Damon Tunnicliffe, Head of Payroll at Duncan & Toplis talks about the importance of payroll in any business

Payroll is a vital part of any business, yet almost all companies get it wrong — says Damon Tunnicliffe, Head of Payroll at Duncan & Toplis.

91% of UK companies admit to making payroll errors every month, according to a recent survey. Worst still, the scale of this is up to £150,000 in company losses.

Clearly, when it comes to people’s hard-earned income, payroll errors are a costly mistake.

Employees have regular outgoings that, in the vast majority of cases, can’t simply be deferred or shifted due to late payments. A single behind-schedule transfer can have disastrous effects on your workforce - which can impact their financial security and psychological well-being.

Overdue payments drive feelings of unrest and insecurity - which makes it no surprise that a recent survey found that 49% of employees questioned would look for a new job after just two payroll errors impacting their salary so accurate and timely payroll is a paramount priority for all UK businesses.

Payroll drives employee morale, engagement and productivity. It ensures business compliance, upholds your company reputation and maintains the financial integrity of your organisation.

Payroll is so fundamental to working life that the earliest recorded payroll dates back to 7,000 BC. Similarly, a 5,000 year old tablet showed that the Ancient Egyptians were paid in beer for work done. Symbols were used with line scratches to indicate the amount of beer earned per worker!

Payroll has become a lot more complex since then. Today, payroll departments must navigate a complex web of over 170 pieces of changing legislation and are responsible for ensuring accurate, correct and on-time payments to your employees and contractors.

This includes paying salaries, applying tax codes, ensuring tax and National Insurance is taken correctly, processing sickness pay, pensions, parental leave and benefits, providing payslips, and handling employee and stakeholder queries.

Although it is complex, understanding how to streamline your processes and maximise efficiencies while minimising errors is vital to effective payroll management.

Whether you handle payroll in-house or if you outsource it to a company like Duncan & Toplis, make sure that you give your payroll the respect it deserves.