Both time consuming and complex, payroll for employees is the bane of many a small business owners’ life, yet as a necessity, it has to be dealt with one way or the other. Fortunately, there are a number of ways in which you can simplify payroll, while still ensuring that your employees are paid; read on to know more:
Have salaries for all employees
It doesn’t matter how you process payroll, but having your employees on a salary instead of an hourly rate, can make it simpler. Gross pay, tax withholding and net pay can be calculated once, and then simply replicated every payday. While bonuses will naturally require additional calculations, a salary system is by far and large one of the most significant ways to save money when calculating payroll.
Check with an accounting professional to see if this is an option for you.
Payroll software
Payroll software can help to simplify the process, and enable you to spend less time calculating pay and withholdings, for your employees. Most online software versions require a monthly fee, while many outsourced accounting agencies also use them, meaning that you can reap the rewards of the software, along with all the other benefits of outsourcing, such as reduced time and regulatory compliance.
Most payroll software calculates the net pay and creates a pay summary for each employee, while others automate the direct deposit process or create checks for you, too.
Outsourcing
This is the ultimate solution for simplifying payroll, and takes absolutely all of the effort, time and stress out of the entire process for small business owners. Paying only for those services you use, and based upon how many employees you have, outsourcing agencies typically handle every element of payroll for you, and keep updated with changes to tax laws so that you’re always IRS compliant. It’s important to remember that the IRS still hold the employer responsible for paying back taxes if an outsourcing agency makes a mistake, so be sure to work only with an experienced team with a good record and plenty of accounting skills.
Keeping accurate records
Filing is a major pain in the proverbial for many small business owners, and if you calculate your payroll manually, it’s important that you keep track of employee’s withholdings and complete all the proper state and federal paperwork. Records can be stored electronically, but every employer must keep these records for 3 years, leading many to choose working with an outsourced payroll agency, to reduce this requirement.
Payroll can be a pain, there’s no two ways about it, but by adopting any one (or more than one) of the above methods, you can help make the process as pain-free as possible.