How to track employees on zero hour contracts

In 2023, figures reveal there were approximately 1.18 million people on zero hours contracts in the United Kingdom. This represents 3.6% of all workers in the United Kingdom.

Zero hours contracts have become increasingly popular in various industries, including retail, care work, and leisure, offering flexibility to both employers and workers. While these contracts may have stirred some controversy, they undoubtedly provide an attractive option for individuals seeking a lower and more adaptable level of work commitment, such as students, parents, and caregivers.

It's important to note that even though zero-hour workers fall under the 'worker' status rather than full 'employee' status, they still enjoy many of the same employment rights as regular employees. This includes entitlements to holiday time off, the National Minimum Wage (for those under 25 or apprentices), and the National Living Wage (for those aged 25 and over), as well as work-related travel benefits, just like any other employee.

To effectively manage a workforce that includes zero-hour contract workers, your business needs to:

1. Track the often irregular working patterns of zero-hour contract workers.
2. Calculate pay accurately, considering variable hours worked, pay rates, and holiday time.

Effectively managing the hours worked by a diverse range of staff can be an intricate task, but ensuring precision in these records is crucial for optimising operations. Numerous businesses have discovered that automated time and attendance software significantly streamlines the process of tracking employees, including those on zero-hour contracts, making it more efficient and hassle-free.

A robust cloud-based automated time and attendance software solution offers numerous advantages:

• Provides various clocking-in options for workers, making it easy to track staff with variable working patterns.
• Enables real-time monitoring of on-site staff, facilitating tasks like fire roll calls and promptly identifying absent or late workers.
• Allows supervisors to verify and authorise online timesheets from anywhere, thanks to the cloud-based nature of the software.
• Calculates accrued annual leave based on hours worked.
• Seamlessly exports clocking-in data and rate of pay information to your payroll system for accurate wage payments.
• Scales up or down as your business evolves, ensuring that even SMEs can access the same tools and processes as their larger competitors.

While zero-hour contracts remain a part of the UK economy, businesses have a fantastic opportunity to enhance efficiency and reduce management costs by adopting cloud-based time and attendance software solutions like uAttend. These cutting-edge systems not only excel at efficiently managing staff with flexible hours but also present a superior alternative to outdated methods, such as paper-based timesheets, for tracking and overseeing all types of staff.

In conclusion, irrespective of the ongoing debate surrounding zero-hour contracts, they continue to be a viable option for flexible working arrangements. Embracing cloud-based time and attendance software like uAttend provides an efficient and contemporary solution to streamline your workforce management processes, offering substantial savings in both time and resources.