The University of Wollongong has revealed it will be hit with a bill of $10 million after discovering it has been making incorrect superannuation payments to thousands of staff over the past eight years.
On Wednesday, the institution – which is one of the Illawarra’s biggest employers and has a campus in Batemans Bay – admitted there have been “longstanding anomalies” in its payroll system.
The major error is expected to affect about 30 per cent of the 21,406 people who have worked there since 2009.
UOW says it will have to pay back an estimated $10 million to employees and tax office.
Vice Chancellor Paul Wellings on Wednesday apologised to all staff, outlining a commitment to “fully remediate” the error “without impacting job security, or previously announced projects, or the University’s normal teaching and research activities”.
“I am determined to see that all current and former staff members have the correct superannuation contributions made on their behalf,” Professor Wellings said in a statement.
“I apologise for these errors and any inconvenience caused to those staff affected.
“Because the University is in a strong financial position, we have funded our superannuation remediation actions without the need to examine overall staff numbers, deferral of major projects, or curtailment of normal operations.”
The University will also have to pay interest to the Australian Taxation Office (ATO) to compensate affected staff.
It will not seek recovery of overpaid contributions, it said.
The error could affect up to 30 per cent of the 21,406 staff who have worked at the university from July 2009 until December 2016, the university said.
The employees will be affected “to varying degrees”.
“These weren’t deliberate errors, nor were they easily detectable,” Professor Wellings said
MORE TO COME
Kate McIlwain
For more than a decade, I've helped the Illawarra Mercury set the news agenda across the region. Currently I'm the paper's health reporter - covering the stories of Illawarra workers and residents in the wake of a global pandemic and at a time where our health systems are stretched to the limit.
For more than a decade, I've helped the Illawarra Mercury set the news agenda across the region. Currently I'm the paper's health reporter - covering the stories of Illawarra workers and residents in the wake of a global pandemic and at a time where our health systems are stretched to the limit.
