Payslips. First off, what is a payslip?
A payslip is an important employment document. It’s a document that breaks down an employee’s income and deductions. Additionally, it serves as proof of employment. 

Employee payslips are a legal requirement. In terms of Section 33 of the Basic Conditions of Employment Act, employers must provide their employees with the following information, in writing, when they are paid:

1. The employer’s name and address;
2. the employee’s name and occupation;
3. payment period;
4. the employee’s remuneration in money;
5. the amount and purpose of any deduction made from the remuneration;
6. the actual amount paid to the employee; and
7. if relevant to the calculation of that employee’s remuneration-
   1. the employee’s rate of remuneration and overtime rate;
   2. the number of ordinary and overtime hours worked by the employee during the period for which the payment is made;
   3. the number of hours worked by the employee on a Sunday or public holiday during that period;
   4. if an agreement to average working time has been concluded in terms of section 12, the total number of ordinary and overtime hours worked by the employee in the period of averaging.

Employers often do not meet these basic requirements.

Payslip Distribution

Employees can receive their payslip in one of two ways:

• Printed Payslips.
• Secure email portal, or even SMS.

Employers must understand their employee’s requirements when it comes to payslips. Whether it is a basic payslip or detailed employee statement.

Keeping Your Payslips On Record

There is no need to keep payslips for any longer than 6 months. Many people prefer to keep them for longer, but it is not necessary. If you are applying for credit, financial institutions usually require 3 months’ worth of payslips.

Since many businesses now provide digitally secured payslips, it’s easier keep record of them.

However, payroll providers need to keep copies of payslips for three years from the end of the tax year.

Payslip Service

Outsourcing Solutions offers a range of professional, pre-printed payslip stationery for your business that is convenient and ready to use. Our payslips match the payslip templates available in Pastel Payroll. At a glance, your employees can see their gross and net pay amounts as well as total deductions, company contributions and fringe benefits.

For more information, get in touch with our expert team today – info@outsol.co.za

Payroll jobs require individuals who have exceptional attention to detail, numeracy skills and accuracy. Additionally, they need to have a working knowledge of all applicable laws and statutes regarding taxes, deductions, and more.

Managing and processing payroll is a complicated task. Therefore, there are a few payroll positions available for each role.

Each position obviously requires specific skills, background, and qualifications. Here are the main payroll jobs employers need to fill when they choose to hire staff:

Payroll Administrator or Payroll Clerk

The payroll clerk or payroll administrator position is an entry level position in the payroll office.  They perform a wide range of basic payroll duties and are responsible for preparing the information needed to complete the payroll. Including correct wages/salaries are paid, managing employee data and ensuring accuracy of timesheets.

Strong numeracy skills and multitasking skills are necessary should you want to be a successful payroll administrator.

Payroll Coordinators

Coordinators of payroll are responsible for keeping the payroll organized. Payroll administrators/clerks report to payroll coordinators. If the company does not have a payroll administrator, then the coordinator processes the payroll.

These professionals work with other departments in the business, including HR and auditors. They are normally employed by larger corporations that have complex payroll systems.

Payroll Manager

These payroll leaders oversee the entire payroll department. They are usually responsible for the payroll team who complete different tasks associated with their role in the payroll office.

Payroll managers require managerial and accounting credentials. These payroll specialists must be well versed in the calculation of taxes and laws. They usually work with members of the accounting department.

Is It Stressful Working In Payroll?

Yes. There is no sugar-coating here. Additionally, deadlines cause high stress levels.

Payroll is a critical function in any business. Particularly during the busiest times of the year. Additionally, if office managers and/or HR managers do not notify the payroll department of new employees, employees leaving or changing positions, or not filling in timesheets on time causes addon stress. However, the job is rewarding and like with any job, there are many benefits to working in payroll.

Outsource Your Payroll & Avoid The Added Stress. Contact our expert team today

In this article, we discuss how the effects of the coronavirus has impacted payroll operations and how payroll specialists can adapt to the “new normal” way of processing payroll.

The first question to ask is “Has Covid19 Impacted Payroll”?

And the most obvious answer would be, yes. There is not a single area of our lives (personally and professionally) that has not been impacted by the COVID-19 pandemic.

Although many business operations have slowed down during times like these, payroll operations are the one area of business that has had to step up. Additionally, its vital role in business is more clear than ever. Businesses and payroll professionals seek to overcome challenges of today and adapt for tomorrow. Therefore, payroll processing modified to keep up with our ‘new normal’ way of living.

Payroll processing is impacted in a number of ways:

• Less ability and work responsibility from staff who are sick with COVID19 or who are looking after family members who are sick. Therefore, requiring flexible work arrangements.
  
• Staff who are starting to work from home may be limited due to not having the adequate tools and documents available that they would normally have available at the office. Especially if your business system is on-premise solutions.
  
• Payroll calculations need to be updated as most governments have provided tax and illness relief to staff and businesses. Therefore, payroll specialists need to ensure the new regulations reflect correctly.

All the above has put extraordinary stress on payroll systems. Therefore, forcing the payroll specialists to adapt quickly. We are currently living through the biggest global crisis that many of us will experience in our lifetime.

Although, they might have been able to improvise by working overtime and putting in extra effort for a while, it is clear that business owners need to have a plan to mitigate the ongoing impact on business.

Is there a way for payroll providers to adapt to the “new normal”? Can staff feel relief from new workplace stress?

Here are 4 tips we think will help you:

Tip 1: Process Automation

Reduce the need for human involvement and you will minimize operational disruptions. Process automation eliminates congestion and error, which leads to lost time and revenue. Thus, control and improvement in productivity, customer experience and business performance overall will improve.

Tip 2: Remote Access To Data

Organise and store data and files securely in the cloud. Move from hard copy files to electronic. Therefore, you, your staff and your customers can access the neccessary important information any time, from anywhere!

Tip 3: IT Infrastructure

IT plays a vital role in the delivery of data and financial services. Therefore, businesses need to have secured IT infrastructure. Additionally, 24/7 support and maintenance must be available.

Tip 4: Remove People Dependencies

Review employee roles and responsibilities and ensure there are back up plans in case of staff not becoming available due to COVID19. Set up automated delegation routines that give the replacement staff member automatic access to documents in case that specific employee is not available.

While these tips may help you to better master your business challenges and payroll operations, they will also improve the efficiency of your business operations as well.

At Outsourcing Solutions, we have experience in assisting businesses transform and modernize their payroll operations. Therefore, we can help you to move your payroll to a secure, cloud-based environment efficiently. Contact us today.

With so many payroll software options available, it can be tricky to find a payroll software that suits your business needs. Payroll software in South Africa comes in various sizes and price points. To find which one fits your company best, you must consider what type of features and support you and your team will require.

Whether you’ve hired your first employee or are looking to expand or switch systems, we’ve put together this article that might help you make the right decision for your business’s payroll.

Here Are A Few Payroll Software Aspects To Consider:

Cost

You will want to ensure that the payroll software you choose is affordable and best suited for your business type. Take into consideration that additional employees may come at an extra cost. Other areas to consider include:

• Subscription Payment Frequency  (Once Off, Monthly, Annually etc).
• Additional Cost Per Employee & Other Add On’s.
• Fees For Tax Filing.
• Software Support.
• Scalability Options.

As a small business, you may not need all the bells and whistles integrated with payroll and hr software systems. However, as your business begins to grow, you most likely will need to upgrade your subscription package.

Payments & Accuracy

Calculating accurate tax deductions for your employees and contractors is vitally important. In South Africa, all taxes need to be accurately deducted. And paid to SARS before their cut off dates.

Many business owners make the mistake of using free online calculators to work out their payroll. Tax amounts and other deductions fluctuate throughout the year. Therefore, you need to have a payroll software system that is kept up to date.

Reporting

Make sure the payroll package you choose allows you to filter reports in various ways. Standard summary reports should include payroll, salaries, taxes, total costs and other deductions.

Payslip Accessories

Will you need to print payslips for your employees? What payslip stationery will you print them on? (standard paper, customised payslips, security payslips etc)? Does the payroll software allow you to email payslips electronically? Are the emails safe? Make sure you check this.

When choosing the best software for your business, there are a number of things to bear in mind to ensure you find the right solution for your needs. Many of these will be standard considerations but there will be some that are unique to your company and the industry in which you operate.

Integration

It would be beneficial to support a payroll software that can easily integrate with other software’s and systems without compromising your payroll security. If you need to import information to your payroll system from an excel spreadsheet or a cloud-based software, make sure the payroll software you choose can support you with this process easily.

These are just a few factors to consider when choosing the payroll package. Check with the software providers to see what integration and import features they support.

Mobility

Do you need access to your payroll software while on the move? If you need to check or process payroll from other locations or devices, a cloud payroll solution could be for you.

Payroll cloud packages will provide you with the flexibility of having access to your payroll anywhere at any time. These are normally a monthly basis payment subscription.

There Is A Payroll Solution For All Types Of Businesses.

Payroll software is designed to make your business run smoother. Our team at Outsourcing Solutions are committed to helping you start, run and grow your business. To learn more about how we can assist you, get in touch with our expert team today and let’s build a better tomorrow together. info@outsol.co.za

Payroll is one of the most critical functions in any corporation. Therefore, if it is not carried our correctly, it has the potential to severely damage the business.

Outsourcing Payroll has become an attractive alternative for large corporations, as well as small businesses. Since the specialized payroll provider now take care of the cost of infrastructure, timely upgrade of payroll system, adherence to the latest statutory compliance updates and everything in-between. This leaves more room to focus on growth and core business operations.

Outsourcing Payroll Benefits:

Time Saving

Processing payroll demands time and attention to detail, no matter how many employees the business has. This comes at the cost of valuable time or hiring specialized in-house payroll employees which usually comes with a hefty price tag.

Outsourcing payroll allows employers to concentrate on more important business tasks.

Data Security

Payroll is a complex and risky operation. Even with trusted employees, there is risk of identity theft, embezzlement of funds, tampering with company files and more.

Additionally, there is risk of using in-house payroll software as well. How secure is the payroll data? Who is closely monitoring the business’s payroll for time and rate abuses or other unethical activities?

Outsourcing payroll services offers a “safe haven” for confidential payroll data. Payroll providers invest in state-of-the-art systems for storing and protecting their client’s data, simply because it’s part of their service. Therefore, the corporation never need to worry about backups, multiple servers, system abuse and theft.

Reduce Cost

The adequate infrastructure, automation and timely payroll updates will cost a precious penny. Additionally, if anything is executed incorrectly, it will cause further expenditure.

Outsourcing payroll will reduce costs significantly at the technology-acquisition stage and almost completely in terms of maintenance support. With outsourcing providers, the corporation have access to support, great infrastructure, security and specialized software.

Consistent Payroll Expertise

In-house business payroll runs the risk of losing their payroll employee to another job offer, taking extended holidays or falling ill. If the corporation’s accountant/bookkeeper gets a new job offer, they will walk with their knowledge of your payroll process. You also will have to spend time helping new hired employees understand your business’s payroll system.

Outsourcing payroll will assure retaining the knowledge of all the ins and outs of payroll-related tax laws.

Savings in time, cost, data security and the comfort of knowing experts are handling your payroll functions are compelling reasons to explore the benefits of outsourcing payroll. If even one of the above benefits could improve profitability and efficiency in an organization, outsourcing should be considered.

Now that you know some of the advantages to outsourcing payroll, we hope you will consider this service and take advantage of the advantages.

Prepare a list of questions about the services you are considering outsourcing to us. We are payroll provider specialists and will spend the time necessary to explain our services, and the value we will bring to your organization.

info@outsol.co.za