Did you know that telecommuting options in 2020 increased by 78%? This made remote work not only desirable to workers but also a viable option with developing technologies that support distance careers. If you have added work-from-home capabilities or if you want to automate time tracking in your business then you need the right software to manage it all. Start by reading this article about streamlining employee work schedules to improve your payroll operations.
What is Scheduling Software?
The main purpose of scheduling software is to make managing employees easier. Instead of writing who is working and for how long on a calendar or in a text message, hours are tracked in a digital database.
It also makes procedures like time-off requests, overtime, and schedule management easier using automation.
Clocking Employee Hours
Whether your staff is in their home office or on-site, having a virtual time clock can make sure that time isn’t wasted. It will also tell you how much you should be paying your employees based on work completed rather than a predetermined time slot.
Without a way to see when an employee is working rather than browsing online or taking a break for a snack, there is no way to tell how much work they’ve done. If you pay based on time, then you need to subtract time for breaks and personal errands.
Tracking the hours of productivity will also define shifts. Traditionally, shifts are supposed to end at a certain time. However, in most workplaces, the shift will end when someone comes to take over or when the work is completed. This method is unfair to your staff because more work isn’t rewarded.
To ensure people who work more get paid for their time and those who are late don’t, you need to log the actual hours worked.
Tracking Overtime
Under U.S. federal law, any employee who works more than 40 hours a week will be paid overtime. This is measured differently because the minimum overtime pay is 1.5 times more than the normal pay rate.
Tracking overtime is essential to comply with this law. You never want to assume an employee worked overtime because they stayed later than their shift. They may have left early or got to work late that day.
This is where overtime automation makes employee management easier. It makes determining overtime hours objective while showing you and your employees proof of hours worked. There will be no more discrepancies or incorrect overtime requests because the time clock app will make no mistakes.
Managing Schedules
Keeping employee schedules accurate takes a lot of work if you have more than a few staff members. You have to account for time-off requests, people calling out sick, and your staff’s personal schedules. Ensuring that hours are distributed equally and fairly is another concern.
Get a clear picture of your shifts with employee scheduling software. This will highlight errors in your schedule to avoid gaps, overlaps, and conflicts with individual requests.
A digital schedule will also display low productivity patterns like long lunches and late arrivals. You can determine who isn’t following the set schedule to make adjustments. The software also shows you if someone forgot to clock in, which will help you with having accurate payroll.
Processing Time-Off Requests
One of the biggest issues with business management is ensuring that you have proper coverage. Time-off requests are responsible for large holes in your schedule.
This can be remedied by automating your requests to make sure there aren’t overlapping vacations and personal days. It will also show your requests according to the submission time. This will prioritize which requests get approved first.
Another benefit of time-off request software is that your requests are also managed by the program. Employees fill out a uniform request by logging into their profile. This request is approved with just one click. You can then view your calendar with the approved time-off requests to see if all shifts are covered.
If there’s a duplicate request, the system won’t allow double approvals, avoiding large scheduling mistakes. By avoiding scheduling errors and automating the request process, you save time and money by allowing for more productive work.
Efficient and Safe Logins
To ensure that scheduling and time-tracking accounts are accurate and safe from outside interference, logins must be secure. You can offer several ways for your staff to log into their profiles and seamlessly clock in.
A simple pin code to clock in is a popular option because it is quick and easy to remember. Facial recognition using biometrics alleviates the need to remember any code or password and protects against fraud. If someone wrote down their pin code, it could get stolen. Or if they forget their pin code, it takes time to reset.
Having a backup or multi-authenticator like device authorization or using a mobile app secures your employees’ time logs and personal information. It also makes sure that someone else can’t clock in for their coworker in the office or a family member while at home.
Choosing a Work Schedule Software
Managing your work schedule using software will improve productivity and save you money, but only if you pick the right software. You want a program that has features to enhance automation that is also easy to use.
The Time Track Go software considers all of your time-tracking needs with a user-friendly interface.
Start creating your new work schedule on Time Track Go by contacting us today.
