Contents:

• Welcome
• What's New
• GrandMaster Update

Welcome!

July 2008 - Welcome to the latest edition of The Payroll News. As always, please feel free to forward this newsletter to your friends and associates who are interested in keeping up with the latest changes in the Payroll industry. Or better yet, subscribe them for free using the Tell Others About Us link.

Listed here are recent changes in legislation on Federal and Provincial levels that may impact your payroll calculations. Please view the following list for changes that affect your region.

FEDERAL:

June 26, 2008 - New Payroll Deductions Formulas for Computer Programs - The Canada Revenue Agency (CRA) has released the latest formulas to use when calculating your employees' payroll deductions. This publication contains formulas to calculate CPP contributions, EI premiums, and federal, provincial, and territorial income tax amounts. (Full Story)

June 19, 2008 - Tables on Diskette (T4143-7) - The Canada Revenue Agency (CRA) has released the latest Tables on Diskette (TOD), an electronic version of the Payroll Deductions and Supplementary Tables. TOD calculates payroll deductions for all provinces and territories for any pay period, for commission income, and for special payments such as bonuses. TOD also calculates the federal, provincial, and territorial income tax, Canada Pension Plan contributions, and Employment Insurance premiums that you withhold from an employee's or pensioner's income. (Full Story)

June 2, 2008 - Interest rates for the third calendar quarter - The Canada Revenue Agency (CRA) today announced the prescribed annual interest rates that will apply to any amounts owed to the CRA and to any amounts the CRA owes to individuals and corporations. These rates are calculated quarterly in accordance with applicable legislation and will be in effect from July 1, 2008, to September 30, 2008. (Full Story)

Alberta:

July 30, 2008 - Forest industry workforce strategy takes root - Alberta's forest stakeholders and the Alberta government are teaming up to work on actions to address labour force challenges facing the forest industry sector. A Workforce Strategy for Alberta's Forest Industry identifies ways to address staff recruitment, retention, skills development and training in the province's third-largest manufacturing sector. (Full Story)

June 23, 2008 - Alberta launches re-employment services for 400 Lethbridge call centre employees - The Alberta government will help Lethbridge’s laid-off Convergys employees get back to work. Employment and Immigration and Teamworks Career Centre will provide on-site job placement services for approximately 50 Convergys employees who were laid off in May and June. "It is critical that we bring together government, agencies and employers to work on these issues and develop local solutions." said Hector Goudreau, Employment and Immigration Minister. (Full Story)

June 18, 2008 - Immigration and skilled-labour attraction tops agenda for Europe mission - Attracting immigrants and promoting labour opportunities in Alberta are the focus of an upcoming government mission to Europe. Through ongoing marketing campaigns and other initiatives in Germany and the United Kingdom, Alberta has been able to attract workers in many high-demand occupations, including health care, emergency services, construction and the tourism and hospitality industry. (Full Story)

June 2, 2008 - Fairness and improved safety achieved through amendments to Labour Relations Code - Bill 26, Labour Relations Amendment Act 2008, introduces revisions that would protect public safety, build fair workplaces for employees and promote healthy competition in the construction sector. The Act would remove the ability of ground ambulance services to strike or lockout during labour disputes and follows through on the recommendations of a 2004 MLA committee by restricting the practices of salting and market enhancement recovery funds (MERFs) in the construction sector. (Full Story)

British Columbia:

July 31, 2008 - Increase of Migrant Workers in Canada Opens Door to Abuses - Western Canada's construction boom, spurred on by the 2010 Olympics in Vancouver and oil sands development in Alberta, has led to a massive increase in foreign temporary workers coming to the region. There are now 2,000 to 3,000 temporary workers and thousands more in the underground economy in British Columbia (BC), according to Joe Barrett with the BC and Yukon Building Trades Council. (Full Story)

July 31, 2008 - B.C.'s minimum wage should not be a poverty wage - Labour and social justice groups in British Columbia have long urged the provincial government to increase the minimum wage to a level that guarantees a path out of poverty for a single person working full-year, full-time. Year after year, the government has turned them down with the argument that B.C. already enjoys the highest minimum wage in Canada and raising it further would be uncompetitive. (Full Story)

Manitoba:

June 12, 2008 - New Youth Campaign Focuses on Injury Prevention - Today, the WCB is launching an innovative SAFE Work media campaign targeting young workers. Unlike previous ad campaigns, the injury prevention message will reach youth through a medium they frequent: the Net. "The WCB firmly believes that workplace injuries are preventable," says WCB Chair Tom Farrell, "and our new campaign is groundbreaking in terms of getting that message out there. We know that reaching out to young people requires different tactics, because they respond to messages in different ways, through different mediums." (Full Story)

June 10, 2008 - Province Receives Report On Expanding Workers Compensation Coverage - Labour and Immigration Minister Nancy Allan, minister responsible for the Workers Compensation Act, announced today the province has received a report from the Worker's Compensation Board (WCB) supporting the expansion of workers' compensation coverage. The report follows a comprehensive public review of the Workers Compensation Act which recommended that coverage of workplaces be extended after consultation with affected industries. The WCB undertook extensive consultations including mailing out 43,000 consultation packages. (Full Story)

June 10, 2008 - Extension of Workers Compensation Coverage Consultation Report Now Available - The Board of Directors of the Workers Compensation Board recently sought comments from the public regarding the addition of industries to the workers compensation system. The consultation period is now complete and a report summarizing submissions received from stakeholders has been forwarded for consideration to the Minister of Labour and Immigration, Nancy Allan, who is responsible for The Workers Compensation Act. (Full Story)

Newfoundland and Labrador:

July 18, 2008 - New Career Work Centre Opens in Province - The Provincial Government is continuing its commitment to provide improved access to labour market services. Today, the Honourable Shawn Skinner, Minister of Human Resources, Labour and Employment, announced that a new Career Work Centre (CWC) is now officially open to serve the public in the Grand Falls-Windsor region. (Full Story)

July 18, 2008 - Development of a registry of former workers of the Baie Verte Asbestos Mine - The development of a registry of former mine employees is a proactive approach, created through a collaborative partnership between the workers' compensation system, a union organization and a community group. "The Commission recognized the link between emerging asbestos-related illnesses in workers of the Baie Verte Asbestos Mine and the need to find a better way to work with the injured workers, labour and the community," said Ralph Tucker, Chair, Board of Directors, Workplace, Health, Safety and Compensation Commission. (Full Story)

June 30, 2008 - Government Meets Minimum Wage Commitment - The Provincial Government announced today that it is meeting its commitment to achieve a minimum wage of $10 per hour by 2010. Over the next two years, the Provincial Government will increase the minimum wage for provincially-regulated workplaces in regular planned intervals through a schedule of four 50-cent increments. On January 1, 2009, the minimum wage will rise by 50 cents to $8.50 per hour, to $9 per hour on July 1, 2009, to $9.50 per hour on January 1, 2010, and will reach $10 per hour on July 1, 2010. (Full Story)

New Brunswick:

June 2008 - 1st Quarter Corporate Accountability Document - The Board of Directors of the WHSCC is accountable to the stakeholders of New Brunswick to achieve the five goals outlined in its Strategic Plan and Risk Assessment for 2007-2012. This plan was developed to enable long-term goal setting directed towards achieving our Vision, Mission, Mandate, and Values. An accountability document is a report to the Board on the Commission's first quarter results for 2008 in several sections. (Full Story - PDF)

June 2008 - Independent Review Panel Report Released - The Report of the Independent Review Panel on the Workplace Health, Safety and Compensation System, released today by Ed Doherty, Minister of Post-Secondary Education, Training and Labour, will be very useful to the Commission as it sets its priorities for the coming years, said Roberta Dugas, chair of the WHSCC. Dugas noted that the report confirms the important role that the stakeholder board members play in administering the system of workers' compensation and occupational health and safety. (Full Story - PDF)

Nova Scotia:

June 26, 2008 - Small Businesses Get Big Boost With New Health and Safety E-course - The Canadian Centre for Occupational Health and Safety (CCOHS) has developed an e-course for small businesses to help them develop health and safety programs. This one-hour course introduces owners and managers to potential hazards and preventive measures which may occur in small businesses including: ergonomics, chemical hazards, and fire protection. It offers practical information on how to develop a health and safety program including emergency planning and hazard management. (Full Story)

June 17, 2008 - Adult Learners Ready for More Education, Workplace - Thanks to support from the Nova Scotia School for Adult Learning, 73 metro-area adults are a big step closer to a better career. The Nova Scotia School for Adult Learning is an initiative of the Department of Labour and Workforce Development. Since its inception in 2001, more than 2,700 Nova Scotians have graduated with a high school diploma for adults. More than 400 will graduate this year. (Full Story)

Ontario:

July 21, 2008 - Green Jobs, New Plant Coming To Vaughan - Ontario is creating new jobs in green industries by supporting an innovator in solar power energy. The province is investing nearly $8 million in 6N Silicon to help create sustainable jobs for skilled workers. This investment supports 6N's $50-million expansion. The company is opening a new manufacturing plant in Vaughan and creating 84 new jobs. (Full Story)

July 18, 2008 - Ontario Helps Protect Workers - Ontario is strengthening protection for workers by implementing updated occupational exposure limits (OELs) for hazardous workplace substances and proposing further changes for 2008. OELs restrict a worker's exposure to hazardous substances on the job, such as the solvents used in the manufacture of paints and glues. Ontario revises the OELs on a regular basis. (Full Story)

July 8, 2008 - New Jobs, New Waterfront - Ontario is helping Ontario colleges meet the growing demand for workers in health sciences and skilled trades. The province will invest $61.5 million in George Brown College, creating up to 4,000 new spots for more students. The funding will help build a new waterfront campus on land east of Jarvis Street and expand two other campuses in Toronto. Construction of the campus will create about 880 jobs. (Full Story)

July 4, 2008 - Apprentice Ratios - Province should modernize ratio and create thousands of jobs - Three months ago, Ontario's provincial government committed $120 million to expand support for apprenticeship programs. The announcement was part of the Liberals' 2008 budget. It set a goal of having 32,000 apprentices working by 2010. To get there, 6,500 new spaces would be created. Taxpayers would invest about $18,500 to create each of those spaces. Apprenticeships create jobs for young people, a demographic where unemployment is both high and particularly frustrating. (Full Story)

June 12, 2008 - WSIB releases preliminary average premium rate for 2009 - The WSIB has announced the 2009 preliminary average premium rate for Schedule 1 employers. The WSIB Board of Directors’ decision to keep the 2009 average premium rate at $2.26 – unchanged from 2007 and 2008 – is based on careful financial analysis, and an expectation that improvements will occur in health-and-safety and return-to-work outcomes consistent with the WSIB’s Road to Zero and Prevention Strategies. (Full Story - PDF)

June 11, 2008 - Workplace Injury Rate Down By 20 Per Cent - Ontario has achieved a 20 per cent reduction in the annual rate of workplace injuries. To build on this success, Ontario is launching a new four year plan - Safe At Work Ontario. The new strategic plan will emphasize both the safety of Ontario workers and the increased productivity that safe workplaces bring to Ontario's economy. (Full Story)

Prince Edward Island:

June 2008 - Guide to Occupational Health and Safety Act - The WCB of PEI has released The guide to the Occupational Health and Safety Act that provides individuals with the opportunity to gain practical knowledge of the OH&S Act. It enables employers and workers to become informed about the Act and ensure a safe and healthy workplace. Becoming familiar with the legislation is essential to safe work practices and is the responsibility of all employers and workers. (Full Story - PDF)

Saskatchewan:

July 21, 2008 - The Governments of Canada and Saskatchewan help Nipawin area youth get skills that lead to good jobs - The Saskatchewan government today announced funding for the Nipawin Oasis Community Centre Cooperative to help local youth gain the skills they need to find and maintain meaningful employment. "The Government of Canada is committed to creating the best educated, most skilled, and most flexible work force in the world," said Mr. Fitzpatrick. (Full Story)

The current release of GrandMaster Suite (5.62) incorporates a number of changes to make it even easier to use the program and perform your payroll tasks. Some of the program changes since our last Payroll News issue include:

• Option to update employee information with prepaid CPP/QPP, EI and QPIP added - With this release we have added optional fields within the employee's Payroll Specific Information allowing you to update the employee with prepaid CPP/QPP, EI and QPIP amounts from another payroll that you administer. Any amounts entered will be added to the employee calculated amounts during the calculation process ensuring that an employee will not exceed the yearly maximums. These amounts will be automatically cleared on the first pay of the new year.
• The Deduction Update now allows Position Class as a Selections option - With this release we have made a change to the Deduction Update to allow you to choose to use Positions or Position Class as a selection option. This change will allow you to use up to 20 different Position Classes to determine which employees the deduction should apply to. The original Position option would only allow up to 10 different positions which for some applications would not provide enough of an option. With the use of a class associated to a position or multiple positions you could greatly expand the number of positions that could now be applicable.
• The Distribution Transaction Report has been added to the payroll reports menu - This release contains the Distribution Transaction Report. This report, patterned after the Transaction Report, will provide you with a printed report of the employee pay transactions by distribution that can be used to reconcile your journal entries. This report also has an export option. The report allows you to select the type of transactions that you wish to be included in the report and you may also define up to 200 different reports. The report may be run on the whole employee database, a group, or a single employee. Additionally, like the Transaction Report you may run this report on current pay details, exclude the current pay, select a specific date range, or select the pay sequences.
• The Work Time Analysis report has been added to the Human Resource module - We have added the Work Time Analysis Report to the Human Resource module. This report option will allow you to define up to 200 reports, include a group in the report process, or run the report on a single employee. The report requires that you define a legend of earning types to a maximum of 15 legend items each of which can represent up to 25 earnings. This report will read through the payhour transactions for matching earnings and then write code out to the yearly calendar grid indicating the type of earning for the day in question. You may have up to three codes on any given day. Additionally, when the report has processed all payhour records for an employee it will check for any leave information and plot those on the calendar grid where an employee has leave time booked in the future. This report is extremely useful in reporting an employee's time and attendance for the year at a glance.
• You may now add your own descriptors for WCB and Provincial Health Rates - This release contains the option to put descriptions to the WCB or Provincial Health rate fields. This may be done within the Payroll Information dialog and once updated with your descriptors the Workers Compensation Settings and Provincial Health Settings dialogs will display your descriptions. The WCB Report will also use the descriptions you assign to the individual rates within the report.
• The "Employees With…" dialogs can now be filtered by "Active Only" setting - The "Employees With…" dialog boxes that are available from the payroll level earning, deduction or accumulator lists display the employees who have been assigned the earning, deduction or accumulator. With this release we have modified these views to filter out non active employees when you have chosen the payroll setting "Show only payroll ACTIVE employees". Additionally, the "Employees With…" list will now display the employee's payroll status.
• Employee print range option added to the employee pay statements - We have added a print range option to the printing of employee pay statements. This new option allows you to select a range of employees who you want to print pay statements for. This option will allow you to select a range even when you have a group loaded. This is convenient when you wish to print a smaller group of employee's statements from a loaded group or from the entire database.
• Import Employee Rates now supports the import of a zero amount to fixed fields - Prior to this release the import option "Import Employee Rates" did not allow you to import an amount of zero to the deduction/benefit fixed parameters. This was inconvenient for some who wanted to import a zero amount to a deduction or benefit so that the current calculation or subsequent calculations would not process the deduction.
• The Payroll Turnover Report is now available in the Human Resource module - With this release we have included the Payroll Turnover Report as a report option in the Human Resource module. This change allows your HR professional to have access to this report without having to access the payroll.
• The Payroll Register Reports now show employee provincial TD1 amounts - The Payroll Register Reports have been modified to include the employee's provincial TD1 amount immediately below the federal TD1 amount. This change enables you to see both of the employee's TD1 settings.
• Option added to Customized Payroll Report to exclude employees with no data - This release includes a change to the Customized Payroll Report that allows you to exclude employees from the report or export that do not have data based on your earning, deduction, accumulator, and statutory deduction selections. This option, "Exclude Employees from report/export who do not have selection data?" found on the Select tab within the Exclude Employees group box, may be saved to any of the report definitions that you have saved. This option should only be selected if you wish to filter employee data from the report/export if they do not have data as per your selections on the Select tab. Note: prior to this change the export would automatically filter out employees who did not have data as per the selections. This was contrary to the printed report and to be consistent we have added this new option so that the printed report and the export file would be consistent with each other. If you do not select the "Exclude Employees from report/export who do not have selection data?" employees with zero amounts will be included in your printed report and export file. Additionally, if you were using a group to limit the report to only those employees with data you will no longer be required to load the group.
  

• • •

Visit CanPay's News page and view the latest Release Notes for a complete listing of program changes.

Link Opportunity! - If you are a CanPay customer wanting more exposure for your Website, please send us a 50-word description along with a copy of your logo. We'll add you to our Customer Links page and create a link directly to your website. It 's a great way to expose your goods and services to the community. Logos should be a maximum of 160 x 70 pixels and provided in the .gif or .jpg format. Send your e-mails to admin@canpay.com.

Do You Wish Your Employees Happy Birthday?
By Dr. Paul E. Adams

"A man does not live by bread alone. He needs buttering up once in a while." Robert Henry

Running a business is described by some as a high wire act, testing your sense of balance in holding the wolf at bay while keeping your hands on the wheel driving your business to your chosen destination.

So who has time for employee chit-chat or holding hands to comfort hurt feelings? Besides, you may think your employees are lucky to be working- as these are tough times. All well and good, but working and making meaningful contributions to your business are not the same. If your employees lack interest, lack loyalty, or have attitude problems perhaps you are part of the problem.

If you have only a handful of employees, you know them well. And if you have been successful you have created a team, not partnerships. Because if the relationships have grown to best friends, that can be a problem. You will discover if you can t meet the expectations of such "friendships" with raises, promotions, or other perks, employee disappointment can turn to anger and attitude problems.

If your business has grown and you manage many employees, it is easy to lose the once personal contact you enjoyed with each member of your labor force. If you have 50 or more people working for you, do they know you? Do you know them? As you spend your precious cash paying Mr. Smith or Miss Jones to ship orders, invoice customers, order merchandise, make deliveries, or clean the office- are they doing their best for you? Or are they treading water paycheck to paycheck?

While you can not motivate everyone, as some people live with a chip on their shoulder, most employees do respond to positive stimuli, But you must remember, your business is -outside of your family- the most important thing in your life- it consumes you everyday- while to your employees, it is a place to work.

Too many employers take their employees for granted. Don't! Create the reputation of your business as being the place to work. Reader s Digest did. When the founders ran the company they created a family environment. The company sponsored bowling leagues, softball teams, offered a modest profit sharing program, pushed educational programs, ran a company cafeteria, and published a weekly employee newsletter loaded with praise and baby announcements. Employees felt at home. The longevity was incredible. Few left. But Reader s Digest insisted on standards and performance, and they got it.

You can do the same. I am not suggesting you open a cafeteria but there are many things you can do- at little expense. We all thrive on recognition. Who does not like to have their birthday remembered? So send a card with a small gift if you have few employees- such as a gift certificate to a local reasonably priced restaurant- or a pair of movie tickets. Celebrate your employee s anniversary with your company-praise and make a fuss over longevity. Such small efforts can work wonders for morale, loyalty, and productivity. Put yourself in the place of one of your hourly workers, would you not like a little fussing over?

Educational benefits are important to the more ambitious members of your company. You don t have to underwrite the hefty tuition bills of private universities, but you can cover a portion or all of the tuition for study at your local community college. Business research has proven many times the benefits to the employer of a better informed, and better educated employee. Such benefits work wonders to retain those who make money for your company.

And if your business is having a rough go of it in these troubled times, and you dare not spend you dollars on anything but the absolute necessities - at least say hello to your staff-say happy birthday. Let your employees know you care-and you know how important they are to you. Your attitude and attention will be appreciated by those who strive to do their best, and those that complain and blame the world for their problems-who needs them!

It is wise to remember that the success of your business begins with your skill in hiring those that are going to make a difference. Bargain employees who are willing to work "cheap" are like distress merchandise, there is a problem or two! Who you hire and how you cultivate loyalty and dedication is critical to the success of any business-yours included!

- Courtesy of CanadaOne Magazine