Back-office services for horticulture. Horticulture payroll, industry-specific bookkeeping, compliance and IT support.
Horticulture Award 2020
Running a horticulture business means juggling operational demands with administrative complexity. Award-compliant payroll, BAS obligations, supplier management, and compliance tracking all compete for time that should be spent on customers and growth. Valont provides back-office services specifically configured for horticulture, with genuine understanding of the award provisions, financial metrics, and operational realities that define your industry.
Classifications: Horticulture employee Level 1-5. Pieceworker provisions for harvest.
Ordinary hours: 38 hours per week, with averaging over harvest periods
Penalty rates: Sat 150%, Sun 200%, PH 250%
Minimum engagement: 2 hours casual
Key allowances: tool, first aid, toxic substance (spraying), vehicle
Getting these provisions wrong creates systematic underpayment that compounds with every pay period. The Fair Work Ombudsman actively monitors compliance in this sector, and the penalties for deliberate underpayment were significantly increased under recent legislation. Valont's payroll specialists configure your payroll software with the exact award rules for each employee classification, eliminating manual interpretation errors.
These aren't generic business challenges — they're the specific operational and compliance issues that horticulture owners deal with daily. A generalist bookkeeper or payroll provider may not understand or address them. Valont does, because our service is configured around your industry's actual requirements.
Standard P&L reporting isn't enough for horticulture. You need industry-specific metrics to make informed decisions:
Gross margin per hectare by crop, harvest cost per tonne, pack-out rate, labour cost per bin, water cost per megalitre, export %, MRL compliance
We configure your reporting to track these metrics monthly, giving you the visibility to identify margin drift, optimise operations, and make confident business decisions based on data rather than gut feel.
Industry-configured bookkeeping with Orchard management, spray diary → Xero/MYOB, packhouse systems. BAS prepared from correctly coded, fully reconciled data. Real-time reporting with the industry-specific metrics above. Cash flow forecasting that accounts for your seasonal patterns and payment timing.
Horticulture Award 2020-compliant payroll processing. Every employee classified correctly, every penalty rate calculated accurately, every allowance applied. STP reporting with each pay run. Superannuation initiated on schedule. Ongoing payroll audits reviewing all classifications and rates against current award provisions.
Managed IT support and Essential Eight cybersecurity. Your POS, accounting, payroll, and rostering systems monitored and maintained. Data backup with regular restoration testing. Staff devices protected with endpoint security. MFA enforced across all business-critical systems.
5-20 permanent + seasonal: Finance + People Hub $1,500-$3,500/month. Operations Hub adds $80-$200 per user per month. Fixed-fee, no hourly billing, month-to-month engagement.
Yes. Our payroll specialists are experienced with the Horticulture Award 2020 including its classification structure, penalty rate schedule, allowance provisions, and overtime calculations. We configure payroll software (KeyPay or Employment Hero) with the specific award rules and conduct quarterly audits to ensure ongoing compliance.
Yes. We integrate with the industry-standard platforms: Orchard management, spray diary → Xero/MYOB, packhouse systems. We work within your existing systems and recommend changes only where they deliver genuine operational benefit.
A general bookkeeper processes transactions. Valont configures your entire back-office around horticulture-specific requirements — from award-compliant payroll and industry-specific reporting metrics to integrated IT and cybersecurity. We understand the operational challenges unique to horticulture and build our service around them.
5-20 permanent + seasonal: Finance + People Hub $1,500-$3,500/month. This replaces the combined cost of separate bookkeeper, payroll provider, and the owner's admin time. Fixed-fee with no hourly billing — the same price regardless of how many questions you ask.
Your back-office should understand your industry. Ours does.
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