In human resource and payroll practice, what is meant by payroll giving and what benefits can it provide?

Introduction / Context:
Payroll giving is a popular way for employees to support charitable organisations through automatic deductions from their salary. Many companies promote payroll giving as part of their corporate social responsibility programmes. This question tests whether you understand what payroll giving means and what benefits it provides to employees, employers, and charities.

Given Data / Assumptions:

• Employees sometimes wish to donate regularly to charity.
• Employers can operate schemes where such donations are made through payroll.
• The question asks about benefits achieved through payroll giving.
• We assume a legal environment where such schemes are allowed and may have tax advantages.

Concept / Approach:
Payroll giving is a formal arrangement where an employee authorises the employer to deduct a fixed or variable amount from each salary payment and forward that amount to one or more approved charities. This creates a steady, predictable stream of income for charities. For employees, payroll giving is convenient because donations happen automatically each pay period, and in many countries tax relief is applied at source. For employers, operating a payroll giving scheme can improve employee engagement, demonstrate social responsibility, and strengthen the company reputation. Payroll giving is therefore very different from paying salaries in cash or providing bonuses; it focuses on charitable contributions routed through the payroll system.

Step-by-Step Solution:
Step 1: Identify the key phrase payroll giving, which clearly combines payroll processing with giving or donations.Step 2: Recall that many organisations promote schemes where employees donate from their salary to charity via authorised deductions.Step 3: List benefits: convenience for employees, regular income for charities, potential tax efficiency, and positive image for employers.Step 4: Examine the options and choose the one that describes a scheme of charitable donations deducted directly from salary along with the associated benefits.Step 5: Select option A because it matches the true meaning and advantages of payroll giving, while the other options describe unrelated concepts.

Verification / Alternative check:
If you review corporate social responsibility pages of large companies, you will find references to payroll giving or workplace giving programmes. They explain that employees can sign up to donate a portion of their salary every month and that these amounts are passed to partner charities. Many programmes highlight that donations are tax efficient and that even small monthly amounts add up to significant annual support. This confirms that payroll giving is about charitable deductions from payroll, in line with option A.

Why Other Options Are Wrong:
Option B says payroll giving means paying employees entirely in cash without deductions, which actually reduces transparency and does not involve donations. Option C treats payroll giving as a joining bonus to employees, which is the opposite of giving to charity. Option D describes payment through government treasury offices, which may apply in government salary disbursement but has nothing to do with charitable giving.

Common Pitfalls:
Some candidates misinterpret payroll giving as simply paying salary or as employer gift schemes. Others think any deduction through payroll qualifies, even if it is for tax or loan recovery rather than charity. To answer correctly, always associate payroll giving with employee authorised charitable donations routed through the payroll system and emphasise the benefits of convenience, regular funding, and positive corporate image.

Final Answer:
Payroll giving is a scheme where employees authorise regular charitable donations to be deducted directly from salary, providing convenience for employees, stable funding for charities, and a positive social image for employers.