Annual survey says Payroll’s doing great – and touches on employees’ pay priorities

Good news to pass on to your Payroll team: The vast majority of employees are confident with the accuracy of their paychecks and receive them as scheduled each pay period.

That’s according to the latest “Getting Paid in America” survey from the American Payroll Association, conducted as part of National Payroll Week. The annual survey polls employees about several Payroll-related hot topics.

Nearly 60% of survey respondents said they’re very certain that their payroll withholding and the net amount of their paycheck are correct each payday. Most of them are able to easily keep tabs on this info, as nearly 83% have access to an employee self-service portal that allows them to access their pay and benefits info online.

Plus, almost 91% of respondents said their paycheck is always on time. And that’s important, considering that 40% also said it would be very difficult for them to meet their current financial obligations if their next paycheck were delayed for a week. Almost 31% said this would be somewhat difficult if their paycheck were delayed.

Getting paid as soon as possible is a priority for most employees. In other good news for your Payroll team, a whopping 93% of those surveyed now receive their pay via direct deposit. Only about 4% receive paper checks, while the others receive their pay in some electronic format (e.g., paycards, online payment systems like Venmo or PayPal).

Withholding accuracy is also key. Many employees, likely spurred by tax surprises after filing taxes with IRS this year (or obtaining a new position during the Great Resignation), filled out new Forms W-4 this year. Nearly 46% of employees completed a new W-4 in 2021. An additional 52% said they had a lower tax refund this year – which might have inspired them to take a second look at their withholding.

Attitudes about on-demand pay

A certain segment of employees not only prioritize getting their pay on time, they also want access to their pay as they earn it. About a fifth (21%) of survey respondents said they were interested in receiving earned wage access or on-demand pay, and another 7% said they already have earned access to their pay.

Most people with earned access to their pay receive it via a program offered by their employer (57%), though almost 27% get it through an app, and another 12% receive earned wage access from another service provider.

If you’re among the growing number of employers that’s considering earned wage access for your workforce, keep this in mind: Most employees who are interested don’t want to pay any fees for on-demand access to their pay. About 64% surveyed said they wouldn’t be willing to pay a fee for this service. So you might want to explore low-fee or no-fee options for earned wage access.