How to Get Your Employees to Enter Timesheets On Time?

In the wake of changes to Modern Awards in 2020, we know that Australian employers are now obligated to keep timesheet records for all of their employees (read about that here). This development means a large number of Australian businesses have  forced to change their payroll practices. This creates a serious headache for employers. Consider this example:

Bob runs a wholesale plant business and employs 20 full time staff under the Horticulture Award. Bob needs to implement a timesheet system on the back of the Modern Award changes. He also has a further problem. Bob’s full time staff typically work the same hours each pay period and are paid the same salary each cycle. They’ve never had to complete timesheets before and they don’t see the point of having to do it now. So businesses like Bob’s not only have to find a timesheet system BUT they also have to get their staff to use it.

Investing in new systems can be costly, especially when the changes do not get the buy-in of staff. Too often managers we speak with are faced with the dreaded question: “how do I get my employees to actually use the software and submit their timesheets?”

For an employer to be Fair Work compliant, timesheet data and any payroll reports must be accurate. The accuracy of timesheets is placed at risk unless it is easy for staff to record time entries.

When staff fill out timesheets days or weeks after the hours were worked, gaps start to appear. Critical calculations such as average ordinary hours worked over an agreed period and other minimum entitlements are impacted. With inaccurate timesheet data, compliance reporting is compromised.

In more extreme cases, managers don’t even have the luxury of inaccurate data as some employees do not fill in their timesheets at all. Forgetful staff members therefore place their employers at risk of not complying with the obligations set out under the relevant Modern Award. Any worker employed under a Modern Award MUST record a timesheet.

What happens if your business is asked to produce compliance records but your staff haven’t submitted timesheets?

Changes to Modern Awards mean that timesheets are important

Timesheet recording can be a difficult habit to implement, especially if most employees have never previously recorded their worked hours. 

The key stakeholders involved in executing this change management strategy are supervisors who are responsible for staffing schedules or approving timesheets and then the accounts payable managers. They would do well to heed the following tips around improving timesheet compliance amongst all staff.

Tip 1 – Empower and Equip

To make filling out timesheets fast and easy, employees need one system. A simple dashboard with a simple user menu to help capture all of their time. When employees are only required to fill out timesheets once and in one central place, companies have a better shot at capturing daily time entry and accurate data that they can rely on! 

Timekeeping is not a complex process. Your choice of software might not need all the bells and whistles. It should as a priority give staff easy access and limit fussing about when entering times at the outset. 

At Fairtime, our timesheet system sends automated email reminders to staff who don’t submit their timesheet. Introducing email reminders increases the likelihood of the timesheet being submitted by 64%.

Tip 2 – Incentivise

Incentives and rewards when used effectively can not only push employees on an individual level, but also build a wider culture of compliance in the workplace as staff compete for the rewards. 

A creative ad agency put together a campaign to illustrate this reward system in order to get employees to fill out their timesheets correctly. Their pitch was simple: “Do your timesheet and we’ll give you free beer (or soda!)”. 

They executed this by bringing in a vending machine to the office which was directly plugged into their time tracking software. Whenever an employee successfully filled out and submitted their timesheet on time, a drink was made available to that same employee.

An important part of this is setting a regular expectation of when the timesheets must be submitted in order to be eligible for any rewards. But change requires speaking the language of your staff and understanding also what they enjoy. As the executive at the agency said “We know filling out timesheets is mandatory, but it can also be fun.”

Tip 3 – Tough Love

If you’re sensing that your employees require something more direct than just friendly encouragement, you could take a page from another sales and marketing company who found an equally effective way to get all of their employees to record their time.

The company went as far as shaming timesheet slackers by posting their photos in the building hallways with captions like “I haven’t done my timesheet in two weeks.” Conversely, you could also use this to reward stand out staff members who do complete timesheets on time by arranging a photoshoot and celebrating their efforts to date. 

The bottom line of the tough love approach is that money is a powerful motivator. If you can make it clearly known to all staff that unless they submit their timesheet, pay cannot be calculated and will not be paid along with everyone else, you will see immediate changes.

Tip 4 – If all else fails

Moving your employees to hourly pay, rather than salary, is an effective way to ensure everyone tracks their time as a fail-safe. 

There are drawbacks to Annualised Wage Agreements for both the employer and their staff. To ensure that everyone is being paid exactly what they are delivering for the company, calculating time and attendance in instances where they finish early or work late becomes essential. This is exactly why Fair Work is now mandating that staff who are employed under an Award MUST record a timesheet. It’s all about making sure that a worker is paid for EVERY HOUR that they work.

It’s clear that getting your employees to record their time can be a tricky challenge, especially if involves a change in procedure for your company.
The methods listed here are just a few ways to help your personnel make the shift easier. 

To help ensure your company’s profitability and eliminate business risk, payroll compliance is essential. This starts with matching your staff with tools that can empower them.

Employee adoption is an effective measure of successful software implementation. If your staff are not using your software, it might be time to speak to your provider about what you can do to change that.

Why Fairtime?

Fairtime is designed with the employer and the employee in mind. All the complex reporting functions are only visible to managers. Our unique system gives approvers the chance to focus on compliance work. Conversely, employees get a seamless user experience where it takes only a few seconds to enter a timesheet.

Our smart timesheet functionality can track and record shift patterns for individual users, so the next time they need to enter their typical work hours, it can be done with just a few clicks!