Inaccurate or late payments can erode employee trust in employers, motivating them to look elsewhere.
Underpaying staff has been a dominant topic in the media over the past few years, from fashion chains and restaurants to supermarkets and fast-food outlets. Wage theft — intentional or otherwise — can cripple a company’s reputation and has serious consequences for both employees and employers.
Today’s competitive job market empowers employees to expect more, and it’s becoming evident that employees are more willing than ever before to change jobs to get paid properly. According to the Australian Bureau of Statistics (ABS), 1.3 million people changed jobs between February 2021-22 — the highest job mobility rate since 2012.
However, while payroll plays a big part in employee retention, outdated payroll processes and limited resources can impact accurate payment of employees. With the proper processes in place, businesses can better manage payroll to keep track of finances and accurately calculate wages, superannuation, tax, annual leave, and more.
Why it pays to get payroll right
Employee retention can make or break a business. A big part of this is offering fair and consistent salaries. Ensuring employees are paid right every time can bring a raft of undeniable benefits, including:
Increase productivity
Employees paid accurately and on time are more likely to be motivated to do their best work. When employees are assured that their pay will arrive on time and their finances are in order, they are more inclined to focus on their deliverables at work, which increases overall productivity. It also creates a positive culture that employees are less likely to leave.
Engaging the services of a fully managed payroll provider can provide long-term value by alleviating the stresses of getting payroll right and ensuring employees never need to worry about late or incorrect payments.
Save on hiring costs
Getting payroll wrong not only looks bad for business, it also forces employees to second-guess how valued they are in the company. This ultimately leads to higher employee turnover, which is a significant drain on company resources. The longer payroll gets it wrong, the higher the employee turnover, and the more time businesses must spend recruiting.
The recruitment process is more than posting a ‘help wanted’ sign in the window or a job ad online. Companies must invest in training, salaries, office space, and equipment. These costs will also depend on the market rate for various roles, industries, and levels of seniority.
Attract and retain top talent
Globally, employees are restructuring their relationships with work, pushing organisations to continue to evolve and innovate their employee experience, such as offering secure, on-demand pay.
Paying employees on time is one of the easiest ways to retain and attract new talent. Having a reputation as an employer with a tightly run payroll ship is an attractive quality to job seekers and could be the deciding factor when it’s time to sign on the dotted line. Alternatively, businesses that underpay their employees may suddenly find themselves losing their best employees and unable to attract new ones.
Paying employees correctly, on time, every time
Trouble with employee retention? Poor payroll processes might be to blame.
As the cost of living continues to soar, it’s more important than ever for businesses to gain control of their finances and get payroll right. Overhauling current payroll processes and engaging the services of external payroll specialists is essential to achieving compliance and ensuring your employees get paid correctly.
Affinity Payroll makes payroll management easy. Our fully managed service removes risk, increases efficiency, and reduces payroll pain. We are local compliance and legislation experts who deliver compliant payroll for complex workforces across all industries.
Paying your employees on time is the key to keeping your best talent and maintaining business success. When you’re ready to improve your payroll accuracy and retain your top talent, get in touch.
For over thirty years, Affinity has been a trusted partner for mid-market and enterprise businesses in Australia and New Zealand, empowering them to transform their payroll operations. With a focus on turning payroll from a cost into an asset, we have established ourselves as industry leaders in delivering innovative cloud-based payroll software and exceptional payroll services.
