Payroll Compliance: Manufacturing Industry

Cloud-based payroll software for a simplified and automated approach to compliance in the Manufacturing industry.
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The Importance of Modern Award Compliance

Aside from highlighting the specific terms and conditions surrounding employment in various industries, modern awards also serve as essential compliance documents for all Australian industries. Businesses must understand that these regulations place an obligation on owners to comprehend whether a reward is relevant to each employee in their workforce.

In the Manufacturing Industry, this is no exception, making it crucial that you – as a business – know where your responsibilities sit.

If you fail to comply with your industry’s modern award, as laid out by the Fair Work Act 2009 – such as incorrectly paying wages or specific penalty rates and entitlements – you will be in breach of workplace laws and could face heavy fines.
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On top of this risk, if you continue to contravene your obligations in terms of the Manufacturing Award, you may face severe consequences for your business, including potentially having to pay back any lost wages and rates to the employee(s). For most organisations, this can be seriously detrimental, with additional penalties often ranging from:

  • Fines of up to $12,600 as an individual for each breach
  • Fines of up to $63,000 as a company for each breach.

Biggest Pitfalls in the Manufacturing Industry

Each award highlights the minimum entitlements and conditions that employees must receive as part of their agreement with a company. Awards differ from industry to industry to ensure fairness, consistency and cohesiveness.
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The Manufacturing Award is is a complex and ever-evolving Modern Award focused in several sectors and has broad coverage in one of the country’s biggest industries.

Combined with the specific nature of each area of the industry, and the very technical legal jargon, it’s no wonder so many manufacturing businesses struggle to stay on top of their compliance obligations.
For example, vehicle manufacturing employees have a range of specific conditions.

In fact, there is a whole section of the Manufacturing and Associated Industries and Occupations Award that is dedicated to the specific provisions for those who work in vehicle manufacturing, including different rules surrounding breaks, allowances and ordinary hours of work.

So there are different pay conditions for draughtspersons, bottle merchants, mechanical and electrical engineers, production planners and vehicle manufacturing employees. Which means, you really need to stay on top of who gets what when.

Another big pitfall for employers in the manufacturing industry is the award allowances.
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In the Manufacturing Award, employees are eligible for specific allowances based on their skills or tasks.
The manufacturing allowances also apply when employees use their own tools or work in unpleasant or
dangerous conditions.
It is common for employers to think that they can add a chunk of money to their employees’ salaries. But that’s not how it works. You have to pay them according to each and every allowance relevant to their line of work. And if you don’t, you could face some pretty hefty penalties.

Unfortunately, there’s not much guidance from the Fair Work Commission regarding staying compliant with all its regulations.

So, what is the solution? Cloud payroll software and automated time and attendance software.
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KeyPay Cloud Payroll

KeyPay’s cloud payroll software automatically applies modern award or enterprise agreement rules to ensure your business remains compliant year-round. 

Beyond that, you can automate your entire payroll process from importing timesheet data, gross to net reporting and leave accruals for all scenarios to super calculations and ATO reporting.

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NoahFace Time &
Attendance Software

NoahFace offers an app-based time and attendance software called NoahFace Go which automates scheduling, time tracking and attendance records for site workers. 

In addition, the timekeeping records will automatically integrate with your KeyPay cloud payroll software. 

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Employment Hero

Go paperless and automate the employee onboarding process with Employment Hero’s employee HR software - an end-to-end people management platform that covers every aspect of the employee lifecycle.

By incorporating everything you need to recruit, onboard, roster, and manage your aged care team, Employment Hero increases efficiency and drives productivity across every aspect of your workforce.

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How Pay Cat Can Help

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Pay Cat streamlines your HR and payroll management process through an all-in-one system that makes running your business a breeze.

With varying modern awards and industry regulations to get your head around, we understand that working out your obligations as an employee can be overwhelming.
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Let our implementation specialists ensure your business remains compliant and in line with relevant regulations, awards and employee entitlements. Keep your company out of the danger zone and on track with a team that knows how these standards differ from one sector to the next.

Never get it wrong. No back pay calculations. No inefficient manual interpretation. No data re-entry.

If you’re interested in moving from a manual payroll system to an automated cloud payroll system, get in touch with us today for a free demo.