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What’s new in sick leave entitlements
Aug 18, 2021
Sickness and leave entitlements have become a concern since we entered a global health crisis. So it’s not too surprising that our national sick leave rules are about to change in a way that affects pretty much every employer in NZ.
What is changing?
Basically from 24 July 2021, your team’s 5 annual sick days will increase to 10.
The 5 extra days will kick in when an employee reaches their next entitlement date – so either after their 6 month anniversary, or on their next sick leave anniversary (every 12 months from the first 6 months).
So let’s say you have two staff. One of them, Shiralee, is pretty new – she just started a few months ago. She’ll qualify for sick leave in another few months, which is well after July 24th, so on that date she’ll get the new 10 day entitlement. The other, Craig, has been around for a few years, and he just had his usual annual month sick leave anniversary a few weeks ago. Craig won’t move onto the 10 day allowance until his next anniversary – which won’t be till this time next year.
The maximum amount of unused sick leave that anybody can build up stays at 20 days.
What do you need to do?
- Update your employment agreements – the sick leave clause for any new employees should now read 10 days. Entitlement dates (from first 6 months of employment) and the 20-day cap don’t need to change. If you’re already giving 10 days as a gesture of generosity to your staff, you might want to consider upping this even further, or giving them a different perk.
- Check your payroll system – if you’re with a provider, make sure they’ve announced an update or are prepared to make the changes in time. If you’re managing payroll yourself with a manual system, make sure you’ve updated your sick leave entitlements and calculations, and that you switch this over for your team as they reach their entitlement dates.
- Notify your staff – this isn’t compulsory, but it’s a good idea to just let your team know that their entitlements have changed and when they should expect to see it come into effect, just to head off any questions.
We are payroll experts, so reach out if you need help, we are only a phone call away.
We’re nearly at the end of the financial year, so if you’re balance date/end of financial year is 31 March, there are a few things you need to do to help us prepare your financials. Take a stocktake If your business sells products/has stock, you’ll need to do a stocktake on 31 March. If you’re a business that sells products, then you need to take a stocktake of your physical inventory. If you’re a farmer, then you need to take a physical livestock tally. Send in your EOY papers Compile a folder (digital or hard copy) with a copy of the following documents: Bank statement that shows the balance on 31 March 2024 for all your bank accounts and loans. Insurance invoices. ACC invoices. Loan statements for the year (if applicable). Any new loans or refinancing documents. Invoices for assets purchased and sold. GST workings and reports. Submit the online questionnaire In late March/early April, you’ll receive an email from us with an online questionnaire to fill out and submit. If you haven’t received this by the end of April, let us know.
Did you know that you can email your digital invoices or receipts straight into your MYOB In tray? You no longer need to print a digital invoice or receipt, you can simply forward them into your MYOB In tray and store them there. This saves on printing costs AND storage costs as it reduces the amount of paper you need to store for the next 7 years. The MYOB In tray lets you store documents such as bills and receipts in MYOB. Think of it like an electronic version of a physical in tray. To get your documents into your In Tray, you can simply email them as attachments. Your In tray has a unique email address that allows you to email documents straight to your In tray. It’s easy to find your In tray email address: click ‘In tray’; then click ‘More ways to upload’ and you’ll see Your In tray email address. You can send yourself documents that are PDF, JPG, JPEG, TIFF, TIF, or PNG files only.
Your business faces an increasingly complex regulatory landscape when it comes to data privacy, consumer protection, and industry-specific compliance requirements. Keeping on top of these compliance requirements is a complex task. Failing to meet your requirements can have serious implications, with non-compliance (whether intentional or accidental) resulting in legal repercussions and possible reputational damage for the company. Taking excellent care of your customer data We live in a digital world, where your business collects huge amounts of data from your customers. This includes contact details, financial information, credit card details, and detailed breakdowns of their spending habits and buying preferences. In an effort to protect this data and preserve customer privacy, there are various data regulations that you must comply with. A sample of these global data privacy laws include: The Privacy Act 2020 in New Zealand The Privacy Act 1988 in Australia The Data Protection Act 2018 in the UK General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR) in the EU If you trade mainly in New Zealand, it’s not too challenging to abide by The Privacy Act. However, if you’re trading overseas, you need to be aware of the data regulations you may need to comply with. Here are five simple steps to make compliance as simple and effective as possible: Work closely with legal advisers Compliance can get complicated if you’re not a legal expert. It’s sensible to seek advice from legal professionals, so you understand the specific compliance obligations for your industry and region. Run regular compliance audits It’s important to conduct regular risk assessments of your in-house data compliance. This helps your organisation comply with all the relevant regulations and industry standards, and stay updated with changes to compliance law. Protect your customer data Your customers expect you to take good care of their data, both personal and financial. Secure your customer and business data through end-to-end encryption and use of the best data privacy practices. Deliver regular training and keep your employees up to speed Your team needs to know the latest rules around compliance and what’s required of them. This means running frequent compliance training, so there’s a culture of compliance awareness. Use the latest data storage solutions With so much customer data being generated, it’s important to use up-to-date documentation management, and data storage software. This keeps the records and data you need safe, organised, and easy to access.
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