Many employers are now required to conduct their annual reconciliation of their employee’s salaries under the new obligations outlined in the modern awards scheme. As the 1-year mark since new obligations were introduced in March 2020 has now passed, employers will have to manually calculate whether the amount paid to employees would compensate what would have been granted by the awards impacted under the changes made by the Fair Work Commission. Some examples of awards impacted by these changes are the Banking, Finance and Insurance Award 2020, the Clerks – Private Sector Award 2020 (mainly for those in administrative occupations), the Legal Services Award 2020, and the Hospitality Industry (General) Award 2020. Employers who fail to comply with these obligations may face serious consequences, ranging from claims being made against them for back-pay, to prosecution from the Fair Work Ombudsman which may result in hefty fines and reputational damage.
The process of annualised salary calculation can be tedious for employers to undertake. Contact Morgan + English for help understanding the new requirements.