Ever wondered what we mean when we talk about award interpretation?
Imagine this: you’ve planned your roster perfectly. Ticked all the boxes for your staffing requirements and award rules, and kept payroll in the loop. But, there’s a government change to award rules that’s just dropped and two of your staff are sick.
You’re now facing hours following up information, updating rosters, getting across the updated rules, and calculating pay rates.
There’s no way around it – award rules are complex and varied. Interpreting them takes time and even with a solid understanding, these highly complex processes are open to human error, resulting in frustrated staff.
What if there was a simpler and quicker way? The good news is, there is!
And the simpler way award goes to…automation. Specifically, automating your workplace award and pay rules so you never have to spend hours manually adjusting them again.
Ento’s Award Interpretation Engine securely and accurately automates your workplace award rules by adapting to changing rosters, updating payroll and ensuring staff receive the correct take-home pay.
Overview of managing award rates
With Australia and New Zealand having some of the most complex pay rules in the world, it’s easy for award rule management to feel overwhelming.
For example, managing award rates in Australia involves applying the national minimum wage and any award or registered agreement rules that an employee is covered by, as outlined by Fairwork Australia.
In New Zealand, minimum wage rates currently apply and Fair Pay Agreements are set to be introduced from 2022. Fair Pay Agreements aim to set industry-wide minimum standards of pay for all who work in a particular industry.
In Canada, Canada Payroll Legislation governs rules and regulations which vary across Canada’s ten provinces and three territories. Many businesses will apply award rules relevant to their specific province or territory, however certain employee’s sit beneath a federal standard.
That’s where our Award Interpreter Engine comes into play, supporting you by automating and managing all of these moving parts for you.
What is Ento’s Award Interpreter Engine?
Ento’s proprietary Award Interpretation Engine is a powerful solution that can flexibly and securely automate thousands of unique and complex rule scenarios simultaneously, giving your workforce access to the accurate and real-time data you need to make quick decisions.
The Award Interpreter easily:
- Automates complex award and agreement calculations
- Automates leave, TOIL and complex accrual rates
- Syncs with your payroll system
- Manages timesheets, staff detail changes and new roles or sites
We’ve had the pleasure of automating Award and EBA (Enterprise Bargaining Agreements) interpretation for hundreds of businesses across a wide range of industries including healthcare, hospitality, retail, facility management, security, construction and more.
How does it work?
To get started, we set up your unique set of rules and specific requirements, the Award Interpretation engine will take care of:
- Cost calculation and assignment of rostered and authorised hours to pay rate categories
- Enforcing compliance rules that set restrictions on the way staff can be rostered
- Real-time on-roster cost vs budget management and approval thresholds
- ‘What if?’ analysis on cost & compliance for shift swaps and critical decision points
- Cost reporting and history including full audit logs on every shift
- Compiles and formats data for direct integration with leading payroll systems
- Managing leave requests, accruals and deductions
Each award profile factors in Award rules or other documented rules, like EBAs. It can also apply simple pay rules for contractors and employees who are paid a fixed salary.
This is a fully managed service – learn more about what it involves here!
How can Ento’s Award Interpreter help with rostering and payroll?
Ento’s Award Interpreter allows you to make roster to budget with ease, knowing that your rate calculations will automatically move across and recalculate accordingly. You can also prepare ‘what if’ scenarios to determine the costs of shift swaps and other roster changes.
It supports you to make sure your payroll is compliant with the award rules and legislation for your country and area, and updates according to award changes (as they occur).
If taking award interpretation off your to-do list sounds good, and you’re ready for greater peace of mind and precious hours back in your day, the next step is to book a free demo to see how Ento’s award interpreter works.
