Payroll sorted for a 12-person building crew

The Challenge

Mark ran a residential building company with 12 employees across two active job sites. Payroll had always been a headache — he was using a spreadsheet, manually calculating super, and had fallen behind on Single Touch Payroll reporting. An ATO review flagged several discrepancies, and Mark knew he needed to get things sorted fast before penalties arrived.

What We Did

Account For It stepped in and conducted a full payroll audit going back 12 months. We identified underpaid super contributions for three employees and overcalculated PAYG withholding across the board. We lodged corrective STP reports directly with the ATO, negotiated a payment arrangement for the super shortfall, and migrated the entire payroll process into Xero Payroll.

We also reviewed all employee contracts against the Building and Construction General On-site Award, ensuring rates, allowances and penalty rates were all compliant going forward.

The Results

Mark’s payroll now runs in under 30 minutes every fortnight. All STP reporting is lodged automatically, super is paid on time via Xero, and his team receives their payslips digitally. The ATO review was resolved without penalties.

“I didn’t realise how exposed I was until Account For It found the gaps. They fixed everything quietly and quickly — no dramas.”

— Mark T., Director, Building Company, Perth

Key Outcomes

• Full payroll audit completed across 12 months
• Super shortfalls identified and corrected
• ATO review resolved with no penalties
• Xero Payroll implemented end-to-end
• Award compliance confirmed for all employees