Pastel Payroll now speaks the language all South Africans understand

Meeting the needs of businesses and employees in the new SA, all of whom come from diverse backgrounds, cultures and speak a multitude of languages, Softline Pastel Payroll has announced the availability of the latest version of Pastel Payroll. This release contains significant ease-of-use and legal compliance improvements, as well as the ability to print payslips in the recipient`s language of choice.

Pastel Payroll`s new multilingual feature allows companies to produce payslips in any of the 11 official languages. A Zulu employee, for example, will receive a payslip in Zulu, while an Afrikaans employee will receive a payslip in Afrikaans. Setting the language option for each employee in the master file will ensure all payslips are printed in his/her language of choice without any further work required from either employee or employer.

Salaries and wages are one of the biggest expenses companies face. The latest version of Pastel Payroll will assist companies in improving staff morale, which will in turn increase work productivity. "The traditional English or Afrikaans payslip is no longer a realistic option in SA," says Stephen Corrigan, managing director of Softline Pastel Payroll.

"Employees need to understand their payslips and producing one in their native language not only enhances their understanding, but also improves morale by showing the employer cares about staff."

The new application also features seamless integration with Microsoft Office as payroll reports can be generated from Pastel Payroll directly in Microsoft Word or Excel. For example, payroll data can easily be posted into a spreadsheet for further analysis and manipulation with a single click of the mouse.

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In terms of the Basic Conditions of Employment Act, companies are obliged to calculate leave pay, to cater for variable income types (such as overtime, commission, etc) in order to ensure that a fair remuneration is paid when these employees are on vacation. In general, employers need to pay these employees an average of their variable earnings for a representative period prior to leave. The new version of Pastel Payroll now calculates the amount automatically, allowing users to define the calculation period on a per company, department or even employee basis to ensure a fair leave payout.

"We have experienced exponential growth as more and more business leaders realise value in automating their payroll process," says Corrigan. "In addition, Pastel Payroll`s integration with Pastel Accounting as well as Microsoft Office ensures payroll becomes an integral part of a company`s financial infrastructure as opposed to its traditional role as a standalone application, making payroll processing simpler."

Pastel Payroll will run a series of seminars and workshops in support of the new release in November 2004.