A Canadian worker has been ordered to repay her employer for “time theft” after being caught by monitoring software. (The Guardian, 2023)
Time theft is estimated to cost employers $400 billion per year. So, what can you do about it?
Make your expectation policies clear as day
A clear company policies should outline: - Overtime rules - Permitted personal tasks - How you ensure your time and attendance tracking reflect the truth - A time theft policy with transparent consequences
Be combative communicative
Discovering a time stealer? Don’t shout “You thief” at them. A constructive approach can get you anywhere. We don't want to sound cliche, but the impacts of effective communication are no joke.
Prevention is WAY better than cure
Employees tend to commit time fraud when they feel underappreciated. Provide them with growth opportunities, reward them for their great jobs, and build a culture they feel safe and engaged. Stealing work time will never cross their minds.
More manual effort involved = bigger room for time fraud
Thankfully, time and attendance software has come a long way. Activity-based, automated timesheets track when your employees are actually working – not just when they say they are.
Employees can be time thieves, and so can employers
Anyone can commit time fraud. Transparency of time cuts both ways. Don’t let overtime go unpaid. Don't let employee effort go unnoticed. Don't let their feedback go unheard.