Yahoo Finance Here’s why you need to check your pay slip every time
Taking the time to carefully comb through your payslip every week, fortnightly or month isn’t something everyone does – but it could be costing you.
Many people could be missing out on wage or super entitlements they didn’t know about,, whether it’s intentional or not.
Employees aged over 21 are entitled to a minimum wage of $18.93 an hour or $719.20 every 38-hour week.
If you’re a casual, you get 25 per cent casual loading, which means $23.66 an hour.
Employers are also required by law to pay at least 9.5 per cent of super to your super account.
However, just because your pay slip says you’re being paid super doesn’t always mean it’s actually reaching your super account.
“Your pay slip might show it’s going in but you have to reconcile that with your super statements,” financial strategist Theo Marinis told news.com.au.
“It’s got to be paid quarterly 28 days after each quarter, so it’s a good idea once a quarter to open your account online and make sure it’s gone in.”
But the good news is that reading your super statement is easier now, too, since they’re online. If you’re super conscientious, you can get texts from your super fund every time a contribution is made.
6 things to check on your payslip
Pay cycle and hours worked: This is the period your payslip refers to. For casual and contract workers, it’s especially important to look at the hours worked to make sure nothing slips through the cracks.
Gross Pay: This is your pay before tax or any other deductions are taken out, so this figure is not how much ends up going in your bank account.
Net pay: Often called ‘take-home pay’, this is the amount you keep after tax and deductions like your HECS debt are deduced from gross pay.
Superannuation: This is where you have to be careful to ensure your employer is paying you the right amount of super (or at all). Your pay slip should name the fund you’ve nominated as well as state how much super you get, which is your net pay multiplied by the set amount of super (it should be at least 9.5 per cent).
PAYG Tax: Pay-as-you-go tax is withheld by the ATO. It’s important to note that the amount withheld each month is based on an estimate of how much you’ll earn in the current financial year. If you’ve paid too much you’ll get some back at the end of the financial year, but pay too little and you’ll find yourself in the unfortunate position of owing money to the ATO.
Annual Leave: It’s best practice for your leave to be shown on your pay slip – but it’s not a requirement. But if you ask for it, your employer must tell you.
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