Payroll Remediation
The Joondalup Family Centre engaged Zest to conduct an independent pay review. The review focused on three key areas:
The Centre needed an external consultant to:
The Centre required an objective, thorough analysis that would protect employee entitlements and enhance confidence in their payroll systems.
Zest conducted a comprehensive, independent pay point investigation covering two employees over an 18-month review period.
Our methodology included:
1. Document Review: We analysed employment contracts, position descriptions, payroll reports, and timesheet records to establish the employment history and payment patterns for each employee.
2. Industrial Instrument Assessment: We cross-checked all payments against the SCHADS Award requirements, including classification levels, base rates, penalty entitlements, leave provisions, and allowances.
3. Comparative Analysis: We built detailed calculations comparing actual payments against Award-required rates, tracking step progressions and annual increases to identify specific underpayment periods.
4. Superannuation & Tax Review: We assessed superannuation contributions for statutory compliance and factored PAYG withholding into net impact calculations.
The investigation produced a detailed report documenting the complete payment history for each employee, pinpointing exactly when and why underpayments occurred, and calculating the precise remediation amounts required.
1. Precision & Clarity: The review identified underpayments due to non-application of step increases and allowances.
2. Quantified Financial Impact: We calculated specific remediation amounts, covering wages, superannuation shortfalls, and unpaid allowances. This gave the Centre the exact figures needed for immediate correction.
3. Forward-Looking Recommendations: Beyond resolving the immediate issue, we provided strategic recommendations to prevent future non-compliance.
4. Resolution Pathway: Our independent, evidence-based report gave the Centre exactly what they needed to engage constructively with impacted employees and resolve the grievance with confidence and credibility.
1. Limited Historical Context
Organisational transitions meant that institutional knowledge had been lost, requiring us to piece together the employment history from documentation.
2. Multi-Layered Award Interpretation
The SCHADS Award contains complex provisions around step progressions, annual increases, and classification levels. We needed to accurately interpret when each increment should have applied, accounting for anniversary dates, Fair Work Commission annual wage review timings, and the interaction between step increases and Award increases.
3. Incomplete Timesheet Records
Gaps and inconsistencies in timesheet documentation required us to cross-reference multiple data sources, including payroll reports, rostering systems, and contract variations, to accurately reconstruct worked hours and validate payment calculations across the 18-month review period.
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