Ultra Tune, an auto service provider, is facing legal proceedings over allegedly underpaying an employee by more than $20,000.
It is also alleged to have breached workplace laws by failing to keep correct employment records for a further 10 Filipino workers it had brought to work in Australia on 457 visas.
According to court documents, Ultra Tune recruited and sponsored the employee on a 457 visa to work at their Warwick outlet in regional Queensland.
However, the company allegedly paid the worker a flat hourly rate of $15.34, rather than the minimum hourly rate, and did not pay overtime.
Fair Work inspectors were made aware of the allegations after receiving a complaint from the man following the termination of his employment when the Warwick outlet closed.
No attempts were made to employ him at another outlet and the Fair Work Ombudsman (FWO) claims Ultra Tune failed to pay wages in lieu of notice, redundancy and accrued annual leave entitlements.
The company has since been ordered to pay the man $11,000 of the payable entitlements they allegedly attempted to evade.
The FWO said Ultra Tune’s inadequate documentation hampered their investigation of up to nine other worker’s pay records.
The company faces multiple charges, with maximum penalties of up to $33,000 per breach.
Read the full article on HC Online here: http://www.hcamag.com/newsletter/content/117104/
How an automated Time and Attendance can help you avoid making a similar mistake...
One of the primary reasons why companies invest in a Time and Attendance Solution is to automate the capture and management of all employees’ clocking in and out times and attendance information.
This automatic capture ensures that organisation are complying with all federal and state workplace legislation, such as employee entitlements and modern awards, without having to manage mountains of administrative paperwork.
A customised scheduling function also allows businesses to separate work groups that are on different pay scales. Weekly, bi-weekly or monthly schedules can also be based on pre-defined budgets to keep payroll costs as low as possible.
Download our Free Guide on "How to Choose the right Time and Attendance System for your Business".
Alternatively, to find out more about Mitrefinch’s Time and Attendance Solutions, please visit us online or call +61 2 8762 7888 today.
Showing posts with label HR. Show all posts
Showing posts with label HR. Show all posts
Thursday, August 18, 2011
Thursday, June 30, 2011
Mitrefinch feature in The Guardian's HR Supplement
The Guardian newspaper in the UK recently published a supplement on HR Software, focusing on how IT is enhancing organisational performance.
The publication examined how different sized organisations, across the UK are benefiting from cost savings, improved efficiency and enhanced commercial performance as a result of implementing HR systems.
Mitrefinch's Technical Manager, Andrew Stead, had the pleasure of being interviewed for the supplement and his thoughts were published as part of the experts’ panel.
Subscribers of The Guardian or The Observer can download the supplement here
Alternatively, we have included Andrew's contribution below:
The Guardian: HR is all about people, so how do you ensure your workforce engages with a piece of software?
AS: By providing functionality that the employees find useful. An example would be the ability to book and view their holidays on-line 24/7. Using this functionality allows the employee to check if any ‘leave slots’ are available first before attempting to book their holiday.
Depending upon the setup of the system, the holiday can be authorised immediately if enough cover is available. If not, their line manager can be emailed, thus reducing the amount of time taken to authorise their absence. As holiday booking is an emotive subject, this immediately provides a major benefit to the employees.
The implementation of an HR solution can often generate employee concerns around a ‘Big Brother’-type environment. By allowing employees to maintain their own personal data, the employee can ensure that any data stored about them is accurate.
By providing visibility to HR data, concerns about the system can be considerably reduced, thus producing a better working environment. Self-service training modules can also allow employees to book themselves on relevant training courses allowing for their own personal development. This can help foster employee goodwill, providing major benefits to both the individual and to the company as a whole.
The Guardian: Does HR software provide one true source of data?
AS: In smaller companies, the HR software can often be the true and accurate source of data. However, in larger organisations, it will more likely be interfaced with data from other sources to provide the full employee record, for example, IT -based data, Time & Attendance and Security Systems.
Because the majority of today’s HR solutions provide extensive import and export functionality, it is relatively simple to link data from several sources together to provide this record. For example, if an employee changes their telephone number via the HR self-service module then this number can be automatically updated in the email system and any other relevant systems.
However, data linked to IT resources will often be updated in a separate application which may, in turn, then update the HR system with this information.
Using this technology ensures data integrity across systems and ensures an authoritative source for all pieces of information. With this in place, it is simple for a company to prove their compliance with legislation such as the Data Protection Act 1998 which includes the requirement that data is accurate and kept up-to-date.
The Guardian: Does HR software just streamline HR administration or is it a business application?
AS: In the initial stages of any implementation, the primary focus will always be ensuring that the HR software delivers on the major benefits i.e. reducing HR administration. When these benefits have been realised, the second and subsequent phases of the implementation will move to making the HR software an integral part of the business.
At this point, the solution becomes more than just about reducing administration costs but more of a business application which helps provide major benefits across the entire organisation. An example of a major business benefit surrounds the issue of absence management.
With an HR solution, it becomes straightforward to investigate where the major absences which impact on the business occur. With this information, the whole company can generate a strategy which will help alleviate the impact of absences on the company. Automating the company’s employee administration can help move the burden to better placed personnel within the organisation.
With this in place, the HR Department can provide more of an employee relations function rather than just standard administrative function. This will help ensure a more efficient and effective workforce. However, it should not be forgotten that any successful HR solution should just be a tool to aid the company deliver a better service/product to their customers.
Any HR solution should never cause an obstruction to this.
If you would like more information on Mitrefinch or our range of Employee Management Solutions please feel free to visit us online, email sales@mitrefinch.com.au or call us on 1300 884 831 (Aus) or 09 363 9557 (NZ)
The publication examined how different sized organisations, across the UK are benefiting from cost savings, improved efficiency and enhanced commercial performance as a result of implementing HR systems.
Mitrefinch's Technical Manager, Andrew Stead, had the pleasure of being interviewed for the supplement and his thoughts were published as part of the experts’ panel.
Subscribers of The Guardian or The Observer can download the supplement here
Alternatively, we have included Andrew's contribution below:
The Guardian: HR is all about people, so how do you ensure your workforce engages with a piece of software?
AS: By providing functionality that the employees find useful. An example would be the ability to book and view their holidays on-line 24/7. Using this functionality allows the employee to check if any ‘leave slots’ are available first before attempting to book their holiday.
Depending upon the setup of the system, the holiday can be authorised immediately if enough cover is available. If not, their line manager can be emailed, thus reducing the amount of time taken to authorise their absence. As holiday booking is an emotive subject, this immediately provides a major benefit to the employees.
The implementation of an HR solution can often generate employee concerns around a ‘Big Brother’-type environment. By allowing employees to maintain their own personal data, the employee can ensure that any data stored about them is accurate.
By providing visibility to HR data, concerns about the system can be considerably reduced, thus producing a better working environment. Self-service training modules can also allow employees to book themselves on relevant training courses allowing for their own personal development. This can help foster employee goodwill, providing major benefits to both the individual and to the company as a whole.
The Guardian: Does HR software provide one true source of data?
AS: In smaller companies, the HR software can often be the true and accurate source of data. However, in larger organisations, it will more likely be interfaced with data from other sources to provide the full employee record, for example, IT -based data, Time & Attendance and Security Systems.
Because the majority of today’s HR solutions provide extensive import and export functionality, it is relatively simple to link data from several sources together to provide this record. For example, if an employee changes their telephone number via the HR self-service module then this number can be automatically updated in the email system and any other relevant systems.
However, data linked to IT resources will often be updated in a separate application which may, in turn, then update the HR system with this information.
Using this technology ensures data integrity across systems and ensures an authoritative source for all pieces of information. With this in place, it is simple for a company to prove their compliance with legislation such as the Data Protection Act 1998 which includes the requirement that data is accurate and kept up-to-date.
The Guardian: Does HR software just streamline HR administration or is it a business application?
AS: In the initial stages of any implementation, the primary focus will always be ensuring that the HR software delivers on the major benefits i.e. reducing HR administration. When these benefits have been realised, the second and subsequent phases of the implementation will move to making the HR software an integral part of the business.
At this point, the solution becomes more than just about reducing administration costs but more of a business application which helps provide major benefits across the entire organisation. An example of a major business benefit surrounds the issue of absence management.
With an HR solution, it becomes straightforward to investigate where the major absences which impact on the business occur. With this information, the whole company can generate a strategy which will help alleviate the impact of absences on the company. Automating the company’s employee administration can help move the burden to better placed personnel within the organisation.
With this in place, the HR Department can provide more of an employee relations function rather than just standard administrative function. This will help ensure a more efficient and effective workforce. However, it should not be forgotten that any successful HR solution should just be a tool to aid the company deliver a better service/product to their customers.
Any HR solution should never cause an obstruction to this.
If you would like more information on Mitrefinch or our range of Employee Management Solutions please feel free to visit us online, email sales@mitrefinch.com.au or call us on 1300 884 831 (Aus) or 09 363 9557 (NZ)
Tuesday, June 7, 2011
Are your current HR Software Systems working as hard as you do?
A recent survey conducted by People Management magazine in the UK revealed that many HR professionals are frustrated with their current HR software systems and say they do not help them meet strategic goals.
Only 39 per cent of the survey’s respondents agreed that their HR software systems had all the functionality they require. While 54 per cent were satisfied with the way their systems help them with payroll and administration, this dropped to just 18 per cent for more strategic functions such as talent management.
Most HR professionals were not willing to admit that their own lack of strategic thinking might play a part in their frustrations, with only 18 per cent revealing that their department lacked a clearly defined strategy for supporting the needs of the business. More stressed that a lack of knowledge of the software available might be letting them down, while 46 per cent felt they had a good understanding of the range of HR software tools available on the market.
James Brockett from People Management believes that most HR professionals want to think and act strategically to support their business, and the survey shows that while software can help them achieve that, it can also be a source of frustration if the wrong tools are selected.
He also believes that, “While administration functions are currently being reasonably well-served by software, the findings highlight the need for HR decision-makers to consider their other needs and to make sure they do thorough research when making decisions about new HR software.”
So when should you start looking for new software?
When evaluating your current Employee Management System you need to ask yourself several important questions:
- Is it difficult to get meaningful information from your system?
- Does the system lack integration with your other business systems?
- Do you have to enter the same data more than once across multiple systems?
- Does your system limit the number of users, entries etc?
- Are you still relying on spreadsheets to prepare payroll and create management reports?
If you answered ‘yes’ to any of these questions maybe it's time you started looking for an Employee Management system that will meet and exceed these expectations!
Don’t waste anymore time!
Download our FREE Guide on Choosing an effective Time and Attendance System!
Alternatively, give us a call today 1300 884 831 or visit us online www.mitrefinch.com.au to learn more about our award-winning Employee Management Solutions, including Time and Attendance, HR Management, Job Costing and Time Allocation, Employee Scheduling and Employee Self Service.
Only 39 per cent of the survey’s respondents agreed that their HR software systems had all the functionality they require. While 54 per cent were satisfied with the way their systems help them with payroll and administration, this dropped to just 18 per cent for more strategic functions such as talent management.
Most HR professionals were not willing to admit that their own lack of strategic thinking might play a part in their frustrations, with only 18 per cent revealing that their department lacked a clearly defined strategy for supporting the needs of the business. More stressed that a lack of knowledge of the software available might be letting them down, while 46 per cent felt they had a good understanding of the range of HR software tools available on the market.
James Brockett from People Management believes that most HR professionals want to think and act strategically to support their business, and the survey shows that while software can help them achieve that, it can also be a source of frustration if the wrong tools are selected.
He also believes that, “While administration functions are currently being reasonably well-served by software, the findings highlight the need for HR decision-makers to consider their other needs and to make sure they do thorough research when making decisions about new HR software.”
So when should you start looking for new software?
When evaluating your current Employee Management System you need to ask yourself several important questions:
- Is it difficult to get meaningful information from your system?
- Does the system lack integration with your other business systems?
- Do you have to enter the same data more than once across multiple systems?
- Does your system limit the number of users, entries etc?
- Are you still relying on spreadsheets to prepare payroll and create management reports?
If you answered ‘yes’ to any of these questions maybe it's time you started looking for an Employee Management system that will meet and exceed these expectations!
Don’t waste anymore time!
Download our FREE Guide on Choosing an effective Time and Attendance System!
Alternatively, give us a call today 1300 884 831 or visit us online www.mitrefinch.com.au to learn more about our award-winning Employee Management Solutions, including Time and Attendance, HR Management, Job Costing and Time Allocation, Employee Scheduling and Employee Self Service.
Thursday, December 16, 2010
Give your HR Department the gift of Employee Self Service
With the Christmas and Summer holiday season well and truly upon us, HR departments across the country are being bombarded with various requests for time off.
How your business deals with these requests can make a big difference to your bottom line - as well as your HR team's wellbeing!
Mitrefinch's Time Management System, TMS, lets your employees manage their own time and attendance in a controlled, accessible and efficient way.
Our web-based interface can be customised to allow remote clocking in from desktop PCs, laptops and the latest smart phones - enabling staff to clock in and out of tasks, appointments and projects whether they are in the office or out in the field.
Employees can also view their accrued leave, entitlements, and request updates to their personal records without having to bother the HR department. It TMS allows you to take full advantage of today’s flexible work schedules and split shifts, keeping your costs as low as possible and increasing your organisation’s productivity.
Employee Self Service is ultimately designed to make your business more profitable and your HR team more efficient.
To find out how, please visit www.mitrefinch.com.au or call 1300 884 831 and put Employee Self Service on your Christmas Wishlist today!
How your business deals with these requests can make a big difference to your bottom line - as well as your HR team's wellbeing!
Mitrefinch's Time Management System, TMS, lets your employees manage their own time and attendance in a controlled, accessible and efficient way.
Our web-based interface can be customised to allow remote clocking in from desktop PCs, laptops and the latest smart phones - enabling staff to clock in and out of tasks, appointments and projects whether they are in the office or out in the field.
Employees can also view their accrued leave, entitlements, and request updates to their personal records without having to bother the HR department. It TMS allows you to take full advantage of today’s flexible work schedules and split shifts, keeping your costs as low as possible and increasing your organisation’s productivity.
Employee Self Service is ultimately designed to make your business more profitable and your HR team more efficient.
To find out how, please visit www.mitrefinch.com.au or call 1300 884 831 and put Employee Self Service on your Christmas Wishlist today!
Thursday, August 12, 2010
Growing demand for HR and IR Specialists
Melbourne based recruitment agency, IPA recruitment, has found that nationwide job vacancies increased for the first time in three months in July.
Job vacancies increased 13.9 per cent in July, the first increase in jobs on offer since March this year.
IPA’s General Manager of Sales and Marketing, Darrell Hewton, said the data showed employers were relaxed about the result of the federal election.
"Business hates political uncertainty, especially around the future of industrial relations laws...however, with few policy differences distinguishing the parties and the prospect of a settled IR landscape for the next few years regardless of who wins, employers are relatively relaxed about the result" said Mr Hewton in a report released on Thursday.
Mr Hewton said employers who had held off hiring for the last few months were entering the market and were confident enough about the 12-month outlook to make the commitment to expand their teams.
Demand for human resources and industrial relation specialists also rose. "With the introduction of modern awards in July, we are seeing increasing need for HR and IR staff across the board," he said.
Mitrefinch’s Time and Attendance System, TMS, can help take the stress out of complex award administration. Our specially designed “award interpreter” ensures consistent application of business rules and award payments across your organisation.
For more information contact Mitrefinch Australia on 1300 884 831 or email sales@mitrefinch.com.au
Job vacancies increased 13.9 per cent in July, the first increase in jobs on offer since March this year.
IPA’s General Manager of Sales and Marketing, Darrell Hewton, said the data showed employers were relaxed about the result of the federal election.
"Business hates political uncertainty, especially around the future of industrial relations laws...however, with few policy differences distinguishing the parties and the prospect of a settled IR landscape for the next few years regardless of who wins, employers are relatively relaxed about the result" said Mr Hewton in a report released on Thursday.
Mr Hewton said employers who had held off hiring for the last few months were entering the market and were confident enough about the 12-month outlook to make the commitment to expand their teams.
Demand for human resources and industrial relation specialists also rose. "With the introduction of modern awards in July, we are seeing increasing need for HR and IR staff across the board," he said.
Mitrefinch’s Time and Attendance System, TMS, can help take the stress out of complex award administration. Our specially designed “award interpreter” ensures consistent application of business rules and award payments across your organisation.
For more information contact Mitrefinch Australia on 1300 884 831 or email sales@mitrefinch.com.au
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