall HR can help in reviewing old contracts and the creation of new ones, contact us on 1300 675 393 or at [email protected].  

5. Prohibiting pay secrecy clauses 

Employees will have a right to disclose, or not disclose, their remuneration as of 7 December 2022.  

After a six-month transitional period, employers who continue to include pay secrecy terms in new written agreements and contracts of employment will have breached this prohibition and could be liable to a penalty.   

All written agreements with employees need to be reviewed to ensure there is no clause prohibiting them from disclosing their remuneration.  

6. Right to request flexible working arrangements  

The circumstances in which employees can request a flexible working arrangement have expanded. This provision extends to employees who are pregnant and situations where an employee, or member of their immediate family or household, experiences family and domestic violence. This amendment takes effect as of 6 June 2023.  

Employers are obligated to discuss any request for a flexible working arrangement with the employee. If the employer refuses the request, they will need to provide reasons in writing.  

The threshold of “reasonable business grounds” for refusal of any request has not changed, however, the legislation provides increased access to dispute resolution for employees through the Fair Work Commission if disputes about flexible working arrangements cannot be resolved at the workplace. 

Managers need to ensure that they discuss any request for flexible working arrangements with the employee and that any refusal is in writing and based on reasonable business grounds. If you would like additional guidance on when you are obligated to approve flexible work arrangements, contact the friendly team at Allan Hall HR for guidance on 1300 675 393 or at [email protected]

7. Unpaid Parental Leave 

Eligible employees will be entitled to an additional 12 months’ unpaid parental leave up to 24 months in total, unless their partner has already taken 12 months from 6 June 2023.  

When an eligible employee makes a request for an extension of unpaid parental leave, their employer has an obligation to discuss the request with them. If this request is refused, reasons must be provided to the employee in writing.  

If disputes cannot be solved at the workplace level, they can be escalated through conciliation or mediation.  

Any request for an extension of parental leave should be discussed with the employee. Any refusal must be in writing and based on reasonable business grounds. 

8. Enterprise Bargaining and Enterprise Agreements 

The Fair Work Act has been amended to include new enterprise agreement and bargaining laws which took effect from 7 December 2022. In summary: 

  • Changes have been introduced to simplify the bargaining process including reducing technical procedural steps prior to an agreement being approved. 
  • The “Better Off Overall Test” (BOOT) has been modified and the Commission will now undertake a ‘global assessment’ and take into account parties’ views to determine whether the agreement passes the BOOT. 
  • The process for terminating an enterprise agreement has changed and it is now more difficult for employers to unilaterally terminate an enterprise agreement after its nominal expiry date. 
  • Supported bargaining has been broadened and workers across multiple workplaces in a common sector will be able to bargain on a collective basis if they are ‘reasonably comparable’ in terms of the industry they operate within, their size, geographical location, business activities and operations. 
  • Certain workplace agreements (called ‘zombie agreements’) which were made before the Fair Work Act 2009 (Cth) fully commenced and that continue to operate (e.g. collective agreements, individual transitional employment agreements (or ITEAs), Australian Workplace Agreement (or AWAs), Division 2B State employment agreements, enterprise agreements made between 1 July and 31 December 2009) will automatically terminate on 7 December 2023 unless the employer applies for, and is granted, an extension. Employers who are covered by a ‘zombie agreement’ must also give each employee who is covered by their zombie agreement a written notice on or before 6 June 2023 advising the employee that: 
  • the employee is covered by a zombie agreement; and 
  • the zombie agreement will terminate on 7 December 2023 unless an extension request is made; and 
  • the sunsetting process commenced on 7 December 2022. 

Need assistance? Please contact the team at Allan Hall HR on 1300 675 393 or at [email protected] should you require assistance with actioning any of these IR changes to ensure your business is compliant.  

outside the building

Closing for a well-deserved end of year break?

It’s time to let your clients and employees know

Act now to ensure your client expectations and employee legislative requirements are met.

Informing Clients of Business Shutdowns

It is common for a workplace to shut down its operations over the Christmas-New Year period because of a reduction in business activity or because the majority of employees request to take annual leave.

It’s up to businesses to determine closure dates and ensure these are clearly communicated to clients as early as possible, so that reasonable expectations are set and deadlines are met without creating any unnecessary worry. Recommended communication includes separate emails to clients, newsletter footers, invoice footers, notes on email signatures or any combination of the above.

To assist with planning your shutdown period, the NSW gazetted public holidays for the upcoming holiday season are:

  • Christmas Day: Sunday 25 December 2022
  • Boxing Day: Monday 26 December 2022
  • Additional Public Holiday for Christmas Day: Tuesday 27 December 2022
  • New Year’s Day: Sunday 1 January 2023
  • Additional Public Holiday for New Year’s Day: Monday 2 January 2023
  • Australia Day: Thursday 26 January 2023

Get ahead of the game. Download our Business Shutdown Client Email template to send to your clients.

Employee Notifications

Employers planning to close over the Christmas-New Year period need to also correctly inform employees from now. Employers are obligated to formally confirm business closure dates and notify staff in accordance with award requirements.

Most awards will contain terms which allow employers to shut down the business for a period and send employees on designated annual leave. This is usually subject to an employer providing at least 4 weeks’ notice of the intention to do so, however certain awards may require a greater notice period.

It’s never too early to start planning. Download our Business Shutdown Employee Notice template.

Employee Leave Considerations

Annual Leave Requests

With the Christmas and Summer Holiday period fast approaching, you may also notice an increased number of annual leave requests waiting for your approval. For those businesses that shut down over this period, approving annual leave is usually a joyous task. However, for smaller businesses continuing to trade during this period, it can be a difficult juggling act to ensure you have enough employees on board to meet your customers’ needs while also ensuring employees receive a well-deserved break.

When reviewing annual leave applications, it is important to remember that you cannot unreasonably refuse to authorise an employee’s request to take annual leave. If you need assistance with understanding the rules surrounding ‘reasonableness,’ please do not hesitate to make contact with our HR team.

Can employees refuse to work on Public Holidays?

Employers can request that employees work on a public holiday if the request is reasonable. Likewise, an employee can refuse to work on a public holiday if the employer’s request is not reasonable. In determining whether the employer’s request is reasonable, under the Fair Work Act a broad range of factors are taken into account. These include:

  • The nature of the employer’s workplace and the nature of the employee’s work
  • The employee’s personal circumstances
  • Whether the employee could reasonably expect the employer might request work on the public holiday
  • Whether the employee is entitled to receive overtime or other penalty payments that reflects the expectation to work public holidays
  • The type of employment of the employee (eg whether full-time, part-time, casual or shift work)
  • The amount of notice in advance of the public holiday given by the employer to the employee
  • The amount of notice given by the employee when refusing a request to work on a public holiday

Unsure of what applies or what steps to take? Don’t guess – seek advice.

Our team at Allan Hall Human Resource Services have years of first-hand experience to guide you and your business to a safe, enjoyable, and carefree festive season.

If you require advice on the conditions relating to your Employer rights or obligations, please get in touch with our highly experienced HR team on (02) 8978 3752 or simply contact us below.   

Why use a Recruiter

5 tips to recruit quality employees in the current job market

Attracting and retaining suitable talent—

With global labour shortages presenting huge challenges for employers, many of our clients have reported significant difficulties during the past 6-12 months in attracting and retaining suitable employees.

Our team at Allan Hall HR has seen a large increase in requests for support in recruitment during this time and has put together some tips to help you recruit in the current market.

The employment situation in Australia

Whilst the extent of the labour shortage differs across regions and industries, with healthcare, manufacturing and supply chain industries experiencing the greatest impact, it is undeniably currently one of the biggest challenges employers are facing globally.

The Covid-19 pandemic has resulted in the following factors affecting the labour market:

  • migrants returning to their home countries,
  • a reduction in available international graduates, and
  • border closures resulting in fewer working-holiday visas.

Australia is currently experiencing a record low unemployment rate of 3.5% (ABS, July 2022). Due to the labour and skill shortage, wage costs in some sectors, such as IT, are rising between 20% to 50%, with employers having to boost salaries to attract and retain staff.

As a result, the number of jobs advertised has significantly increased. ANZ job ads data for April 2022 revealed that the number of job ads was up 26.3% from a year earlier at 242,536. They were 57.3% higher than the pre-pandemic level in February 2020 and SEEK data shows they remain significantly higher than pre-pandemic levels.

Five things employers can do to attract great candidates

To help you stand out from the crowd and attract and retain quality staff in this current market, our HR team offer the following tips:

1 Focus on your Employee Value Proposition

Distinguish yourself from your competitors and be clear on your selling points to attract new talent. How do you differ from other organisations and what benefits do you offer? What are your points of difference and why would a prospective employee want to work for you? For example, do you offer a hybrid working model / flexibility to work from home? Do you pay over the market rate for the position? Do you have an outstanding culture that current employees value? Does the company provide clear, defined opportunities for career progression?

Ensure you retain a strong focus on your current employees and offer and communicate these aspects to your existing employees to remind them of the key benefits of continuing to work within your organisation.

2 Deploy targeted search strategies

For many roles in the current market, it is now rare to simply advertise and have people apply. It is important to identify where the top talent is currently working and proactively reach out to prospective employees from these organisations with the key selling points from your Employee Value Proposition.

Utilise your network and professional networking tools, such as LinkedIn and other social media platforms.

Encourage existing employees to help you with your search for top talent and consider devising an employee referral program to incentivise this.

3 Understand salary expectations in the current market

Salary benchmarking and reviewing current remuneration ensures your offering is competitive to the current market. Salary benchmarking is a useful tool in attracting new talent and reducing staff turnover.

4 Grow your own talent

Employing graduates or school leavers is a great way to grow talent specific to your business needs. Recent graduates can bring an exciting and fresh perspective to your workplace.

5 Consider engaging recruitment specialists with access to a broad database of potential candidates and targeted sourcing tools

Our Allan Hall HR team have a team of highly skilled recruitment, search and marketing specialists who are supported by our HR consultants, to apply a holistic approach to your HR and recruitment needs. We can assist with recruitment activities across Australia including:

  • creating an employee value proposition
  • salary benchmarking
  • premium and targeted candidate search 
  • employee referral schemes
  • psychometric testing of potential candidates to help in your hiring decisions and ongoing development of employees
  • staff retention strategies
  • structured onboarding support 

As per your tax and accounting support at Allan Hall, you only pay for the time spent, together with any direct advertising costs.

Our recruitment team at Allan Hall HR would love to discuss your needs, and how we can best assist your organisation. We are equipped with a range of resources and strategies suited to the current labour market; including a solely dedicated headhunting team, premium-level access to targeted recruitment and social media platforms including LinkedIn, and a targeted graduate recruitment team.

For more information, please get in touch with our friendly team at Allan Hall HR at [email protected] or call 02 8978 3743.

payroll

Does your business need a payroll audit?

Australia’s employment legislation is extensive, broad and can be incredibly complex.

And, if you don’t have a thorough understanding of your obligations to your employees, then your business could be at risk of underpayment of employee wages. 

The underpayment of employee wages, or what the media has cleverly coined ‘Wage Theft’ can occur in any business. Recent media publications have shone a light on this issue, highlighting that every business, no matter the industry or business size, is at risk if wage obligations are not met. 

It is critical you ensure your business is compliant with all legislation to avoid costly liabilities or negative publicity down the track, as a result of an employee claim or an ATO, Work Cover or Fair Work audit. 

The Fair Work Ombudsman has found that the majority of wage underpayments are caused by employers failing to meet their obligations in the following areas: 

Does your business need a payroll audit? 2

Employers must understand the key instruments their employees may be covered by as outlined below. These key instruments along with many more can have the ability to dictate what, when and how much an employee is paid. 

Does your business need a payroll audit? 3

Businesses who do not understand what industrial instrument covers their employees, or businesses without proper processes and systems in place, can often be unintentionally underpaying their staff, as rates of pay can vary greatly and are dependent on several factors. 

How can we help at Allan Hall HR? 

Australia’s industrial relations system can be difficult to navigate, especially without the help of HR professionals. This is where our team at Allan Hall HR come in and can assist you to navigate through this process efficiently and effectively.  

Allan Hall HR offers compliance payroll audits for small, medium and large businesses, where we review your business operations against legislation requirements and recommend appropriate resolution of any non-compliant matters. We can also provide you with ongoing advice, assistance and tailored employment documentation to ensure you are compliant. 

Does your business need a payroll audit? 4

If you have any immediate questions regarding payment of your employees or any other HR matter, or are seeking support with a partial or full wage audit for your team, please feel free to contact our experienced HR Consultants today, call us on 1300 675 393 or read more here »