Hiring Now | Payroll Administrator | Cape Union Mart International | Cape Town, Western Cape | Permanent Position Available

Cape Union Mart International, one of South Africa’s most iconic and purpose-driven outdoor retail groups, is looking for a passionate, meticulous, and people-centred Payroll Administrator to join its Human Capital team in Cape Town, Western Cape. This is a permanent role for a payroll professional with a minimum of 4 years’ payroll experience who understands that behind every payslip is a valued team member — and that getting it right, on time, and with care, is what makes payroll a genuinely human function. You will play a key role in ensuring the accurate, confidential, and timely processing of payroll across multiple business units within the Cape Union Mart Group, supporting the mission to enable adventure and inspire the people who make it possible.

Don’t miss this opportunity — vacancies are filling fast. Apply before 11 September 2026.

Payroll Administrator Job Overview

Detail	Information
Job Title	Payroll Administrator
Company	Cape Union Mart International
Department	Human Capital
Industry	Retail
Functional Area	Human Resources / Payroll
Job Type	Permanent
Salary	Market Related
Location	Cape Town, Western Cape
Minimum Experience	Entry Level designation (4 Years’ Payroll Experience Required)
Closing Date	11 September 2026
Application Status	Open – Accepting Applications Now

About the Role

The Payroll Administrator at Cape Union Mart International is responsible for end-to-end payroll processing across multiple business units within strict deadlines — ensuring wage and salary calculations are accurate, compliant, and consistently reflective of the South African payroll legislative framework. Working closely with the broader HR function, you will maintain current and accurate employee data, respond to payroll queries with empathy and professionalism, complete monthly reconciliations, prepare payroll-related reports, support month-end processes and statutory submissions including Stats SA reporting, and continuously identify opportunities to improve the accuracy and efficiency of the payroll process.

The ideal candidate is someone who combines technical payroll precision with genuine people care — who thrives in a team-focused, high-performance culture, who takes personal ownership of their work, who approaches challenges with a solutions mindset, and who lives the Cape Union Mart values of Respect, Trust, Innovation, and Passion. Experience with Payspace (Deel) is preferred, and prior exposure to Botswana and Namibian payroll legislation will be a significant advantage.

Please note: The Cape Union Mart Group is committed to transformation. Appointments and promotions will be made based on candidates who best meet the requirements for the position. Preference will be given to candidates who will enhance the diversity of the team, aligned to the group’s Employment Equity plan.

Key Responsibilities of a Payroll Administrator

End-to-End Payroll Processing

• Manage and execute end-to-end payroll processing for multiple business units within the Cape Union Mart Group, ensuring all payrolls are completed accurately and within stipulated deadlines.
• Ensure that all wage and salary calculations are accurate, compliant, and fully aligned with South African payroll legislation and the group’s internal policies and procedures.
• Maintain current and accurate employee data within the payroll system, working closely with HR to ensure all changes — new hires, terminations, salary adjustments, and leave — are correctly captured before each payroll run.
• Apply a solutions mindset to payroll processing challenges, proactively identifying and resolving discrepancies before they affect the payslip or the employee’s experience.

Payroll Queries & Employee Engagement

• Respond to payroll queries with empathy, clarity, and professionalism, ensuring that every team member who reaches out receives an accurate and helpful response that reflects the Cape Union Mart values.
• Build a reputation within the business as a trusted, responsive payroll resource — someone colleagues feel comfortable approaching with questions and confident will get back to them promptly.
• Communicate payroll-related information clearly across both verbal and written channels, adapting language and complexity to the audience where required.

Reconciliations, Reporting & Statutory Compliance

• Complete monthly payroll reconciliations accurately and on time, ensuring all payroll figures balance and are correctly reflected across all relevant financial records.
• Prepare and submit payroll-related reports as required by management, finance, and statutory bodies — including Stats SA reporting and all applicable monthly and annual submissions.
• Support the month-end process across payroll and HR, ensuring all required documentation, reconciliations, and submissions are completed within the required timeframes.
• Ensure full compliance with South African payroll legislation and statutory requirements — including PAYE, UIF, SDL, and all applicable labour legislation — at all times.

Process Improvement & System Management

• Continuously identify and implement improvements to payroll accuracy and efficiency, drawing on system capability, process analysis, and practical experience to reduce errors and streamline workflows.
• Maintain proficiency in Payspace (Deel) as the primary payroll platform, as well as SAGE where applicable, and adapt quickly to system updates and new processes as they are introduced.
• Apply advanced MS Office proficiency — particularly Excel — to support payroll analysis, reconciliation, and reporting functions.
• Embrace change and adapt readily to new systems, legislative updates, and evolving business requirements within the group.

Confidentiality, Compliance & Collaboration

• Handle all payroll information with absolute discretion and integrity, maintaining the confidentiality of every team member’s personal and financial data at all times.
• Work closely with the HR team to ensure payroll and people data are accurately aligned, supporting effective HR reporting and decision-making across the group.
• Apply bookkeeping principles to payroll reconciliation and financial reporting functions where required.
• Manage competing priorities effectively, applying excellent organisational skills to ensure all deadlines — payroll, reporting, and statutory — are consistently met.

Minimum Requirements – Payroll Administrator

Experience:

• Minimum 4 years’ experience in a payroll role (essential)
• Previous experience working with Botswana and Namibian payroll legislation (highly advantageous)
• Previous experience in a retail or manufacturing environment (beneficial)
• Bookkeeping experience (advantageous)

Systems & Technical Skills:

• Experience with Payspace (Deel) — preferred
• SAGE exposure (beneficial)
• Proficient in MS Office, with particular emphasis on Excel (essential)

Knowledge Requirements:

• Solid understanding of South African payroll legislation and statutory requirements — including PAYE, UIF, SDL, Stats SA, and applicable labour legislation (essential)
• Knowledge of Botswana and Namibian payroll legislative frameworks (highly advantageous)

Skills & Competencies:

• Excellent organisational skills with the proven ability to manage competing priorities and meet multiple concurrent deadlines
• Strong interpersonal and communication skills — verbal and written — for professional engagement with colleagues, HR, and management
• Discretion and integrity in all interactions involving confidential payroll and personal employee information
• Keen attention to detail and a genuine passion for accuracy in all payroll calculations, reconciliations, and submissions
• Solutions mindset — approaches challenges and discrepancies proactively and constructively

Personal Attributes:

• Thrives in a team-focused, high-performance culture — collaborative, accountable, and energised by shared goals
• Brings a strong sense of ownership and pride to payroll work, treating every payslip as a reflection of personal professional standards
• Listens actively, communicates with empathy, and responds with care to colleagues who have payroll concerns
• Lives the Cape Union Mart values: Respect, Trust, Innovation, and Passion

The Cape Union Mart Group is committed to transformation. Preference will be given to candidates who will enhance the diversity of the team, aligned to the group’s Employment Equity plan.

Core Values We Look For in a Payroll Administrator

Accuracy as a Human Responsibility

At Cape Union Mart, payroll is not a back-office function — it is an act of care for every team member whose livelihood depends on getting it right. We look for Payroll Administrators who treat accuracy as a personal value, not just a performance metric — who check their own work before submitting, who investigate discrepancies without waiting to be asked, and who understand that a payroll error is not a number problem but a people problem that deserves to be resolved with urgency and genuine concern.

Discretion, Integrity & Professional Trust

Payroll administrators hold access to some of the most sensitive personal and financial information in any organisation. We value individuals who treat that access as a professional trust — who never share information outside of authorised channels, who maintain confidentiality as a non-negotiable standard, and who build a reputation within the business as the person whose discretion and integrity are completely dependable.

Empathy-Driven Query Resolution

A payroll query is rarely just a payroll question — it is often a moment of financial stress or confusion for the person asking. We value Payroll Administrators who respond to queries with patience, clarity, and genuine empathy — who take the time to explain clearly, who follow up when they say they will, and who make every team member feel that their question matters and their concern has been taken seriously.

Continuous Improvement & Ownership Mindset

The payroll function at Cape Union Mart is part of a growing, multi-unit group operating across multiple legislative environments. We value administrators who do not wait for a process to break before improving it — who proactively identify inefficiencies, who leverage system capability to reduce manual risk, who embrace new platforms and legislative changes as opportunities rather than obstacles, and who take full ownership of the payroll function as if it were their own.

Team Contribution & Cultural Alignment

Cape Union Mart’s values — Respect, Trust, Innovation, and Passion — are not wall decorations. We value Payroll Administrators who live these values in their daily work: who treat HR colleagues with genuine respect, who build trust through consistent reliability, who bring innovation to process improvement, and who bring passion to a function that many organisations take for granted but Cape Union Mart regards as foundational to its people-first culture.

Career Growth Opportunities in Payroll, HR & Human Capital Management

Joining Cape Union Mart as a Payroll Administrator provides a strong foundation for a career in payroll management and human capital operations within one of South Africa’s most respected retail groups. For skilled, high-performing individuals, the career progression is clear:

• Payroll Administrator → Senior Payroll Administrator / Payroll Specialist
• Senior Payroll Administrator / Payroll Specialist → Payroll Manager
• Payroll Manager → Human Capital Manager / Group HR Manager
• Human Capital Manager / Group HR Manager → Head of Human Capital / Chief People Officer

Your career path is in your hands.

Frequently Asked Questions – Payroll Administrator Jobs

Is 4 years’ payroll experience non-negotiable? Yes. A minimum of 4 years’ experience in a payroll role is listed as a minimum requirement. Despite the entry-level department classification in the listing, the technical scope of the role — including multi-entity payroll processing, statutory submissions, Stats SA reporting, and cross-border legislative knowledge — requires a candidate with substantial payroll experience. Candidates with fewer than 4 years of dedicated payroll experience are unlikely to meet the practical demands of the position.

Is Payspace experience essential? Payspace (Deel) experience is listed as preferred rather than essential. Candidates who have not worked on Payspace specifically but have experience on a comparable payroll platform — such as SAGE People, VIP, or similar — will be considered provided they can demonstrate a strong system aptitude and the ability to adapt quickly to new platforms. SAGE exposure is listed as beneficial and will support the application of candidates who have not yet worked on Payspace.

What cross-border legislative knowledge is required? Experience with Botswana and Namibian payroll legislation is listed as highly advantageous. Cape Union Mart operates across multiple African markets, and exposure to the payroll legislative frameworks of these neighbouring territories will be a meaningful differentiator during shortlisting. Candidates with South African payroll expertise only are still eligible to apply, but should note that this cross-border knowledge will strengthen applications significantly.

What does the Stats SA reporting responsibility involve? The Payroll Administrator is required to support monthly statutory submissions including Stats SA (Statistics South Africa) reporting — specifically the completion of the Stats SA earnings and employment survey that certain employers are required to submit on a monthly or quarterly basis. Candidates with prior experience completing Stats SA payroll returns will have a practical advantage in managing this aspect of the role from day one.

What is the Employment Equity preference for this role? Cape Union Mart Group is committed to transformation and will give preference to candidates who enhance the diversity of the Human Capital team, aligned to the group’s approved Employment Equity plan. All qualifying candidates are encouraged to apply, with the understanding that appointments will be made based on best fit with the requirements while advancing the group’s transformation objectives.

What is the closing date and how do I apply? The closing date is 11 September 2026. Ensure your CV clearly reflects your 4 years of payroll experience, systems proficiency (Payspace, SAGE, Excel), South African legislative knowledge, and any cross-border or retail environment experience. Applications received after the closing date will not be considered.

How to Apply for This Payroll Administrator Job

Ready to bring your payroll expertise and people-first mindset to one of South Africa’s most purpose-driven retail groups? Applications are open now. Submit your application via the Cape Union Mart careers portal or through the advertised channel before the closing date.

👉 Apply Online via Cape Union Mart Careers Portal

Closing Date: 11 September 2026. Applications received after this date will not be considered.

Cape Union Mart Group is committed to transformation. Preference will be given to candidates who enhance team diversity in line with the group’s Employment Equity plan.

If you are not contacted within a reasonable period after the closing date, please consider your application unsuccessful.

Apply early — this vacancy closes on 11 September 2026.

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