The time has come for Time & Attendance

The time has come for Time & Attendance

16 May 2022

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Time & Attendance (T&A) has traditionally been an underappreciated aspect of an employer’s workforce management function, often seen by users as an administration burden. However with advancements in technology, a greater spotlight on employer obligations and a need to engage employees differently, T&A is coming into its own and bringing with it endless opportunities for employers. In this article we dive into some key trends in the area T&A that we think are worth considering as we approach the 2022 half-way mark. 

Concentrating on compliance

Wage trust remains a key focus area for employers and as such compliance has become the hottest word in workforce management. The complex industrial landscape coupled with continued scrutiny from regulators, has employers looking towards their T&A software to help them mitigate risk of non-compliance in this area. 

So, where to begin? A good starting point is by proactively undertaking a review and risk assessment across your T&A processes, with interpretation of employee entitlements. Ask questions such as - Are you compliant with any updates that have occurred? Does your T&A system cater for the application of all employee payment entitlements? Are you capturing accurate time for all required workers? Do you have the ability to report on data for annualised salary reconciliations, and, if so, are you performing them regularly? An inquisitive approach will ensure you stay on top of your compliance obligations. 

Remember, a robust T&A helps keep FWO away! 

Analyse this…

With more organisations capturing data on actual hours worked (either due to the March 2020 changes to some Award requirements or as a basis to pay employees) more valuable insights are readily available to leadership than ever before. 

To get an idea of how detailed these insights can be, think about how data captured within T&A can be used to enhance your knowledge of your workforce. Just some examples of these include: 

• the measure and control of fatigue management; 
• identification of trends and opportunities for optimisation in areas such as overtime, shift work allocation and workforce mix;
• managing work requirements, such as capturing vaccination status, and preventing scheduling and access based on this information. 

The capabilities of data are endless and provide opportunities to better understand and utilise your workforce. 

T&A as a tool to improve employee engagement

In response to new ways of working, organisations are leaning into their software solutions to engage with employees in a different way. T&A software poses a unique opportunity in that it is often an enterprise tool, utilised by the majority of an organisation’s workforce. As such, we are seeing an increased adoption of T&A software functionalities that were previously seen as ‘nice to have’, including capabilities such as shift-swaps, communication modules and shift feedback. 

To ensure you are utilising the appropriate range of functionality for your business, and optimising your return on investment, review your existing system configuration in conjunction with your workforce management strategy to identify areas of opportunity in which each can support the other. While enabling the delivery of strategy, employers can simultaneously drive engagement through easy to use and interactive interfaces, connecting the employee to the employer.

So, whether the year is running away from you or not, you still have time to make the most of the second half of the year - Make 2022 the year you make Time & Attendance work for you and your workforce.

Please don’t hesitate to get in touch with one of our Payroll Advisory specialists if you want to discuss.