AU Payroll and HR Glossary

Data controller The data controller is the person or organisation who, in accordance with the GDPR, decides how and why personal data should be processed.

Data processing Data processing describes a series of operations to validate, organise and store personal data. Under the General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR), the roles of data processor and data controller are defined to help safeguard the transmission of personal data.

Data processor The data processor is defined in the GDPR as either an organisation or an individual who deals with personal data for specific purposes, on behalf of the data controller. The data processor can be a third party external to the data controller, who may be a company. The processor’s data protection duties towards the controller must be specified in a contract.

Data protection Data protection is about ensuring the protection of data from corruption, compromise, or loss. A large part of data protection strategy concerns recovering data in the event of corruption or loss. Increasingly, businesses invest in software which helps to safeguard the personal data of their employees and customers.

Deductions Deductions are amounts taken out of an employee’s salary, for example as working from home or dry-cleaning expenses. Deductions reduce an individual taxable income.

Direct Debit Request An authorisation from your customer to collect future payments from their bank account.

Director A director is a senior manager appointed by the company shareholders to help head up the business. They may either act as the most senior manager of the company, or be in charge of a key function, such as business, operations or marketing.

Diversity and inclusion Diversity and inclusion in business means having a mixed workforce with a range of abilities, experience and knowledge due to differences in age, cultural background, physical abilities, race, religion, sex and sexual orientation. Organisations with poor diversity have lower productivity, higher absenteeism and higher staff turnover.

Dividend Dividends are a way for publicly listed companies to distribute a percentage of their earnings as a reward to its shareholders. They are usually in cash but can also be in the form of stock or property. Dividends are paid from a company’s net profit.