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The Month before Christmas

Nov 24th, 2009 by

Well it’s the month before Christmas and I’m sure every payroll office is gearing up for the increased work load that this normally entails.

For those companies that close down there will be multiple pays to process before going away (note you can only have a Company Anniversary Date for annual leave if your business actually shuts down over Christmas).

The rest I guess will be just taking the Stats off and working through.

The pays before Christmas are normally the most complicated to carry out as there can be work hours, stat days and annual leave to include.  The pays need to be taxed over the correct number of periods as well.

All fun and games for everyone involved.

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MYOB National Payroll Professional Day – Nov 20th

Nov 11th, 2009 by

The hunt is on for the nation’s most loved payroll clerks, as once again we celebrate the MYOB National Payroll Professional Day. We believe these extraordinary individuals – who ensure New Zealanders get paid, no matter what – deserve recognition for the huge task they undertake.

That’s why we are urging all businesses to get creative and come up with a novel way to nominate their payroll person for MYOB’s National Payroll Professional of the Year. It’s not going to be easy to choose this person, so we are encouraging people to be as original as possible with their entries to ensure their payroll person stands out!

The entry from last year’s winner, Elaine Bliss from Hamilton East Medical Centre, highlighted not only the dedication of these payroll professionals, but the creativity of their supporters. So this year we’re again looking to be impressed with your words of wit and wisdom to nominate your favourite payroll person.

To read more about last year’s winner and to view the video entry click here

Nominations:

Tell us in 300 words or less why your payroll person is deserving of the title MYOB National Payroll Professional of the Year.

To nominate your payroll person (you can even nominate yourself or someone you know), email us at nppd@myob.co.nz or send through your nomination online. Alternatively, you can download the nomination form (pdf) and post it to:

MYOB National Payroll Professional Day Nominations
MYOB NZ Ltd PO Box 2864, Christchurch

Prize:

This year, to give them the break they deserve for all their hard work, one small business and one medium sized business winner will receive travel vouchers to the value of $500 plus a 12 month licence of our new CRM product, MYOB ClientConnect Plus valued at $179.00 incl. GST.

Entries close at 5:00pm on 16 November 2009 and winners will be notified on 20 November 2009 so nominate someone now!

To create awareness of the MYOB National Payroll Professional Day we have created a poster which you can download and distribute around your office.

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Payroll Giving signed into Legislation

Nov 11th, 2009 by

FiveStar staff have been working on adding payroll giving to our payroll “Payroll Pro”.

Payroll Giving takes effect from the 7th January 2010.  The scheme provides a tax credit when an employee makes a gift of money to a donee organisation such as a school or charity.

The employee will be able to donate money and immediately receive their tax credit each payperiod, which will eliminate the need to collect and keep tax receipts to make a later claim.

Payroll Pro provides a total payroll solution for your business.   We specialise in small to medium business and provide free support to all our customers.  All our staff are experts both in our payroll program and also in many payroll issues.

I’ve always found the staff at FiveStar Software prompt, friendly and uncomplicated in response to my requests for help.  And I’ve always found the software to be reliable and easy to use.
Michael, Auckland

If you are looking for a payroll solution, call us on 0800 996 998 or visit our website www.fivestarsoftware.co.nz

See also this article from the NZPPA, click HERE.

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Letter from MYOB re Payroll

Nov 6th, 2009 by

MYOB – Our commitment to Payroll

Hi MYOB User,

We’re still proud to be New Zealand’s first choice as a payroll provider.

MYOB helps pay more than a quarter of the country’s employees, and that’s a service we’re very pleased to be working with you to grow throughout the country.

Our family of payroll solutions and software – coupled with expert support from our dedicated team – is the ideal choice for Kiwi businesses looking for an easy and efficient way to pay their staff. And with a busy holiday season coming up, you can be assured we’re here to help – with expert support only a phone call or email away, and a great range of ways to get more information, including our upcoming seminar and webinar programme.

As you know, every year we invest a great deal of time and resources to ensure you have the latest Payroll solutions to keep you up to date with the latest legislation. We are now working towards our next Payroll upgrade, to prepare you for the proposed changes in ACC levies.

Our updated Payroll is just one of a range of exciting new initiatives we have next year, designed to help your business. If you have any questions about how we can help make life easier in your business – please let us know. You can call us on 0800 60 69 62.

And don’t forget to nominate your payroll person for National Payroll Professional Day – you can make your nomination online at www.myob.co.nz (just follow the link from the front page) – it’s our way of recognising how important payroll is to Kiwi businesses.

Kind regards,

Julian Smith
General Manager
MYOB NZ Ltd

Making business life easier.

You have received this email as a valued MYOB client. If you would prefer not to receive promotional emails from MYOB NZ Ltd, please send your details in an email with Unsubscribe in the subject line to sales@myob.co.nz Please note that unless further advised, MYOB will still contact you regarding upgrade and compliance issues relating to your software. For the latest version of the MYOB Privacy Policy, please click here.

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NZ Firemen need your Support

Nov 6th, 2009 by

So, its coming up to Christmas and you are wondering what to get your wife, girlfriend or partner.

A possible gift idea might be a Fireman’s Calendar.  It has twelve photos of semi naked firemen to drool over.  The calendar costs $10 of which $1 is donated to Child Cancer.

You can order online HERE

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ACC – Accidental Death Entitlements

Nov 5th, 2009 by

We recently attended the Coffee Brief put on by EzyPay and they had a speaker from ACC telling us what ACC can do for people.

The biggest surprise to everyone there was your entitlements from accidental death.  I had no idea this was available from ACC at all, which I think was the case of most of the people there.  Payments may include:

  • A funeral grant to help with the cost of the funeral
  • Survivor’s grant – one off payments to the partner and children
  • Childcare payments – to help with looking after any children
  • Ongoing weekly compensation for wages that would have been brought into the family

ACC support applies regardless of life, funeral or other insurance policies that may also provide protection.

Possibly the best way to explain how it works is by way of an example.

John and Sarah are married with two children, one aged 3 and the other 5.  John was earning a salary of $100,000 per year.  John was accidentally killed in an accident, that met one of the following conditions:

  • Does not matter what the person was doing when the injury happened – driving, playing sport, at work or at home.
  • Whether it was someone else’s action or something they did that contributed to the injury.
  • No matter how old the person was, or whether they were working or not eg.  if they were retired or a student.
  • Wherever in New Zealand the injury happened.  Cover also extends to residents taking short trips overseas.

ACC entitlements would be as follows:

  • A funeral grant up to a maximum of $5,429.89
  • A one off payment to Sarah of $5,821.55
  • A payment of $2,910.79 to the children, each
  • Sarah would also receive $48,000 per until the youngest child turns 18. (or 21 if they go to University).  This is calculated as follows:  ACC normally pay 80% of ones salary, the surviving partner is entitled to 60% of the 80%.  This payment is not means tested and if there are no children she would only receive the payment for five years.
  • The two children receive in total $16,000 per year until they turn 18 (or 21 if they go to University).  This is calculated as 20% of the 80%.  This payment is not means tested.
  • A childcare payment of $123.79 for one child, $74.27 each for two, and 173.31 for three or more.

The process of making a claim involves contacting ACC as soon as possible after the accident.  This can be handled by a relative, friend, priest or funeral director.  For more information call the ACC on 0800 222 075.

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Wage Growth Report – September Quarter 09

Nov 4th, 2009 by

The latest stats are below but you can read the full report HERE.

Wage Growth Report — September 2009 Quarter

  • Annual wage growth in the adjusted Labour Cost Index was 2.1% in the September 2009 quarter, the lowest growth rate since 2002.
  • The adjusted Labour Cost Index showed annual wage growth was the strongest in the education industry (up 3.7%) and health & community services (up 3.4%).
  • Labour demand continued to weaken according to the Quarterly Employment Survey with filled jobs (seasonally adjusted by the Department of Labour) falling by 0.3% in the September 2009 quarter.
  • The Quarterly Employment Survey results suggest that the official measure of employment, as measured by the HLFS, is likely to fall slightly.
  • Wage growth is expected to continue to slow over 2009 and 2010 as the labour market continues to soften.

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Software Developers News

Nov 3rd, 2009 by

Unknown to many people are a group called the  Software Development Liaison Unit within the IRD.

Their job is to work with software developers in scoping and implementing new legislation into the various payroll software packages available.

You can view their current Newsletter below.

Software Developers News November2009

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ACC – Time Out

Nov 2nd, 2009 by

Thinking of taking time off work to have children, to study, to travel  or for another reason?

If you’re planning a break, you should consider ACC Timeout to make sure you’re still adequately covered for non-work related accidents.

Under ACC Timeout, if you’re injured while taking a break you can receive weekly payments of up to 80% of the amount you were earning before you took your break.

Employers, employees and self-employed are all able to purchase ACC Timeout.  For more information click HERE or call ACC on 0800 222 776.

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When can you pay Holiday Pay on a pay-by-pay basis?

Nov 2nd, 2009 by

The Labour Department describes as the ‘Pay-as-you-go‘ method of paying Holiday Pay and there are only two situations when it is permissable.

Pay-as-you-go annual holiday pay is where an employee receives their holiday pay (calculated at a minimum of 8% of the gross earnings) added on top of and paid with their regular pay.

Under the Holidays Act 2003, an employee can be paid their holiday pay in this manner in one of the following two situations only:

1. The employee is on a genuine fixed term employment agreement of less than 12 months; or

2. The employees work pattern can be described as so irregular or infrequent that the concept of four weeks away from work is difficult to apply. For example, when an employee is only called into work to cover shifts as and when required – there is no defining event that would predict when the employee would be working.

If an employee does not fit into one of the above situations, then they will receive their four week annual holiday entitlement regardless of any amount that has already been paid.

The agreement for pay-as-you-go holiday pay must be written into the employee’s employment agreement and the holiday pay itself must be an identifiable component of the employee’s pay. On the termination of the employment relationship, no additional pay for annual holidays is due as the holiday pay has already been paid to the employee.

As can be seen, casual employees who work on a regular basis are not entitled to have their leave paid out each pay.

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Posted in Labour Department, Payroll Comment | 2 Comments »

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