REWARD
Safe, seen and supported: why compassion belongs in payroll
AJ Jain MCIPP, Payroll and Pensions Supervisor, Cambridge City Council, discusses why compassion is an absolutely essential element of working in payroll
C ompassion is something we all value but how often do we bring it into our work? Compassion as a theme pops up across the media every so often, reminding us all that behaving compassionately is in our best interests. But how many of us actually do it, and do it regularly? Many of us like to think of ourselves as kind and compassionate, and don’t get me wrong, we do try to practise compassion for the most part. But we often overlook how our daily decisions, big or small, directly impact others. We may not intend to come across as uncompassionate, but when we forget to humanise our work processes, we can easily come across as cold or lacking those basic sentiments that make us human. Let’s unpack this together The Dalai Lama XIV says, “If you want others to be happy, practise compassion. If you want to be happy, practise compassion.” It’s not just about doing the right thing for others, it’s about showing up in a way which brings meaning and connection to our own work too. In payroll, this is especially true. Payroll is full of rules, automation and technology which help us complete our jobs faster and more accurately. But it’s our human touch which brings real value. Compassion in payroll means remembering that behind every payslip is a person with their own worries and responsibilities. When we lose sight of that, we risk letting our
processes feel cold and transactional. When really, payroll is one of the most human parts of any organisation. Practising compassion in payroll means remembering the impact our work has on people’s lives. It means taking that extra moment to listen to a pay query with patience, to fix an error quickly or to support a colleague under pressure. It’s not always easy but if we want a happy workforce and a supportive culture, compassion can’t just be a nice word on a poster - it must be evident in the way we show up for each other every day, every pay cycle. Supporting wellbeing within When I consider compassion in payroll, the first thing which comes to mind is how we deal with challenges and crises within our own teams, before we even look at how we support the wider workforce. For me, it always starts with normalising open conversations. I’m so grateful that, in my team, we’ve managed to build a culture of regular check-ins and that everyone has a safe space to speak their mind and share when they’re feeling overwhelmed or under pressure. I sincerely believe that if we look after our own wellbeing first and show vulnerability when we feel stressed and overwhelmed, we stand a much better chance of showing genuine care and support for our colleagues. If we’re too harsh on ourselves, it becomes almost impossible to extend real compassion to
others around us. We must remember that our payroll people matter too. They’re dealing with the same tight deadlines, late nights and constant demands. We have so much in common, so the compassion we offer each other shouldn’t be an extra – it must be the foundation. Supporting each other’s wellbeing isn’t just nice to have, it’s where a truly compassionate payroll culture begins.
Being a sounding board This one’s a little sensitive, but it’s
important to talk about. In payroll, we’re often careful not to cross certain lines. We know that giving advice to employees is the responsibility of line managers or policy managers and our job is to process and implement, even when we might personally disagree with a policy or procedure. But somewhere in the middle of all this process and implementation is a real person, a colleague who might be dealing with something deeply distressing in their life. “It’s our human touch which brings real value” Take long-term sickness absence, for example. Sometimes, part of our job is to remind line managers when an employee is about to drop into nil pay because they’ve been off for so long. These
| Professional in Payroll, Pensions and Reward | November 2025 | Issue 115 54
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