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This year, Christmas Day falls on Wednesday, with Boxing day on Thursday.  The same with New Years Day and The Day After New Years Day (they so need a better name for this day!).  So no Mondayising of any of these public holidays this Christmas. Here is what you need to know about rights for employees and obligations for employers. Payment for working a public holiday Employees must be paid…  Read more

Most people are not aware that technically, legislation says that annual leave payments need to be paid, in full, before an employees leave is taken. Thinking about why this is, takes us back to the days of being paid with a little brown envelope fill of cash, and the fact the employee won’t be here the following pay day to collect that cash.   Yes, that legislation is outdated like a…  Read more

There is nothing in the Act to determine when a payment must be made when an employee’s employment is terminated. There is so much to do for a final pay, and it can become a rushed activity on the final day of employment with the potential to get it wrong. If agreed between the parties, then it can be paid on the next pay day after termination or on the…  Read more

With Christmas coming up fast like a freight train without any brakes and the payroll team are working hard to manage all the extra payroll changes over this time.  One of the biggest questions this year is “When do I have to pay my staff?”   With Wednesday and Thursday both being public holidays, and popular days for payment of wages, what happens now that we have 24 hour banking? There…  Read more

Employees are one of the biggest costs, and the most important asset to a business, and annual holidays are a really important part of your teams health and wellbeing.  Ensuring your team are getting what they are entitled to is your responsibility as their employer.  If you don’t get it right, it can cause frustration for the employee, friction in the workplace and could land you in hot water with…  Read more

Setting the ESCT rate for the next tax year is a 1 April activity that Payroll are responsible for.  As part of your payroll checks and balances, you must check your payroll system is doing as expected. If you are processing payroll manually, you will need to set the ESCT yourself.  Understanding how ESCT is essential to getting this right for anyone involved in payroll. What is ESCT? ESCT (Employer…  Read more

Paying overtime to salaried staff has many consequences that a lot of employers are not aware of. The purpose of a salary is to pay an all-inclusive rate that is a fixed, regular payment to an employee for the work they perform. It allows a business to plan and forecast labour costs on an annual basis and can also provide concise data for business planning over the coming years, as…  Read more

It’s almost the end of the Financial Year (again? I know we say this every year, but doesn’t time just fly by?) Here is a summary of the 1st April 2024 changes you need to know:   Minimum Wage Increase: The Adult minimum wage will increase from $22.70 per hour to $23.15 per hour The Starting Out/Training wage will increase from $18.16 per hour to $18.52 per hour   ACC…  Read more

As a business owner or manager, you need to be ready for the minimum wage rates increase from 1 April 2024. The details of the increase are: Adult minimum wage will go up from $22.70 to $23.15 per hour. Starting-out and training minimum wage will go up from $18.16 to $18.52 per hour. All rates are before tax and any lawful deductions, for example, PAYE tax, student loan repayment, child…  Read more

When was the last time you felt that you had a week’s worth of energy to pour into just four days of work? As COVID-19 has reshaped our work-life balance and continues to redefine what is essential in our professional world, the concept of a shorter workweek is gaining traction. With proposed legislation in various states and countries, and the ongoing conversation among professionals, it’s evident that the discussion around…  Read more

For small businesses in today’s competitive market, outsourcing can offer a range of advantages. Not only does it reduce costs and free up valuable time for owners to focus on growing their business, but it also provides access to skills and expertise that may be unavailable in-house. By working with external professionals or firms who work in certain areas, small businesses have the opportunity to streamline operations, increase productivity and…  Read more

An employee’s time on parental leave is included as continuous service and taking parental leave does not affect entitlement to annual holidays. Employees who take parental leave will still become entitled to a minimum of four weeks of annual holidays on the anniversary of their employment start date. However payment for annual holidays that an employee becomes entitled to: during parental leave, or during a period of preference after parental…  Read more

When you leave your employment for any reason, you may be entitled to get paid for annual holidays, alternative holidays and/or public holidays in your final pay. Public holidays Employees are sometimes entitled to be paid for public holidays that fall after their employment has ended (i.e. after their termination date). This can happen if the employee has unused annual holidays they are entitled to at the time their employment…  Read more

This is a question that has come up in our Payroll Essentials Training Course that is currently running. Scenario: An employee comes to work for 2 hours on a public holiday, then has to go home early due to being ill.  This is what they would receive for the day 2 hrs at time and half 1 x alternative day IF the day is a otherwise working day for the…  Read more

MBIE have approved 5 applications from unions to start bargaining for Fair Pay Agreements (FPAs).   If a company employs people in an occupation or industry you are in which is covered by a Fair Pay Agreement where bargaining has started, there are specific actions you need to take – and now. More details are below. The industries and occupations include the following: Early childhood education industry — Public notice…  Read more

Your employees who choose to opt into KiwiSaver cannot opt out. Only new employees you are automatically enrolled in KiwiSaver can opt out. Requests to be opted out after 8 weeks (57 days) are LATE OPT OUT REQUESTS. How your employee requests a late opt-out Employees will need to send their KiwiSaver late opt-out request to Inland Revenue. Approving a late opt-out request Inland Revenue must approve the late opt-out…  Read more

With the end of the financial year approaching, it’s a good time to make sure everything is in order and ready for balance date. Here’s a few things to consider and/or action for the end of year the financial year. Write off Bad Debts Do you have debtors that you’ve taken all reasonable steps to recover a debt, yet your customer still hasn’t paid you? You might be able to…  Read more

During and after a disaster or emergency, employers and employees main concern is consideration of issues such as health and safety, emotional wellbeing and payment options for employees.  This comes before thinking about the interests of the business or organisation. Employers and employees should remember to keep in regular contact and deal with each other in good faith. If the workplace cannot be accessed, is closed, or is open but…  Read more

Depending on the nature of your business, you may have workers who are employees or contractors, or you may have both. Each has their merits, but it’s important to review which are which in order to meet your tax obligations. When you have an employee, you must withhold income tax as well as report on additional benefits. Contractors generally look after their own tax obligations. It’s against the law to…  Read more

Christmas is a time of sun, sand, lots of food and family time here in the Southern Hemisphere.  Ensuring employees get paid right for the public holidays however can be a challenge for those employing staff.   We thought we would put together some examples to help you on with navigating the challenges of the Christmas payroll this year. PUBLIC HOLIDAYS THAT FALL ON A WEEKEND  How to work out pay…  Read more