ESCAPE FROM THE HOLIDAYS ACT NIGHTMARE BY GETTING PAYROLL SORTED NOW! was run on the 30th Sep 2022 and this OnDemand recording provides the full 3+ hours of stream along with several presentations from the event speakers listed below.

This onDemand webinar will cover a range of issues with how your business has paid leave to employees under the Holidays Act 2003, it must be understood that resolving any problems can take time, depending on how complex the issue is. It could mean a lot of work, and external support will be needed.

By acting now, the business and payroll can identify the scope of any issues and resolve them in a timeframe controlled by the business.

Background for this event

The government has stated their new updated Holidays Act will be in place at some point from mid to late 2023. The bill has not even been through parliament yet (we believe this will be in early 2023), and the government has said it will go through a full parliamentary process. The changes are based on the 22 recommendations the government has fully backed from the Holidays Act Review (click here to find out more). This will be a major change in how leave is calculated and applied from what is done presently.

Business and payroll must understand that any changes (new calculations, tests and definitions) in the updated Act are all about going forward from the point when the new law is implemented. It will not cover what has been done under the Act currently in place.

Once passed and implemented, there will be a transition period from the old to the new legislation. This is not about fixing issues with the old Act but will be focused on moving to the new way of calculating leave for employees in the new legislation.

This means it will not release an employer from the responsibilities that must be met with the present Holidays Act of paying their employees correctly for leave taken, which covers a liability period of the previous six years.

Why act now?
If there are issues with how your business has paid leave to employees under the Holidays Act 2003, it must be understood that resolving any problems can take time, depending on how complex the issue is. It could mean a lot of work, and external support will be needed. By acting now, the business and payroll can identify the scope of any issues and resolve them in a timeframe controlled by the business.

If business and payroll do not act now to resolve any issues identified, it could create a perfect storm for payroll. You could be dealing with problems from the past (the previous six years of liability) in how leave has been applied and paid while also dealing with implementing a new set of complex rules for leave in the future in any new Holidays Act (based on what NZPPA has seen in the MBIE Better Rules process).

The outcomes of this event are to educate and inform attendees on the following:

• What are the problems with the present Holidays Act?
• Why should payroll be checking and resolving Holidays Act issues now, and what are the consequences if nothing is done?
• What are some of the initial or basic checks that payroll can undertake to determine if there is a problem with leave?
• What is involved in doing a Holidays Act audit and remediation?
• Who should you get involved internally and externally?
• Should you get MBIE involved, and do you need to?
• What do you need to tell employees, and when?

Event Speakers

Ken Gibb, Partner, Grant Thornton New Zealand

Ken specialises in business risk management, compliance and Internal audit. He has a focus on finance function reviews, delivering business insights and enabling Finance, HR and Payroll teams to reduce risk, obtain compliance and improve processes. Prior to joining Grant Thornton New Zealand, he spent 20 years working in large Private sector and Publicly-listed companies in areas of operations, risk, and finance function. Ken has led a number of programmes for business and process change to deliver improved business results through a collaborative approach. Compliance to the Holidays Act 2003 has been a significant area for Ken and his team as clients have been challenged by the complexity of the legislation, recalculation and remediation required.

 

Elisha Nuttall, Senior Manager, Grant Thornton New Zealand

Elisha leads data analytics advisory capability and Payroll remediation service area at Grant Thornton. He is passionate about delivering value through data analytics and automation. Elisha works with client’s data to help them with compliance and efficiency. Elisha has managed a number of Payroll recalculations for large and small private sector clients. He has recently undertaken Payroll recalculation for nearly one hundred thousand staff from organisations with varying degrees of complexity. These projects have included working alongside Employment New Zealand’s Labour inspectorates in mandated remediations. He has also developed an Analytic App to undertake Holidays Act recalculations efficiently for any payroll configuration or business size.

Angela Grylls – NZPPA Certification & Assessment Manager, Payroll Consultant

Ange Grylls has a vast amount of payroll expertise behind her and spent nine years working for APN News & Media, previously a large Trans-Tasman media company, where she held the challenging role of Trans-Tasman Payroll Manager.

On leaving this role over 6 years ago she planned to be a “lady of leisure” and spent her final pay on a trailer, chainsaw and other manly tools.
However, this was short lived as David convinced her to do small chunks of work for NZPPA.

This has evolved over the years and Ange is currently the NZPPA Certification Manager handling all the applications, alongside this she is the primary e-Learning tutor and a Senior Facilitator.
She has carried out numerous payroll implementations, audits, remediation work and projects a many of these as a consultant for NZPPA.

She escapes NZPPA for a few months in Summer, and moves to her beach place to spend time with her family and friends, fishing, swimming and possibly having a couple of wines.

Gareth is the current Head of People, Training and Talent for McDonald’s Restaurants NZ Ltd

Gareth is the current Head of People, Training and Talent for McDonald’s Restaurants NZ Ltd – one of the biggest employers of variable hour employees. With his many years’ experience in operations, he knows only too well the requirements and demands of a dynamic workforce which in turn brings challenges in being compliant with the Holidays Act.

Gareth leads an implementation project for McDonald’s that involves working closely with their payroll provider and MBIE, moving from a traditional hours-based payroll platform across to one that’s based in weeks. A key part of the project calls for education, to bring understanding to many first-time employees across New Zealand.

 

Mark Lawlor, Partner, Duncan Cotterill

Mark is a partner in Duncan Cotterill’s growing Auckland employment and health and safety team. He has extensive experience in providing strategic advice to employers, senior executives and human resource managers on complex and sometimes sensitive matters with regards to workplace issues.

Mark has a particular interest in the Holidays Act and the law around its compliance and payments.

Mark is an experienced advocate in personal grievance claims, conducting private negotiations on behalf of clients, and appearing before the Employment Relations Authority and Employment Court.

He advises some of New Zealand’s leading organisations and iconic brands on all aspects of their employment law needs. Many of his clients are global operations that do business in New Zealand and Australia. He also works closely with several not-for-profit organisations on their full suite of workplace issues.

Mark has developed a base of knowledge across several industry sectors, including air transport, IT, security, professional services, manufacturing, FMCG, retail and fitness/recreation.

David Jenkins – NZPPA CEO

David has been involved in payroll for well over 26 years and formed NZPPA back in 2007. He is focused on compliance in payroll and is fully involved with the issues caused by the Holidays Act on a daily basis through supporting and providing advice through the NZPPA PayTech Adviceline, auditing and the numerous payroll articles he has written on the issues with the act.

He loves payroll people and is committed to gaining recognition for the important work payroll professionals do and in getting payroll seen as a profession in New Zealand.