Up to 173,000 Aussies planning a sick day today - things may be a little quiet around your workplace!

Aussie Aussie Aussie, Oi Oi Oi!

With Australia Day falling on Saturday this year, Monday is regarded as a public holiday. And as a result the NSW Business Chamber, warns that this Friday (today!) employers will encounter some additional 173,000 sick days, at a cost of $36 million, as many employees plan on enjoying  an unofficial extra long weekend.

As reported on HC Online, the peak business body advises employers to take a tough stance on the act of “chucking a sickie”, and communicate that such unplanned absence can have a detrimental effect on productivity. 

“It's amazing how many people get 'sick' the day before a long weekend, but it's an obvious stunt that only serves to damage personal reputations and morale in the workplace," CEO Stephen Cartwright said.

Employers are encouraged to communicate a willingness to approve leave requests either side of the long weekend where possible, he said, as this can greatly reduce ‘sickies’ taken. 

Generally when employees are aware of their annual leave entitlement and if they have a substantial number of days stockpiled, they will be more likely to use this rather than feeling like they need to use a sick day instead.

An automated time and attendance management system, with EmployeeSelf Service (ESS) functionality empowers your staff to check their own leave records and entitlements, and request/book leave online without having to converse with their supervisor or HR.

In addition, by maintaining a central repository of all employee leave records, a time and attendance management system monitors and record patterns of absenteeism, sick leave, and productivity, enabling you to identify any particular patterns or sudden unexplained changes.

A time and attendance solution can also help you to effectively manage your organisation’s leave and holiday planning processes by:

• Calculating leave eligibility based on an employee’s hours worked and hire date
• Generating real time absence management and vacation planning reports
• Creating work schedules that take in account employees on leave, thus ensuring you have sufficient cover to meet customer or project demands and deadlines

So if you want to enjoy your Australia Day festivities without having to worry about the effects of unplanned absence, contact Mitrefinch on 1300 884 831 or visit www.mitrefinch.com.au to find out more about effective Absence Management and Time and AttendanceTracking.

Source: HC Online

Festive Workforce Management: Managing your Casuals

Hasn't December just crept up on us once again! But alas before we can kick back and enjoy the festive season many of us are already feeling the effects of increased pressure as we count down to the holidays.

If you work in Operations or HR you are more than likely facing numerous scheduling and rostering challenges, while trying to manage multiple requests for annual leave, in addition to a possible increase in unplanned absence (with some staff possibly chucking a suspicious sickie to get some last minute Christmas shopping out of the way or recover from the staff party!)

Meanwhile, our friends in the Pay office will be busy calculating award entitlements, and allowing for the various public holidays and penalty rates (which can differ from state to state) - ensuring we all get paid correctly, and in time to spend it just as quick!

Our next three blog posts will look at different festive-related workforce scenarios and how an effective Workforce Management System might provide a hassle free run up to the holidays!

First up....Managing Casuals

Similar to Santa and his elves, many organisations (particularly in Retail and Hospitability) rely heavily on casuals to provide the extra manpower required to operate effectively over the holiday period.

A casual workforce needs to be closely monitored to ensure they are serving their purpose. If they are consistently late, taking long breaks or failing to come into work, you run the risk of having to pay your permanent employees or contract staff overtime to cover particular shifts.

Within a Workforce Management System, time and attendance tracking provides supervisors with a real-time report on a casual workers working time. In addition, when linked with project information or cost centres you can easily identify how they are performing against specific tasks, and address any issues before productivity is affected.

Scheduling or rostering capabilities allow you to create groups or pools of available workers to help with scheduling multiple sites, departments or stores. Casuals or agency staff can nominate themselves as being available to work for certain times of the week, and can be rostered on accordingly by supervisors to assist with filling positions or vacant shifts.

Mobile messaging functionality can send an automated SMS text message direct to the employee so they are aware that they have been included in the shift. Likewise if a shift becomes available a SMS message can be sent out to the entire group to see if anyone is available to work.

I bet you can feel your festive headache easing already!

If you’d like to find out more about how Workforce Management tools like Employee Time and Attendance, Labour Tracking and Rostering can help you manage your casual workforce visit Mitrefinch online or call us on 1300 884 831 (+61 2 8762 7888 if outside Australia)

Looking To Free Up Valuable Time For Your HR Management Team?

For organisations of all shapes and sizes, the role of a Human Resources Executive generally encompasses many different tasks - from payroll processing, scheduling, award and entitlement calculations, absence management, not to mention keeping track of mobile and flexi workers. 

Helping HR Manage!

By introducing an automated Human Resource Management System, you can lower administrative costs while giving your HR team the time to work on more productive activities and projects. 

Here's how: 

Award Interpretation: Easily calculate base and overtime pay, weekend and public holiday penalties, as well as leave loading and shift penalties, ensuring consistent application of your business rules and compliance with workplace legislation. 

A direct interface to your external payroll application further reduces payroll administration and the potential for costly payroll errors. 

Employee Self Service functionality: enables your employees to directly view any leave accrued, requests for time-off can be requested or approved automatically. 

Employee Scheduling: Assign resources based on predefined budgets and skill sets, keeping operating costs as low as possible. In addition, ensure you have sufficient staff on board to cover the holiday period by limiting how many employees can be off on a given day or time period. Once the limit has been reached no further employees can request leave.

Absence Management: Real-time reports allow you to analyse any particular attendance trends or unplanned absences, as well as the commercial impact of schedules, overtime, absence and stockpiled leave.


Comprehensive Reporting: All of your employee data, files and correspondence are centrally stored, making the filing and retrieving of vital information quick and easy to manage. The stored information can be used to run reports on past and present data, such as training and development requirements. 

To find out how you can improve efficiency in your HR and Payroll Department contact Mitrefinch today on +61 2 9762 7888 or visit www.mitrefinch.com.au

Avoid a HR Nightmare over the Easter and Anzac Day Holiday Period

Before the majority of us clock off on Thursday afternoon to enjoy the extra long holiday weekend spare a thought for your frazzled colleagues in HR and Payroll!

Chocolate and Hot Cross buns aside, the Easter holiday period can raise a number of different workforce management issues for HR and Payroll departments across the country – particularly for those who manage employees across different states.

Avoid a HR Nightmare over the Easter and Anzac Day Holiday Period

Common issues they must contend with include; a spike in the number of annual leave applications, increased absenteeism and lost productivity in the days leading up to and after the long weekend, a bombardment of enquiries regarding the day or days that have been declared a public holiday, as well as trying to manage all the associated entitlements and awards.

To help minimise some of the confusion around penalties and public holidays the NSW Business Chamber has put together the following information:

Public Holidays

In summary, the National Employment Standards (NES) entitle employees to take declared public holidays and to be paid their base rate for the ordinary hours they would have worked on the day. The NES also entitle employees to reasonably refuse to work on a public holiday.

Easter Public holidays for each State and Territory are as follows:

NSW 
Friday, 6 April 2012 (Good Friday)
Saturday, 7 April 2012 (Easter Saturday)
Sunday, 8 April 2012 (Easter Sunday)
Monday, 9 April 2012 (Easter Monday)

QLD, VIC, SA, NT and ACT
Friday, 6 April 2012 (Good Friday)
Saturday, 7 April 2012 (Easter Saturday)
Monday, 9 April 2012 (Easter Monday)

WA and TAS
Friday, 6 April 2012 (Good Friday)
Monday, 9 April 2012 (Easter Monday)

ANZAC day is a national public holiday and is observed on Wednesday 25 April 2012.

Penalty Rates

The applicable penalty rate for an employee undertaking work on a public holiday will be derived from the relevant industrial instrument. Where an employee is covered by a modern award, the transitional penalty rate should be applied, where applicable. Some modern awards also have additional provisions about public holidays.

Local Arrangements

A common provision in modern awards allows the employer and majority of employees to agree to substitute another day for a public holiday. This means that the substitute day is the public holiday for both the NES and the award’s penalties, but there may be special provisions in the award for specific public holidays.

How might a Time and Attendance System help?

Ensuring that you are compliant with penalty rates and modern awards can represent a major headache for many organisations, particularly those that operate nationally.

Here’s just some of the ways a Time and Attendance System can take the stress out of payroll processing, HR management, and entitlement calculations in the run up to the Easter break:

Award Interpretation: Easily calculate base and overtime pay, weekend and public holiday penalties, as well as leave loading and shift penalties, ensuring consistent application of your business rules and compliance with workplace legislation.

A direct interface to your external payroll application further reduces payroll administration and the potential for costly payroll errors.

Empower Employees: Employee Self Service functionality enables employees to check their own leave entitlements and request leave (subject to supervisor approval) without having to converse with HR directly.

Employee Scheduling: Ensure you have sufficient staff on board to cover the holiday period by limiting how many employees can be off on a given day or time period. Once the limit has been reached no further employees can request leave. This feature is particularly useful in times of high demand for holidays, as well as heightened production or activity i.e. January Sales for Retail

In addition, you can assign resources based on predefined budgets, keeping operating costs as low as possible.

Comprehensive Reporting: Real-time reports allow you to analyse any particular attendance trends or unplanned absences, as well as the commercial impact of schedules, overtime and absence. Armed with this invaluable information, management can plan appropriate action before your bottom line is affected.

So with an automated Time and Attendance System looking after all the complicated stuff, all that’s left for you to do now is enjoy some of that Easter Chocolate!

If you’d like to find out more about how a Time and Attendance System can assist with Award Interpretation and Absence Management contact Mitrefinch Employee Management today on 1300 884 831 (Australia) or 09 363 9557 (NZ).

How to persuade employees that a Time and Attendance system isn’t workplace Big Brother?

Introducing an automated Time and Attendance software system undoubtedly brings many benefits to your business; from payroll savings, improved productivity, greater management visibility, reduced absenteeism, and improvements to health and safety. However, while these benefits may be obvious to you and senior management, they are often less so to those working on the coal face.

For this reason, the implementation of an automated Time and Attendance system can prove to be a difficult task. And by implementation I don’t mean the physical installation process! I mean convincing your employees and colleagues that such a system can help them too.

At first, your employees may feel that you are trying to create a “Big Brother” type organisation - which is understandable when a Time and Attendance system can provide management with a clear record of lateness, length of lunchbreaks, as well as holidays and sick leave, and even productivity.

Even if you aren’t the person who initiated the project, as a Human Resources manager, your job would involve ‘selling’ the idea of an automated Time and Attendance system to your employees – lucky you!

So what can you do to achieve staff buy in?

1. Be a Time and Attendance Champion
First things first, you need to be a clear supporter of the idea in order to overcome potential employee obstacles, and have the confidence to answer difficult questions or arguments that may arise - getting rid of any doubts raised by your staff.

2. Be prepared for some resistance
Your Time and Attendance system provider will be able to assist and prepare you for potential objections you may encounter. You should also know that the employees who resist technology are likely to be the least productive workers!

3. Keep Staff Informed
Effective communication is key. Share information about the new Time and Attendance system with employees and their representatives/union officials as soon as possible. Explain exactly how the change will impact them i.e.: will they need to use swipe cards, proximity fobs, or biometric scanners to register attendance.

4. Communication must be two way
Don’t just provide information to the employees, also give them an opportunity to express their concerns and ask questions. For example, with biometric Time and Attendance, employees might be concerned about the prospect of their fingerprint information being stored. You will need to assure them that this isn’t the case.

Your Time and Attendance provider will have basic information (without getting too technical) on how their biometric systems work, which you can use to reassure employees that their personal data will not be compromised.

5. Explain employee benefits
You need to make sure your employees understand how they will benefit from using a Time and Attendance system. Once they are convinced that more accurate data tracking will improve the accuracy of their wages and provide them with early notice of schedule changes that impact their working hours, they are more likely to buy-into the change.

The ability to request holidays without having to ask their managers directly and amend their personal details, such as address, telephone number etc without contacting HR will also be welcomed.

While, instant access to their absence profile or annual leave balance would enable them to manage their time more effectively. With a Time and Attendance system the staff who consistently outperform are the ones who will shine which could encourage you to implement performance-related incentive schemes.

6. Get Supervisors on side
Involving supervisors and line managers in the change process, reduces the risk of them potentially sabotaging the system further down the track. When supervisors realise the importance of having accurate attendance data and that the system will help them minimise the time spent on tedious administration tasks, they will be more likely to embrace the idea and become Time and Attendance champions too!

7. Training
Sufficient training time to understand the system would also be a valuable step towards better system implementation.

8. Keep an eye on proceedings
Your job doesn’t end once the system is up and running - you will need to continue to monitor the process well beyond implementation to ensure that you achieve the desired outcomes.

An automated Time and Attendance system may well create a barrier to entry, but with your carefully planned awareness campaign and training it will be well worth the invested money!

For more information on Choosing an effective Time and Attendance System download our FREE Guide.

Alternatively contact Mitrefinch today on 1300 884 831 (Aus) or 09 363 9557 (NZ) for more information on implementing an automated Time and Attendance system for your organisation.

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)

Start the new financial year well-prepared for the HR challenges that lie ahead

Struggling to control labour costs, reduce absenteeism, and manage multiple sites and a mobile workforce? All while trying to comply with the latest legislative requirements?

Sounds like you need a sophisticated Employee Management Solution to help make your life a little easier.

Yet for many organisations, investing in separate Time and Attendance Systems, Rostering Packages and HR Management Software would be out of the question.

But what if you could get all of these systems for the price of one?

Mitrefinch’s Employee Management Solution (Mitrefinch TMS) combines a robust Time and Attendance System with HR Management and Employee Scheduling functionality in one complete package.

Mitrefinch’s Time and Attendance capabilities allow you to manage your staff with greater efficiency. By accurately tracking and analysing your employees’ time, you will benefit from reduced staff costs, increased productivity, better job costing, and more effective planning of future projects - all while taking full advantage of today’s flexible working practices.

Mitrefinch’s HR functionality ensures all your employee data, files and correspondence are centrally stored, making the filing and retrieving of vital information quick and easy to manage, and reducing the risk of error. The stored information can be used to run reports on past and present data, such as training and development requirements.

While Employee Self Service features provide employees with the ability to view their available Annual Leave entitlements and send Leave Requests direct to HR. This greatly reduces time spend on data-input, filling out forms, and dealing with employee questions. Employee reviews and recruitment processes can also be monitored and recorded within the system.

So why waste your time and money on numerous systems when you only need one?

To see how much money Mitrefinch TMS can save your business, try our ROI Calculator online or call 1300 884 831 (Australia)/09 363 9557 (NZ) to book a FREE Consultation or Demonstration.

'Smart' technology set to mobilise the workplace

New research has found that employees will enjoy a more mobile work environment within three to five years as "smart" technology becomes commonplace at work.

The Optus study of 320 medium to large organisations found an increasing demand from workers to use personal smart phones, tablets and mobile applications at work.

However, it also revealed that IT and HR departments are not working together to make the transition possible.

The research indicated there was a disconnect between the policies being developed by HR departments and those being implemented by IT around personal mobile devices.

"If HR and IT departments don't collaborate better, the move to more flexible working environments could be hampered and impact Australian business growth," advised Optus Business Managing Director Rob Parcell.

"IT departments need to educate their organisations on the tools available to support flexible working, while HR departments need to consult their IT teams on tools to support flexible working."

IT survey respondents expect the number of employees working from different remote locations to increase from 27 per cent to 42 per cent, while 84 per cent of employees would be issued with tablets over the next three to five years.

Read the full new article from The Age here

Is your organisation ready to take advantage of mobile working?

Web-based time and attendance software is an increasingly-used and affordable method of workforce management, allowing organisations to take full advantage of today’s flexible working practices such as teleworking and flexi-time, keeping costs low and increasing employee productivity.

A web-based time and attendance system allows your employees manage their own time and attendance in a controlled, accessible and efficient way regardless of their location. Staff can remotely clock in and out of tasks, appointments and projects via desktop PCs, laptops, notebooks and the latest communications devices and smart phones. They can also view their holiday entitlements, apply for leave, and request updates to their personal records without constantly interfering with the valuable time of HR staff.

A web-based time and attendance system also facilitates real-time project tracking, providing accurate analysis of employee activity anytime, anywhere – this greatly increases efficiency and ensures that labour-related costs are genuine. While, powerful reporting functionality enables managers and supervisors to identify the commercial impact of staffing decisions and unplanned absence.

For more information on how a web-based time and attendance system could help you embrace mobile/remote working contact Mitrefinch today on 1300 884 831 or feel free to chat with us online www.mitrefinch.com.au

Ineffective Time and Attendance Management costs Levi Strauss $1million

Levi Strauss & Co has agreed to pay more than $1 million to about 600 employees after the U.S. Department of Labor found that the jeans maker failed to record all the hours employees worked in its payroll system.

An investigation by the labor department's San Francisco district office found that the company misclassified several groups of workers as been exempt from overtime, over a two-year period.

Levi Strauss has agreed to pay the overtime wages due to all its affected employees nationwide, and upgrade its time and attendance system.

Read full article here: http://us.mobile.reuters.com/article/idUSTRE72S6Y020110329?ca=rdt

How to learn from Levi Strauss & Co’s 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. This automatic capture ensures that organisation can comply 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 www.mitrefinch.com.au or call 1300 884 831 today.

Flexible work options to boost job opportunities in rural areas

The introduction of a high-speed broadband network and a shift in employee attitudes towards working remotely will undoubtedly benefit regional areas in terms of increased job opportunities. This was the outlook from Cisco’s “The Changing Nature of Work” debate last week.

Speaking at the event, Senator Kate Lundy, Parliamentary Secretary to the Prime Minister, explained that the growing flexibility of working locations and advancements in technology and infrastructure would present a ‘phenomenal opportunity’ for those not living in metropolitan areas.

“People will have choice in this country about where they work, and how productive that work can be, like no other country. The change would set Australia up to be a fascinating test bed for change in work practice across the world, and lead by example,” she said.

Jacob Murray-White, Head of Salmat@Home, said that geographic diversity and ‘working from home’ allows organisations to “to reach out to people all over Australia and therefore attract a really high quality of people who really want to work from home.”

He added, “it allows people to make a lifestyle choice about where they want to live and it allows them to work in what is essentially a very nice work environment at home doing a high white collar style job on their own terms – it means that we get some fantastic people who would have no other way of participating in this type of work force.”

As a precursor to the debate, Cisco conducted a survey "The Connected World" which questioned over 2600 workers from around the globe. The results revealed that two thirds of participants would rather have flexible working arrangements than a higher salary, while in Australia the figure was even higher at 73 per cent. However, 43 per cent of Australian employees believe that they needed to be physically ‘in the office’ to make decisions more effectively and efficiently, with nothing replacing daily ‘in-person’ interaction.

Fernanda Afonso, organisational development specialist for Freehills and national chair of the Australian Psychology Society, said that while a high proportion of employees would prefer more flexible working conditions, it is important to remember that we are social human beings and need to feel connected to a broader community in some kind way.

Interestingly the Cisco results suggest that the ability to work outside office hours, doesn't necessarly result in a shorter working week for employees, instead participants said that on avearge they worked an extra 2-3 hours per day, while 10 per cent said that they were always online and work through their waking hours.

Afonso said that the responsibility should lie with employees, who must set strict boundaries for a work/ life balance and communicate what is acceptable for them personally.

"Sometimes we do expect our managers to second guess what’s going on in our life, so I think it’s important for the individual to communicate that,” she advised.

To read the full article see the HR Leader: http://www.humanresourcesmagazine.com.au/articles/E8/0C06F6E8.asp

To support today’s flexible working practices such as job-sharing, flex-time, and remote offices, Mitrefinch’s Time and Attendance software (TMS) and HR systems are available as web-based applications, an iPhone App or can be deployed on other smart phones, WAP enabled mobiles, notebooks and laptops.

This enhanced functionality enables organisations to monitor the time and attendance of all employees, and automate time-intensive administrative tasks, in turn enhancing productivity, improving workforce compliance while also increasing customer and employee satisfaction. In addition, integration with GPS technology and Job Costing facilitates real-time project tracking and analysis of employee activity from any location.

To find out more contact Mitrefinch Sales on 1300 884 831 or sales@mitrefinch.com.au