Want happy staff? 6 tips to pay them correctly and manage well
Discover six tips to help you boss your payroll processes, so you can keep your employees happy by paying them on time.

1. Recruit, retain and reward employees with a benefits scheme
Look at your employee benefits scheme as a tool to keep your employees energised and performing at a high level. Your scheme should provide benefits that appeal to your workforce’s interests. For parents with young families, childcare is likely to be popular. Older workers may be more focused on healthcare and pensions. You can easily ask your employees which benefits they prefer and aim to offer as much as your budget allows. Picking a scheme that offers some flexibility is a good idea. Research the top-rated suppliers that offer those benefits to build a shortlist and narrow down your choices where those criteria intersect.2. Use software to stay on top of payroll and HR
Software these days is so easy to download and install. There are built-in wizards to guide you step-by-step through your set up, and useful tutorials on YouTube for most problems as well as good training programmes with the providers. Cloud payroll software and cloud HR software make it easier to zip through tasks such as processing leavers or new employees, tracking holiday, sick pay, maternity pay, bonuses and so on to ensure your staff are paid correctly and on time.3. Outsource if you need to
Payroll and managing people processes are quite involved to manage as your business starts and grows. Instead of trying to become a master of it all, it may be better (and easier) for you to hire payroll services through an accountant or a payroll bureau. Consider how much help you need with your payroll matters. Remember, you’re responsible for collecting and keeping records of your employee’s details. Your payroll provider will need these to run payroll for you. Some payroll providers can offer you more support if you need it, for example keeping employee records, providing payslips and making payments to CRA.4. Stay on top of payroll compliance
In a nutshell, here’s what’s essential to managing payroll compliance:- Keep accurate personal records, which can easily be done digitally.
- Communicate your compliance plan with your employees so they understand their role in maintaining compliance.
- Understand workplace pensions. Even if you have one employee, your pension duties require you to put certain staff into a pension scheme to which you must contribute.
- Use audit trails to link each transaction that is made with supporting information, such as purchase orders and invoices, which will validate any payments that look unusual.
- Keep up to date with payroll legislation by attending payroll seminars, watching webinars and going to industry conferences can help to enhance your knowledge.
- Keep the experts on speed-dial, such as an accountant or an employment lawyer.
- Submit your payroll information on time. Tax deadlines, shifting paydays and quarterly reporting are only a few of the complexities of payroll. To help you stay on top of everything, create an annual calendar featuring important dates. It should cover timesheet and invoice submissions, when payments need to be made, and tasks you need to complete for payroll year end (think submitting final reports to CRA and sorting T4s for your employees).