The Friday Tip - page 12

Reporting Update

26th June 2020

Effective reporting is a key part of the management of HR information. Real benefits can be gained by analysing the data held in your HR system. We recently added to the reporting features provided via the People Inc. system:

• We added a batch of analysis reports to the People Inc. report library recently. Click here to see some examples. These can be downloaded into your copy of People Inc. using the Report Browser feature. Click here for information about this tool.
• We added a new feature to the Employee Self-Service module to generate statistics relating to employee data. More details here.

Please call us for more information about these features.

8 ways that People Inc. can help promote diversity

5th June 2020

Here are 8 simple ways that People Inc. can help promote diversity within your organisation.

• Recruitment: record and monitor diversity information for applicants
• Reporting: analyse HR records to help identify equality issues
• HR Policies: manage sign-off on equality policy documents
• Training: ensure that all staff have attended diversity training
• Statistics: make equality info visible via the ESS indicators/dashboard.
• Communication: publish diversity committee findings via the ESS news
• Grievance: register and manage grievance details within the system
• Disciplinary: register details on disciplinary incidents within the system

Accident at Work

29th May 2020

While there is no Accident at Work screen provided in the standard configuration of the People Inc. system, we regularly have request from clients to add this feature for them.

Using the People Inc. Screen Designer, it is easy to add a screen to enable staff to record details of accidents that occur in the workplace. This information can then be analysed using the reporting feature within the system.

Employees can then add details of accidents they have been involved in or witnessed, attach photographs, and fill out detailed accident reporting forms via their ESS account.

Manage Medicals

22nd May 2020

It is possible to manage information about employee Medicals using the People Inc. system. These might include fork truck driver medicals, eye tests, working at height medicals, medicals for food handlers, etc. It may also be necessary to arrange Fit for Work medicals from time to time.

Details of employee medicals can be recorded within the system together with scanned copies of documents and details of any follow up actions. The People Inc. system will then remind users when the follow up actions need to be done, while keeping a full and detailed history of medicals attended by employees.

Manage Equipment

15th May 2020

The People Inc. system includes a screen designed to record information about equipment issued to employees. This could include clothing, PPE and IT equipment, as well as any other items that they need to do their job.

Where equipment needs to be checked regularly (tested/serviced) or where equipment needs to be returned when the employee leaves the organisation, this can be manager using reminders generated by the system.

Some clients add an ESS Equipment/Clothing request form to their ESS system for staff to use when they need to replace equipment they have been issued.

Emergency Volunteering Leave

8th May 2020

The government has introduced Emergency Volunteering Leave as a statutory right to enable workers to take time off to volunteer in the health or social care sectors. There are exceptions, but the majority of workers, are now entitled to take this new category of leave, provided they have an emergency volunteering certificate (issued by a local authority, the NHS Commissioning Board or the Department of Health).

Employees need to give their employer at least three working days’ notice in writing together with a copy of the certificate.

There are certain situations, however, when an employee is not entitled to undertake a period of emergency volunteering leave.

Absence from Work (coronavirus)

1st May 2020

There are several categories of absence relating to the coronavirus pandemic. These can all be recorded and managed within People Inc.

Users should record details of the period that staff are furloughed; they will need to retain records relating to the time employees are on this scheme.

If staff have contracted the virus they will be registered as sick (in the same was as they would have sickness records for other illnesses).

Records for staff who are self-isolating need to be recorded. In addition some employees will need time off to assist others who have to self-isolate.

Where an employee has had a letter from the NHS declaring them vulnerable they will need to stay at home (shielding, for at least 12 weeks).

VE Day

24th April 2020

Just a quick reminder, this year the early May bank holiday has moved from Monday 4th May to Friday 8th May. This was done to commemorate the 75th Anniversary of VE Day.

If you have not done so already you should update the Bank Holidays within your People Inc. system to reflect this change. Bank Holidays are assigned to each Company within People Inc. to accommodate organisations with staff in a number of different regions.

Once the Bank Holiday is registered, the system will automatically adjust the time associated with absence bookings for you. For new entries this happens straight away; for existing records this will happen overnight.

Carry Over

10th April 2020

During the coronavirus shut down, staff should still book and take paid leave, even those furloughed under the Coronavirus Job Retention Scheme.

Normally employees should use their paid holiday in the current leave year. Where this is not possible, a new temporary law entitles employees to carry over up to 4 weeks’ paid holiday. This applies for example if they are too sick to take holiday before the end of the leave year, or if they have had to continue working and cannot take holiday. This carried-over holiday can be taken at any time over a 2-year period.

If this affects your organisation you will need to either make some changes to the settings that manage carry over within People Inc. or look to carry over holiday manually at the end of the leave year (both this year and next)

Managing records for Furloughed staff

3rd April 2020

There are several ways that People Inc. can help to record and manage information relating to Furloughed employees.

Updating the employee status for furloughed staff provides a quick and simple way to differentiate between those who are furloughed and those who are still working. Users can then list records separately (using the search tool or via filters), or combine Active and Furloughed staff in one filter.

Copies of any contract amendments of other associated paperwork should be attached to the employee's record for reference.

Users should add a new absence category to enable them to record more detailed information, including the dates associated with the period an employee is away from work. Furlough records are then recorded in the employee’s absence history.

Click here for more information.

It is possible to generate e-mail and printed letters using People Inc. These are based on user-definable letter templates. The system keeps a record of all communication with employees.

Copies of letters can be attached to employee records and these can be made available via the ESS so that employees can read them electronically.

Click here for more information about the People Inc. Employee Directory.

Working from Home

13th March 2020

While Home Working is clearly not a category of absence, recording it within an employee’s Absence History has a number of benefits. First and foremost, it provides a central area to manage who is at work and who is working from home. This information can be accessed by management and other staff and can be reported on easily.

The absence calendars (both individual and group calendars) provide a visual summary of who is at work and who is working from home, and these are both readily available via the ESS module.

For organisations who use the Employee Directory, this tool give staff an indication of who is at work and who is not next to each employee's name (when the phone rings…)

Personalise your Wizard List.

21st February 2020

There are around 30 or 40 Wizards and Plug-ins available for People Inc. Most users will not need them all. For example, somebody responsible for recruitment might only use the 3 recruitment-related wizards.

Each user can change the list of Wizards and Plug-ins they see using their personal preferences. These are accessed using one of the small buttons at the top of the screen (the button with a tick and a cross on it).

Note that it is also possible for administrators to limit access to Wizards and Plug-ins by customising the user's access profile. Displaying a list of just the Wizards a user needs will make the system easier to use.

Just for you this Valentine's Day.

14th February 2020

It is possible to change the theme the People Inc. system uses. Selecting a different theme changes the way the system looks. The theme is changed using one of the small buttons in the top left-hand corner of the People Inc. screen.

There are themes designed for different times of the year. Loading the Valentine theme adds love-hearts to controls on the screen and changes the screen background too.

Adding Forms to People Inc.

7th February 2020

Using electronic forms is an excellent way to speed up communication, help employees manage their own information, and minimise the use of paper.

The People Inc. Screen designer enables users to create request forms for a wide variety of purposes. These forms can then be published via the ESS so that they can be completed and submitted by employees. Using electronic forms means that a full audit trail is available when needed.

Examples of forms include: a return to work form (following a period of sickness), a clothing request form, a training evaluation form, a pension contribution change form, a bank details change form, an appraisal form, and an expenses claim form. Simple forms take less than an hour to add to the system.

No appraisal this year?

31st January 2020

Filters are a simple tool that can instantly identify missing information or activities that should have been scheduled. A filter could show all the passports or visas that expire in the near future, or the staff who have not yet taken all of their holiday allowance this year, or those who have not had an appraisal during the past 12 months.

People Inc. provides a number of different ways to help you to ensure that you never miss key dates such as appraisals. This includes the Action List and the Notifications and Reminders tools. Each approach works slightly differently; sometimes a combination of different approaches is the best way to go.