Suffering from overworkitis? Take a dose of "Go Home on Time" today!

Do you struggle to clock off on time? Never enough hours in the day to do all the things you want to do? Does having a Smart Phone mean you are always connected to the office?

 
New research by The Australia Institute in the lead up to “Go Home On Time Day” has found that, 6.8 million Australians' personal time is interrupted by work phone calls or emails, 2.2 million don't know what time they will be heading home from work when they leave the house in the morning, and 4.8 million find it hard to take their annual leave at a time that suits them. 

Now in its fourth year, “Go Home On Time Day” (November 21) is an initiative of The Australia Institute and its aim is to show employers and their staff that life doesn’t need to revolve around work. 

The day was originally conceived as a light-hearted way to start a serious conversation about the impact of poor work/life balance on our health, relationships and workplaces – and needless to say the team here at Mitrefinch are keen supporters!

The negative impact working excessive hours can have on an employee’s mental wellbeing are well documented. Just a couple of months ago, we reported on a UK study that found working 11-hour days on a regular basis can more than double a worker’s risk of depression compared to those who typically work an eight hour day – Read the "Excessive Overtime may be linked to Depression" blog post.

As a provider of Workforce Management Software Systems, we are often asked about the value of having a Time and Attendance Solution when an organisation only has salaried staff on the books. 

In our opinion, if you don't monitor your employees’ working time you can’t manage it! 

By having all staff clock in/out, managers and supervisors can easily identify just how much unpaid overtime their employees are putting in and if there is a particular pattern forming - e.g. staff being forced to work overtime around the end of the month or busy trading periods. 

Armed with this information you may be able to justify hiring additional staff or bringing in contractors at times of increased activity, or at the very least acknowledge the effort being put in by your team - perhaps introducing a Time in Lieu scheme or incentives for those that put in the hard yards? 

In the long run, this ultimately benefits you as a motivated and happy workforce generally means increased productivity! 

There are many more benefits of using an automated time and attendance system, visit our website to find out more or feel free to contact us directly on +61 2 8762 7888 or sales@mitrefinch.com.au 

Also, be sure to relieve work related stress this afternoon and Go Home On Time! 

For more info on “Go Home On Time Day” and to get your workplace involved see: http://www.gohomeontimeday.org.au/

The pitfalls of underpaying staff - what you can do to ensure it doesn't happen to you

A national service station operator has been fined for underpaying more than 200 employees, resulting in a $46,200 fine, as reported by Payroll News. 

The Fair Work Ombudsman (FWO) also ordered Freedom Fuels Australia to back pay a total of $191,197 to the 234 employees it underpaid between May, 2006 and July, 2009. 

Organisations need to ensure they have systems in place to accurately pay staff - or face large fines

 According to the FWO investigation, casual and part-time workers made up the majority of the underpaid workers, and the mistakes were predominantly made in the calculation of overtime rates, namely penalty rates for weekend, shift and public holiday work. 

So how can other businesses ensure they don’t make similar mistakes? 

Small to medium-sized businesses without dedicated HR staff can ensure they are better equipped to manage employees by using free employment documentation templates available through the Fair Work Ombudsman’s website. 

A series of Best Practice Guides have also been developed by the Fair Work Ombudsman to assist employers make better use of the provisions of the Fair Work Act and better understand other aspects of workplace laws. 

Businesses can also benefit by implementing a Workforce Management System, which records employee time and attendance as well as automatically calculating specific pay scales, modern awards, pay penalties and overtime rates. 

This pay information can then be imported into the organisation’s payroll system – further improving the efficiency and accuracy of the pay run. 

Real time Absence Management reports also allow management to view the Annual Leave and sick leave taken by employees to date, while Employee Self Service functionality enables staff to view accrued leave and request holidays with the click of a mouse. 

For more information download our Guide to Implementing a Time and Attendance System. Alternatively feel free to call +61 2 8762 7888 or email sales@mitrefinch.com.au to discuss in more detail. 

 Read the full article on Payroll News: http://www.austpayroll.com.au/announcements/employer-fined-for-underpaying-200-staff

Melbourne Cup: the Race that can grind Business to a halt

With the Melbourne Cup day just a few days away, many employees across NSW are busy planning Cup day lunches and office sweep stakes.

However legal experts are advising employers to have all the right policies in place before “the race that stops a nation” to avoid getting caught up in any scandals.

Speaking to mX Sydney, Joydeep Hor, managing principal, at People + Culture Strategies, explains that it doesn't matter whether you decide to have a half-day or not: you need to set expectations for all staff so there's no disappointment or confusion come Tuesday.

“Issues have arisen in the past for some of our clients where staff assume they have the rest of the afternoon off, when in fact they are required in the office”.

He also added, "There are plenty of complications regarding the consumption of alcohol and the risk of inappropriate behaviour, the disclosure of corporate information."

The solution isn't difficult, according to Hor. Just spend some time setting guidelines for all staff about whether or not they should come back to work, if alcohol can be consumed, and any other related topics you may think of.

Despite it been a Public Holiday in Victoria, employers there have raised concerns about the tendency for workers to call in sick on the Monday beforehand - giving them an extra long weekend.

While the majority of employees take a legitimate four-day weekend by applying for leave in advance, employers have also experienced a significant increase in unplanned absences or sickies on the day.

The impact of staff taking a ‘mass sick day’ on a business is significant in terms of financial costs and lost productivity. Where possible, employers should encourage staff to use up any stockpiled leave if they are planning on taking an extra-long weekend.

In addition, there are numerous tools available to help employers better manage leave and absence.  

Leave Slots are an innovative holiday planning feature available in the latest release of Mitrefinch’s Time and Attendance System. 

This new functionality enables managers and supervisors to limit how many employees can be off on a given day or time period (e.g. the Monday before Cup Day) - averting potential staffing shortfalls and ensuring you have sufficient staff on hand to meet demand.

Employees can view available Leave Slots online and they will be unable to request leave once the limit has been reached – hence HR won’t need to deal with multiple requests from staff on what days are available etc...

In addition, Absence Profiling, allows you to see who took a sick day, when, and if any particular pattern is forming. For example, you could check back to last year and see if there was a significant spike in absence on the Monday of Cup Week – and take appropriate action.

If you happen to work in an industry where staff are required to work on Cup Day, an automated Time and Attendance Software System can also take the stress out of payroll processing – by easily calculate overtime pay and public holiday penalties, and exporting this information direct to your external payroll application. 

For more information call 1300 884 831 or email sales@mitrefinch.com.au

Read more: 

Smart Company: Cup day blues legal expert warns businesses to get their work policies in order

mX Sydney: Race that stops nation if boss OK

Is stockpiled Annual Leave an issue for your Organisation?

According to the latest Government figures, Australian workers have accumulated a staggering 129 million days of annual leave worth up to $40bn in wages*.

While this means a lot of overdue holidays, it can also represent a huge liability on the balance sheet for many organisations, and employers should take action and encourage employees to redeem accumulated annual leave as we approach the Christmas and Summer holiday season.

Interestingly, HC Online also report that a global study by travel website Expedia show that Australia is the fifth most holiday-deprived nation, and Australian workers are reluctant to take all of their leave due to the uncertain economic outlook and uncertainty over how their employer will react to their request. 

This is particularly important when you consider that, employees who don’t take annual leave can often demonstrate higher levels of depression or anxiety-related stress compared to those who do take their holidays. 

The “No Leave, No Life” campaign supported by Tourism Australia, provides organisations with helpful resources to tackle the issue of stockpiled annual leave. The campaign website features an employer toolkit with a series of modules and practical case studies to assist with implementing a successful annual leave program. 

Do you know how much annual leave your workers have accumulated?

An automated time and attendance management system can help you effectively manage leave and holiday planning processes by:

• Keeping a central repository of all employee leave records, tracking all leave types such as Holiday or Personal leave
• Calculating leave eligibility based on an employee’s hours worked and hire date
• Creating work schedules that take in account employees on leave, thus ensuring you have sufficient cover to meet customer or project demands and deadlines
• Generating real time absence management and holiday planning reports 

In addition, Employee Self Service 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.

Want to find out more?

If you would like find out more about effective Leave Management and Holiday Planning contact Mitrefinch today on 1300 884 831 (+61 2 8762 7888) or email sales@mitrefinch.com.au

*Source: HC Online - No winners when it comes to untaken leave 

Also see our previous Blog Post “No Leave, No Life”

Australian Businesses failing to fully embrace flexible and mobile working practices

While the economic advantages of having flexible work options are widely recognised, new research has found that 85% of companies do not have an organisation-wide work from home policy, reports HC Online. 

84% of companies either never let employees work from home at all or do so only on an individual basis (67%)

The research study by recruiters Robert Half found that despite the obvious benefits of work-from-home initiatives, such as boosting staff morale and productivity, as well as reducing employee turnover, the majority of Australian companies are still not embracing a remote workforce.

The main roadblocks citied were trust, security of information and access to technology. 

Key statistics from the report included: 
• 85% of HR directors* agreed that non-financial benefits, including flexible time, have a positive impact on staff retention 
• 83% of HR leaders said that they find it more challenging to manage remote workers compared to workers on site and only 58% said that remote working policies were in place • One in three (30%) of HR decision-makers said they are actively planning to implement a flexible work scheme to improve staff engagement in the next twelve months 
• 84% of companies either never let employees work from home at all, or do so only on an individual basis (67%) 

Andrew Morris, director of Robert Half acknowledges that, companies are right to have a certain healthy paranoia about remote working, but that paranoia is best addressed through good technology and tight internal policies. 

“Flexible time and remote work can be powerful motivators and may result in significant morale, retention and productivity improvements. But a flexible work policy needs careful implementation and close supervision to be effective,” he added. 

Writing for the Huffington Post, Claire Morley-Jones, managing director at HR180 ltd, advises that helping employees achieve a good work life balance is a sensible workforce management strategy, bringing benefits for both businesses and staff. 

She added, offering flexible working opportunities is an essential part of creating a good work life balance and helps staff fit work around their personal commitments, such as looking after their children. 

"Flexible working should be a culture and something that is available to all, whether they want to use it to undertake further study, pursue a hobby or spend time with their families at sports days etc." 

Investing in staff scheduling and mobile workforce management software can make it easier for firms to implement flexible working practices, allowing them to keep track of employees' working hours whether they are in the office or working remotely. 

For more information on mobile workforce management technologies visit Mitrefinch online 

*201 HR directors across a broad range of industries in Australia were surveyed 

Source: HC Online