WAGE COMPLIANCE & PAYROLL FUNDAMENTALS

^{Awards, Enterprise Agreements & New Zealand Employment Law}

Pay correctly. Understand entitlements. Strengthen payroll compliance.

^{Course Overview}

Correctly paying workers requires more than applying an hourly rate. Employers need to understand the employment arrangements and legal requirements that determine wages, allowances, overtime, penalties, deductions, leave and other entitlements.

The Wage Compliance & Payroll Fundamentals course provides participants with a practical introduction to wage and payroll compliance across Australia and New Zealand.

In Australia, modern awards are legal documents establishing minimum pay rates and employment conditions for covered employees, while enterprise agreements establish conditions for the employees they cover. Fair Work Ombudsman – Awards Fair Work Commission – Enterprise Agreements

In New Zealand, employers must maintain complete and accurate wage, time, holiday and leave records sufficient to demonstrate that minimum employment entitlements have been provided correctly. Employment New Zealand – Record-keeping

^{What You Will Learn}

Participants will develop an understanding of:

^Australia

Modern awards and award coverage
Employee classifications and pay rates
Enterprise Agreements, commonly referred to as EBAs
National minimum employment requirements
Ordinary hours, overtime and penalty rates
Allowances and loadings
Casual employment and casual loading
Annualised wage and salary arrangements
Payslip and record-keeping requirements
Permitted and prohibited wage deductions
Identifying potential underpayments
Conducting basic wage compliance checks

Australian employers must consider the applicable award or enterprise agreement, along with requirements under the Fair Work Act, when determining whether employees have been paid correctly. Fair Work Ombudsman – Rules about when and how to pay employees

New Zealand

Minimum employment standards affecting payroll
Individual and collective employment agreements
Minimum wage obligations
Hours of work and wage records
Holiday and leave-related payroll considerations
Lawful deductions
Maintaining accurate payroll evidence
Common payroll compliance risks

New Zealand employers must maintain records showing days and hours worked, holiday and leave information, wages paid and how those wages were calculated. Employment New Zealand – Record-keeping

^{Practical Workplace Scenarios}

Australia: A food-processing employee works an afternoon shift involving overtime. Participants work through the relevant employment instrument and consider classification, ordinary hours, overtime, applicable penalties and allowances before comparing the result against payroll records.

New Zealand: A processing-site employee works variable hours and has deductions appearing in payroll. Participants consider the employment agreement, actual hours, wage records and whether the deductions are authorised and reasonable. New Zealand generally permits deductions where required by law or where appropriate written employee consent exists, subject to applicable requirements. Employment New Zealand – Deductions and premiums

^{Who Should Enrol?}

Payroll and administration personnel
HR and People & Culture teams
Managers and supervisors
Finance personnel
Labour hire providers
Host employers
Compliance and quality personnel
Farm and processing-site managers
Businesses employing seasonal, casual or migrant workers
Organisations operating across Australia and New Zealand

^{No Prerequisites}

There are no prerequisites for this course.

^{Why This Course Matters}

Payroll errors can arise from incorrectly identifying the applicable employment instrument, classification, hours, penalties, allowances or deductions.

Good payroll compliance requires businesses to be able to demonstrate how an employee's pay was determined and provide reliable records supporting the calculation.

For example, Australian payslips have prescribed information requirements and must generally be provided within one working day of payday.