Dealing with employees and managers who are chronically late in submitting timesheets is a problem that has challenged payroll and human resource professionals since the beginning of time. You've heard how time and labor solutions drive the bottom line results, but somehow struggle to meet timecard submission deadlines.
How-To Eliminate Late Employee Timesheets
We have a few tips and time and labor strategies to help eliminate, or at least reduce, the number of late timesheet submissions that will give you the winning edge and ensure your timekeeping processes are efficient and streamlined for everyone involved.
Simplify the Employee Timecard Approval Process
The benefits of a modern timekeeping system and other time and labor features are undeniable for many HR professionals, as the automated solutions are essential for simplifying the entire process. Many features in today's time and labor systems make processes for day-to-day time entry, timesheet submission, and timecard approval steps simple and easy to follow.
Make every effort possible to streamline and create efficiencies for the team. Evaluate what can be done better with your time and labor management practices and policies, as well as your workforce scheduling process, by asking yourself...
- Are you setting up your users for success?
- Can you automate rules, rely on reporting, or simplify processes using security overrides to reduce the buckets your users interact with?
- Can you consolidate data, clean up old and unused pay rules, or segment complex time tracking requirements into specific departments or job classifications?
Be honest with yourself, and if you don't like the answer for even one of these questions, it's time to develop some ways to simplify the process.
Define Timesheet Submission & Approval Deadlines
Set timesheet submission deadlines for your employees and approval deadlines for your managers. Make sure your written attendance and time tracking policies are clear and enforce the rules in your time and labor management software and system. Uniformity in your policy and consistency in your practice open the doors for coaching and progressive disciplinary policies to correct errant behavior as it occurs.
Set Automatic Timesheet Reminders
Sending email reminders to employees and managers each pay period to remind them and guide them through the timesheet or timecard submission process is an effective method for staying on top of submissions.
Setting automated reminders should be tailored to either late timesheet or timecard submissions for both the employee and the employer:
-
Employee timecard reminders should convey messages about what they are required to do, when they are required to do it, and explain why it is important.
-
Manager timecard reminders should be crafted to remind them that they are responsible for approving timesheets by the approval deadline.
Be sure to explain why timely submission and approval are important, and discuss the impact missing timesheets have on other departments and the company as a whole, particularly when it comes to the payroll documentation process. In every case, you should remind everyone how easy it is to submit or approve timesheets.
Make Employee Timesheet Submissions Easy & Accessible
Take all excuses away from your users by ensuring your workforce has access to submit and approve timesheets from their computers and mobile devices. Be sure to message how easy it is to access, submit, and approve timesheets in your email communications to all users, so everyone is aware of the flexible options.
Use HCM mobile technology, and cautiously use restrictions that prevent access. If you feel the urge to restrict access, make sure your bad example employees aren't ruining it for everyone else.
Again, this is all made much easier and much more possible with a powerful time and labor solution at your back.
Reinforce Timesheet Processes With Executive Intervention
Make sure you've clearly communicated to managers that they are required to approve timesheets to maintain compliance with labor laws, primarily the Fair Labor Standards Act (FLSA). When needing to address late submission or approval duties for specific offenders, you may want to send email notifications up the chain of command.
Persistent offenders will be used to hearing their managers complain each pay period- but they're likely to take note if they hear from a Director or VP-level employee. More often than not, the behavior will be corrected immediately.
Get Help Managing Late Employee Timesheet Submissions
These simple but effective steps are a sure-fire way to quell your late submission problems. If you're manually tracking time or using a legacy system that isn't capable of automation, then it may be time to evaluate your timekeeping options.
For employers who are continuing to struggle with timecard submissions, timecard approvals, and reminders, it may be time to consider a flexible, cloud-based time and labor software. To see how Inflection HR is already helping countless businesses manage their timecard submissions, as well as time and attendance, contact us today.
