Attendance Tracking with TimeForge does so much to improve efficiency, especially during peak Summer months. Let us show you how to do even more to prepare your business for seasonal changes in staff.
Summer.
In our younger days, that word used to bring forth juvenile feelings of hope, wonder, and freedom. Now, it’s just another part of the year—the hot one.
Well, that time of year is almost here again. With it come summertime staff considerations. More importantly, those summertime crews could bring on more headaches and stress for your company, especially if you’re not prepared. Like a retail company the night before Black Friday, you may feel as though you don’t have enough time to prepare. You may even want to put this off until next week when things slow down. Don’t. Some of the “blues” these summertime crews bring with them could have serious implications for your company. And, if you don’t face them head-on, you may experience even more stress and monetary loss later.
With the arrival of summertime staff, you’ll most likely find yourself asking some questions:
How do I manage a larger, newer, and likely younger work staff?
How will these new employees affect my HR process and documentation?
What do I need to watch out for with summertime staff in regards to Obamacare?
Managing Summertime Staff
You’re younger, newer workforce may force you to take a new approach in terms of management. Depending on your industry, you may experience a large boost in both sales and labor costs during the summer. The important thing is to coordinate effective employee schedules with attendance tracking to maximize efficiency and keep labor costs at a minimum.
Doing this with TimeForge allows you to assess your labor variance and keep your labor budget on track! Additionally, you need to balance that labor variance with employee productivity. Ensuring that your employees are productive can be done several ways. These include giving them flexible schedules, offering a relaxed and fun work environment, and even playing music during their shifts.
Never forget about the ACA
We hope you have already taken steps to determine where you stand when considering your responsibilities under Obamacare. It’s so important to educate yourself regarding the new obligations you face. If you’re familiar with the key Obamacare terms, you will be able to make better decisions for your business. You’ve probably determined your small- or large-employer status by calculating your number of full-time employees and full-time equivalence for your business.
Since these are the values that will determine whether you are required to offer healthcare coverage to your full-time employee, you are ahead of the curve when it comes to Obamacare. That’s great! However, you’re going to need to hire that summertime staff, which may throw everything off. Because you’ll have a bunch of new help, you’re going to have to recalculate the number of employees you have under the ACA (Yes, even if they’re only working part-time).
This may be one of the most important things you do for your company, because ignoring it could cost your company a fortune in fines. If you still haven’t calculated the status of your business, you need to do that today.
If you still haven’t formed a plan for approaching Obamacare in your business, check out our step-by-step guide, Obamacare: A Handbook for Employers.
HR Considerations with Summertime Staff
The flood of workers that the summer brings will likely burden your human resources personnel, and understandably so. Keeping track of all that new onboarding paperwork can be difficult—especially if the employee only works for a couple months. Keeping these documents in a digital form could keep your HR staff organized and stop them from pulling out their hair because of a cluttered desk.
Make the Call
At the end of the day, you’re running the show. The tough decisions are your call. And the results, whether good or bad (unfortunately, the bad ones in particular), are always reflected on you and your performance as a leader. You know what you’re doing or you wouldn’t be in this position. So, make the call. Start getting prepared now for the rush of new workers that your company is likely to experience during the summer. Just make sure that you keep these questions in mind and have a game plan for how to handle them in a way that is best for your company.
Authored by Joe Fiscus
