TECHNOLOGY
How to develop and maintain employee trust through reliable payroll
Simon ParsonsMSc FCIPPdipMBCS, director of UK compliance strategies at SDWorx UK, takes us through the different steps on howpayroll can prevent and rebuild a breakdown in employee trust
T he pandemic has resulted in widescale disruption affecting both business stability and growth; and it’s likely that we’ll see its impact continue through the coming years. And these ongoing disruptive changes, which have compelled leaders to downsize by cutting staff numbers and reducing employee hours, have complicated the process of building and maintaining employee trust in many of the hardest hit sectors, including construction, hospitality, healthcare and education. Many leaders now need to grapple with both external and internal issues, with the anticipation of potential lockdowns and further lost revenue, as well as these new challenges around maintaining and developing employee trust. Businesses need to remedy internal issues by being attentive to the growing apprehensions of staff or face a disengaged workforce and a potential uptick in people leaving the company. Boosting productivity through employee engagement Most business sectors have been largely and negatively impacted by the pandemic, and this is reflected in morale trends. Research from SD Worx (see https:// bit.ly/3xm7hyf) found that more than half of companies (51%) saw employee morale deteriorate, with hospitality (63%), healthcare (58%), the cultural sector (67%), and education (60%) showing the worst scores in this respect. In addition, there was also 37% less recruitment of flex workers and temporary hired staff in the countries surveyed – indicating that industry confidence has taken a drastic fall.
The construction industry, like retail, hospitality, and leisure industries, has been dealt a considerable blow by restrictions and lockdowns. There has been widespread interruption to projects and a surge in redundancies, with 43% of construction businesses anticipating people cuts, as highlighted by the report Retaining talent in construction (https:// bit.ly/2TBYjhW) from the Construction Leadership Council. So, how can trust be rebuilt for employees in these sectors? One way is through payroll management which is explored below. ...to remedy internal issues by being attentive to the growing apprehensions of staff or face a disengaged workforce... Pandemic apprehension greatest amongst construction workers The trust between employer and employees is based on the payment they receive for a day’s work, and all workers need the guarantee of steady payroll income to finance their bills and rent costs – so this is a must-have for employers to avoid their employees losing faith. Upheaval through 2020 impacted employees based on-site across many
sectors – construction workers and restaurant waiters alike – leading to the roll out of furlough schemes as well as increases in reliance on the temporary workforce, increasing challenges associated with reliable payroll management. Despite short-term implementation costs, organisations that invested in workforce management systems profited from the benefits in streamlined people management. These systems not only handle the scheduling of employee timetables, but also keep track of the actual hours worked – monitoring overtime, hours clocked-in and -out, and sick days for thousands of workers, whether they are full-time, part-time, contractors or sub-contractors, across multiple sites. Workforce management systems as a tool for eradicating manual systems Handling information in a better, more efficient way decreases the time needed for administrative tasks and reduces errors. Workforce management systems can eradicate the need for manual form-filling and cross-checking – this way nothing can be misplaced or miscalculated. In addition, these workforce management systems can also provide a clear audit trail, thereby helping businesses comply with the regulations that are covered under schemes such as the Construction Industry Scheme (CIS). By integrating a workforce management system with payroll, it will not just ensure accuracy but will also allow organisations to automate processes and replace paper-
| Professional in Payroll, Pensions and Reward | July / August 2021 | Issue 72 36
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