Have any of our stupid Australian State Politicians realised that Payroll Tax is unfair and counterproductive?

Question

Taxing companies when their payroll exceeds a certain amount is a disincentive to employ people. This must be harmful to the economy and the community.
Why can't the stupid, useless and irrelevant state governments see that?

Just to clarify. For those like Bibs who don't know what payroll tax is: Payroll tax is charged to a company when their payroll (including super contributions) gets over a certain amount (it's different from state to state to add to the confusion). The amount payable is a percentage of the payroll over that amount. It has nothing to do with income tax or any other tax.
It is basically punishing business for growing and employing people.
I'm no accountant, but I'm involved in a small business that has just reached the levels of success where this ridiculous tax applies.

Answer 1

As a CPA i agree wholeheartedly that this is a regressive tax and a great disincentive to small businesses in particular to employ additional staff. The situation becomes even more complex where you may employ people in more than one state. In that case it is necessary to pro rata the payroll tax threshold amount accross borders. In other words, it becomes necessary to look at what your payroll is in each state, then pro rate the thresholds for each state (and bearing in mind that each state has differing levels) which can become a complex calculation.

Answer 2

Payroll tax guarantees that the government gets the tax up front, rather than having to chase you for the money.

Answer 3

I agree, the payroll tax system is stupid and useless...the only people this would benefit is the government...