Payrolls

Part of speech: noun

Definitions

1. A system or list used by a business to document and manage employee salaries and wages, including deductions and benefits
2. The financial records that track payments to employees, reflecting their earnings, taxes, and other withholdings
3. A comprehensive accounting framework that details the monetary compensation of staff members, ensuring compliance with labor regulations and tax laws

Etymology: "Payrolls" is simply the plural of "payroll," and the singular is a compound of "pay" and "roll." The "roll" here is the older sense of a list or register of names, the same sense found in "roll call," where people were checked off a written list. A payroll was therefore originally a roll of those to be paid, with the wages noted against each name. The plural form points to the word's everyday use: a company or government may keep many payrolls, one for each branch, site, or pay period, and "payrolls" refers to those records taken together. Its meaning has since moved from the list itself to the total amount paid out, so people speak of a payroll being large or of meeting payroll.

Synonyms: wage lists, salary records